Workers Solidarity Movement

Since it's such a nice day, the Labour Party have some good news for you. They'd like to give back all the money they took from those who paid their Irish Water bills. That's quite a turnaround for Fine Gael's junior partner but they say it's because they don't want people "feeling mugged".

The 12th May saw the first demonstration protesting the effective Internment of Gaeilgeoir, graduate and political activist Dónal Ó Coisdealbha, outside the Dail.

Dónal will be held on remand in prison from 2015 until 2018 for trial,without chance of bail,or release,despite the fact that he is willing to accept the strictest of bail conditions,including electronic tagging and house arrest. There has been widespread condemnation and criticism of this serious infringement upon an Irish Citizens legal and human rights.

Some of those who have pledged their support to Dónal include TD's Clare Daly, Mick Wallace and Maureen O Sullivan.

A demonstration organised by United Against Racism took place on Tuesday 10^th on Nutgrove Way, Rathfarnham. Despite the wet and windy weather, a couple hundred people assembled to show solidarity with the Ahmadzai family - originally from Afghanistan - and to send a message to their assailants. 4 men, at least some of them local, carried out a vicious and pre-meditated racist attack on brothers Naqib (18) and Fazal (20), and their 13-year-old nephew Abdul, on Thursday 5^th at around 8pm as they walked home.

We spent the day of the 100th anniversary of the 1916 rising on the streets of Dublin recording the various peoples commemorative events. This was the actual anniversary on 24th April rather than the religious nationalist and state favoured date of the Easter weekend a month back.

In a lot of ways this seperation was a very good thing as the state commemorations with its parades of soldiers and sealed off areas for dignitaries behind which hated politicians laid wreaths had little positive to be said about it.

A protest took place yesterday (7th May) in Belfast as part of a set of UK-wide and broader European demonstrations against immigration detention centres. The group of about two dozen protestors set up a mock detention centre outside of Belfast's Europa bus centre at 1pm today.

The photo shows stickering by anti-racists/anti-fascists on Nutgrove Way, Rathfarnham, where the vicious racist attack on 3 migrants by 5 men happened on the evening of Thursday, 5th May. All 3 – originally from Afghanistan - went to hospital for their injuries. The 18 and 20-year-old brothers were beaten unconscious (some of the assailants using a blunt metal weapon), and their 13-year-old nephew was punched in the face.

'“They rolled down the window and started shouting the F-word many times, swearing a lot and saying, ‘Why are you here? Go back to your country,’” [the boy's father] said.'

On May 9th there was a protest against the giveaway of public land to private interests, outside Dublin City Hall.  As part of the "Housing Land Initiative" Dublin City Council is threating to hand land across Dublin - in O'Devaney Garden, St Michael's Estate and Oscar Traynor Road - over to private developers.

Activists are calling on Dublin City Councillors to:
1. Halt the Housing Land Initiative
2. In St Michael's estate and O'Devaney Gardens, ensure regeneration committee are re-established and consulted prior to all decisions,
3. In O'Devaney Gardens, build homes on-site for remaining residents before making remaining residents leave their current homes
4. Use all three sites to build cross-subsidised public housing that's accessible to all income groups evenly, with those who earn more paying higher rent.

2016 is turning into a momentous year. Victory now looks certain in the water charges campaign but it was never just about water and a victory that leaves the ruling parties in power has a sour taste. The 1916 commemorations reminded us that even small numbers of committed organised people can initiate big changes, but also that limiting what is fought for will result in the capitalist class reasserting control as soon as the gun smoke clears.

The Dublin Anarchist Bookfair demonstrated once more that there is a huge interest in anarchist ideas. Hundreds took part in the event and although it was free we can now confirm that donations from those attending have covered the entire cost of about 2600 euro. The DABF is a good example of how anarchists organised together can make things happen that otherwise would not take place.

Dublin saw a day of protests in solidarity with the Kurdish Freedom struggle today. The video shows the protest at the GPO, site of the 1916 rebellion against British colonialism 100 years ago. During that rebellion British forces destroyed much of the center of Dublin and murdered civilians much as the Turkish state has been doing in Bakur (SE Turkey) over the last months.

Close to 200 people gathered outside of the Public Prosecution Service and the Courts in Belfast yesterday (April 7) to protest against the decision to give a three month suspended sentence for two years to a young woman who had an abortion in her home.

The 21-year-old woman tried to raise funds to travel to England so she could have the procedure done legally but when she was unable to come up with the costly funds she was left with no other option but to order abortion pills online like so many other women have been forced to do.