Protests and greetings from around the world
dublin |
bin tax / household tax / water tax |
press release
Tuesday September 30, 2003 01:20
by Francisco Raposo - Lisbon Council Workers Union
francisrap at sapo dot pt
Note from IMC Editorial: This page also includes solidarity messages and protest reports from other locations. Please add future messages as comments to this article rather than as new news articles. Thanks!
Lisbon Council Workers Union call to free Clare and Joe
The case of the 2 AntiBin Tax is provoking outrage among Portuguese workers and activists.
The fowlling message was send to the Taoiseach on bealf of 12.000 strong Lisbon Council Workers
Taoiseach (prime Minister):
Na Taolseach, Mr. Bertie Ahern T.D.,
Department of the Taoiseach,
Government Buildings
Upper Merion Street,
Dubin 2.
Dear Sir
It was with deep outrage that we, Lisbon Council Workers Union, get the new of the one month jail of. Mr. Joe Higgins, TD and Cllr. Clare Daly.
They jailing have the main target of stop the development of the anti Tax Bin Campaign, however the judicial decision is also a serious attack on protest right and an curtail of Mr. Joe Higgins TD and Cllr. Clare Daly ‘mandates to defend de interest of they voters.
We believe that we are not wrong to say that, in this moment, Joe Higgins and Clare Daly are political prisoners.
They jailing – and the others steps of strength of Gardai powers to arrest any resident which peacefully protest against the discretionary of not collecting bin from those that refuse to pay an unjust tax – are an intolerable threat and warning to all that activity opposed to any not just measure.
Therefore we demand an immediate and unconditional release of. Mr. Joe Higgins, TD, Cllr. Mrs. Clare Daly and others anti bin tax colleges and the immediate stop to all issues to defeat the movement that in these 3 long years are fighting against an unjust bin tax.
Yours
On behalf of
Lisbon Council Workers Union
Libério Domingues,
President
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Comments (8 of 8)
Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8Great to see the mainly protestant councilworkers in the new city of Lisburn eschewing sectarianism and showing solidarity with their fellow working class comrades down south. I can see their standard of english is improving. It's streets ahead of that found on loyalist websites.
as in... Portugal!
And I doubt very much if you are in the SP. Seems like trolling to me.
Ok it was a wind up. and I am not in the sp. In all seriousness it's good to see trades unionists taking seriously the need to confront neoliberal economic agendas globally through solidarity. But humour is a weapon in our arsenal too.
San Deigo support for Bin Tax struggle. by john throne - labors militant voice Thursday, Oct 2 2003, 3:35pm loughfinn@aol.com Direct Action neighborhood group in San Deigo supports the bin tax struggle San Diego, CA Sept. 24, 2003 To Whom It May Concern: The California Coalition Against Poverty (CCAP) stands in complete solidarity with the Irish anti-bin tax movement. The courage and tactics of our Irish sisters and brothers to physically defy the garbage collection double-tax are both an education and inspiration to us. San Diego is a long way from Dublin, but this type of policy is not at all foreign to us. The capitalist War On The Poor has no borders and neither will our resistance. Repeal The Bin Tax! Free Clare Daly, Joe Higgins, and All Political Prisoners! Be Warned: Resistance Is Rising! California Coalition Against Poverty Whatever It Takes tel. (619) 819-7806 related link: http://laborsmilitantvoice.com,movementsforsocialism.com
Support for the Irish Stop the Bin Tax has been consistent in California.
The RTS event which met the first incarceration of "red" elected representatives in the Irish Republic was covered through the autonomous newsgroups and met an excited and concerned readership in California.
Californians are _worried_ and with reason, they appear to be facing Schwarzenegger for the next few years, and their long memories stretch back to Bush 1 supporting Reagan for "governur" in the 60s an appointment which led to the actor becoming "president" of the USA with Bush 1 as his "vice".
This last week, solidarity demos in California have thus reflected the strong links between activists there and "here" in €urope.
29/september - the Greek consulate occupied.
http://sf.indymedia.org/news/2003/09/1648752.php
the slogan "another war is possible" originated in Catalan as "altre guerra es possibile", and orginally meant "we really are going to get another war, maybe we should think how to fight ours".
&$:
1/October. Approximately 30 people gathered at the Spanish Consulate in SF today to demand freedom for 6 anarchists arrested in Barcelona on 9/16. 5 of the individuals still remain incarcerated and are being charged under "Anti-terrorist" legislation which permits flagrant violations of their civil liberties. The charges stem from actions that were allegedly being planned in solidarity with the Thessaloniki Seven. An official at the Consulate received a written statement from 2 of the protesters, as 6 police officers and 2 state department officials looked on.
= California is truly one of the more valued transnational collectives.
There are international solidarity messages coming in every day. For a good up to date list of all the various solidarity letters check out the CWI website. www.worldsocialist-cwi.org
Around the world bin tax protests have continued, in this report there are reports from Sri Lanka, Sweden, France and Portugal.
SRI LANKA
Sri Lankan left calls for immediate release
Dear Prime Minister of Ireland
We vehemently protest against the imprisonment of Joe Higgins MP and councillor Clare Daly for their "crime" of defending the poor in their fight against the most unjust Bin Tax. We call for their immediate release and a review of the imposition of the Bin Tax.
Percy Wickremesekere, Secretary, Democratic Left Front, Sri Lanka
SWEDEN
“Clare, Joe, set them free; we don’t want no garbage fee!”
This was one of the main demands shouted outside the Irish embassy in Stockholm during a protest lobby on Tuesday.
The picket was addressed by Gustav Fridolin, MP for the Green Party who said: “The arrest of Joe Higgins and Clare Daly is an arrest of democracy. Even though my sister party in Ireland doesn’t agree fully with the bin campaign, we strongly oppose the imprisonment”. Gustav Fridolin also promised a donation towards the legal costs of the anti-bin charge prisoners.
Other speakers included Sofia Marklund, national chairperson of Elevkampanjen/ISR and Peter Lahti from Rättvisepartiet Socialisterna (CWI).
In the upper class neighbourhood of the embassy, several local residents questioned our right to protest, but we asked them to complain to the embassy.
Other sponsors of the ‘Free Joe and Clare’ campaign in Sweden include so far:
* Jonas Brännberg, Liv Gustavsson Rhodin, councillors in Luleå for Rättvisepartiet Socialisterna (CWI)
* Jan Hägglund, Ingrid Eriksson, Yvonne Lantto, councillors in Umeå for Rättvisepartiet Socialisterna (CWI)
* Lena Ezelius, chairperson of Kommunal, Branch 36, Stockholm (Council workers’ union, with 8,000 members in the branch).
* Gudrun Åhslund, chairperson, Social Insurance Workers’ Union, Sundsvall
* region
* Kent Sehlstedt, Chairman, Dockworkers’ Union, Holmsund branch
* Per-Olov Johansson, Anna Hedlund, Frank Pettersson, Andreas Bengtsson, Olof Kristmansson, Tobias Johansson - alternates for councillors and council subcommittee members, Umeå council
* Ulrika Edman, councillor, Left Party, Umeå
There will be more angry lobbies and many more signatories for the campaign as long as this affront to democracy continues.
Rättvisepartiet Socialisterna (CWI), Sweden.
PORTUGAL
Letter of protest from Lisbon Council Workers’ Union
To the Taoiseach (Prime Minister), Mr. Bertie Ahern T.D.,
Dear Sir
It was with deep outrage that we, Lisbon Council Workers' Union, received the news of the one-month jailing of. Mr. Joe Higgins, TD and Cllr. Clare Daly.
Their jailing has the main target of stopping the development of the anti Bin Tax Campaign. However the judicial decision is also a serious attack on the right to protest and a curtailing of the ability of Mr. Joe Higgins TD and Cllr. Clare Daly to carry out their mandates to defend the interests of their voters.
We believe that we are not wrong to say that, in this moment, Joe Higgins and Clare Daly are political prisoners.
Their jailing – and the other steps of strengthening the powers of the Gardai to arrest any resident who peacefully protests against the decision not to collect bins from those that refuse to pay an unjust tax – are an intolerable threat and menace against all who are actively opposed to any unjust measure.
Therefore we demand the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Joe Higgins, TD, Cllr. Mrs. Clare Daly and other anti-bin tax colleagues and an immediate end to all attempts to defeat the movement that in these three long years have been fighting against an unjust bin tax.
Yours on behalf of Lisbon Council Workers’ Union
Libério Domingues, President
Portugal
Left Bloc Deputies protest against Irish jailing
The Deputies (Members of the Portuguese Parliament) of the Left Bloc have today (29 September) sent to the Irish Ambassador their vehement protest against the sentence of one month in jail on the Member of the Dail, Joe Higgins, and on Councillor Clare Daly on the grounds of refusing to stop their participation in the Anti Bin Tax Campaign in Dublin.
The jailing of those representatives is an attack against democratic rights and against the people’s right to protest and demonstrate their own position on public policies.
The Left Bloc calls for the immediate end of all sanctions against Higgins and Daly.
The Deputados: Francisco Louçã, Luis Fazenda, João Teixeira Lopes.
FRANCE
French Left MEPs call for activists’ release
Two members of the European Parliament, Alain Krivine and Roseline Vachetta, both members of the LCR in France, have called for the immediate release from prison of Joe Higgins TD and councillor Clare Daly.
Camarades,
La LCR (section française de la 4ième Internationale) et ses eurodéputés Alain Krivine et Roseline Vachetta apportent leur soutien à la campagne pour la libération immédiate de Joe Higgins et de Clare Daly ainsi qu'à la levée de toutes les sanctions les concernant.
Fraternellement
Pour la LCR, Alain Krivine and Roseline Vachetta
All CWI or fellow travellers, right?
Cause, like, we really expect them to call for Joe Higgins to be hung or something?