Police baton-charge Rossport protestors - RTE news

Irish police baton charged a crowd of peaceful protestors in Rossport, Co.Mayo, Ireland. The protestors are objecting to the attempt to build a high-pressure gas pipeline within blast radius of their homes. Shell and Statoil (Norwegian state company) stand to make billions from the deal negotiated with a corrupt government decades ago

Video RTE Nov 10 2006 assault on Rossport protestors - video/x-msvideo 4.5M

5 of the local men have already been imprisoned for refusing to give an undertaking to allow Shell to build the pipeline through their lands.

A permanent solidarity camp has provided support for over a year and the tension and government pressure is ratcheting up in an attempt to break the local community.

The Irish Minister for Justice, Michael McDowell has attempted to insinuate that the protestors contain IRA/SinnFein elements.

This footage shown on RTE news on Nov 10th 2006 at midday is obviously hostile to the protestors but still cannot conceal the brutality of the police assault. It is encoded as Xvid in an avi container with the audio as mp3

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12.11.2006 02:19

http://dynamic.rte.ie/av/2190906.smil

Buendia

Police Brutality

12.11.2006 14:56

If you watch the film you will notice two police officers attempt to throw a protestor down a bank, when he lands on the edge, one officer kicks the protestor down the bank. Later two officers throw another protestor over a barricade and down a bank.
Along with assualting a teacher, smashing private property (the teachers van), how can they be allowed to get away with it.
the MET may be bad but the batton weilding irish police seem to have taken things to a whole new level. Amazing what shells cash can do.

BBarron

...

14.11.2006 11:54

I'm just back from talking to some of the people involved. The Guarda seem to have been given orders to ratchet up hosility. Their violence was totally unprovoed and is clearly criminal in its assault dimension and also in terms of EU human rights laws.

The Irish media have been shockingly timorous in coverage.

I get the feeling worse things are in store.

Honest Engine

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Updates

14.11.2006 15:59

Beaten protestor being dragged by police to be thrown into ditch

Guardian of the peace

It's important not to get too focussed on corporate media and their mis-reporting of the news. That's why we're indymedia after all ;)

There are some good reports up on indymedia.ie which show what the cops are up to more clearly than any commercial TV station can or will. e.g.

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/79648

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/79603

Thanks to Indymedia UK and all the activists taking solidarity actions against Shell.

R. Isible

Wouldn't be just terrible...

14.11.2006 16:31

if some indignant people sabotaged hundreds of Shell pumps by bunging up the nozzles? They'd have to watch out for CCTV and randomise all aspects of their MO, though.

Carbon Rucksack

In fact,

14.11.2006 16:33

it'd also be totally out of order if people were to randomly label pumps as "out of order!" when they weren't.

BEverly Hillbilly