Skip to content or view mobile version

Home | Mobile | Editorial | Mission | Privacy | About | Contact | Help | Security | Support

A network of individuals, independent and alternative media activists and organisations, offering grassroots, non-corporate, non-commercial coverage of important social and political issues.

On Streets of Dublin: Manning-Assange-Snowden

ciaron | 04.12.2013 11:02 | Anti-militarism | Terror War | Wales

The last few days in Dublin unfolded in a warm embrace of solidarity for imprisoned Pvt. Manning’s mother Susan, aunts Mary & Sharon & uncle Kevin. The family had travelled from their hometown Haverfordwest, south-west Wales to Dublin, Ireland, the birthplace of their father.

Promoting the Trinity Event beforehand
Promoting the Trinity Event beforehand

Carmen and Ciaron with the banner outside Trinity College
Carmen and Ciaron with the banner outside Trinity College

Chelsea Manning's Mum Susan meets Gerry Conlon of the Guildford Four
Chelsea Manning's Mum Susan meets Gerry Conlon of the Guildford Four

Carmen Trotta addresses the meeting
Carmen Trotta addresses the meeting

Gerry Conlon speaks
Gerry Conlon speaks

Music from Joe Black and friend (thanks to Tatyana Turchina for pic)
Music from Joe Black and friend (thanks to Tatyana Turchina for pic)

Music from RoJ Whelan (Thanks to Tatyana Turchina for pic)
Music from RoJ Whelan (Thanks to Tatyana Turchina for pic)

Ciaron as human mic stand (Thanks to Tatyana Turchina for pic)
Ciaron as human mic stand (Thanks to Tatyana Turchina for pic)


I had travelled by train from London with Carmen Trotta, an old friend from the New York Catholic Worker. We were joined on the ferry by Genny from Wrexham who was to look after the family during their stay in Dublin. Many old friends – activists, organisers, musicians, decent people with a sense of solidarity – who had accompanied us through the three trials of the Pitstop Ploughshares (2003-06) came out to support the family of Pvt. Manning. Manning had transited through Shannon on the way to the war on Iraq, his torture in Kuwait & Quantico & now 35 years imprisonment in Ft. Leavenworth for courageously exposing that war. Today, other friends Margaritta and Nial are in an Ennis Court, County Clare for continued nonviolent resistance at Shannon Warport.

Legendary James Joyce scholar, Senator and human rights advocate David Norris welcomed the family through the gates of the Dáil in the company of independent TD Catherine Murphy. Other TDs gathered to hear from the family in a conference room in the Dáil. The national broadcaster RTÉ shot footage at the gates of the Dáil which was televised later that evening. The mainstream media coverage of the visit was quite good. The family went to meet with Amnesty International, while Carmen & I went to help Dublin punk artist Seamus Nolan set up his Temple Bar studio for a fund raiser for the family. A good gathering of Dublin punks kicked off a series of solidarity events.

YouTube video of Ciaron on the streets promoting Fri night solidarity event at Trinity College.

On Friday night, over 100 people gathered at Trinity College to hear a powerful presentation by Gerry Conlon who had served 16 years in British prisons tortured & framed as part of the Guildford 4, his father Giuseppe also framed, died in a British prison. The following day was the anniversary of Gerry’s kidnapping by British forces in his hometown of Belfast.

Gerry reminded us that it is not only the prisoner who faces the consequences of imprisonment but also the families. He told us that prison does not end on the day of your release, how the consequences for the Guildford 4, Maguire 7, Birmingham 6 and others continued for decades. Gerry said how much they needed Mannings, Assanges and Snowdens back in the north of Ireland when dirty wars were being waged and innocent people were being fitted up and killed. And how much we need whistleblowers today and that we need to be supporting them when they have the courage to tell us the truth.

Carmen Trotta of the New York Catholic Worker reflected on where 12 years of the 'War on Terror' has brought us and the significance of the courage & actions of Pvt. Manning. It was also powerful to be present as Joe Black played his song "Giuseppe Conlon" for Mum Susan, aunts Mary & Sharon & uncle Kevin.

Guildford 4, Guantánamo detainees and Julian Assange lawyer Gareth Peirce joined us as an apparition from London [YouTube video] having recorded a speech that afternoon.

On Saturday afternoon, Máirtín and Andrea put on lunch for Pvt. Manning’s family, folks from the Catholic Worker network in Ireland and other friends. Saturday night was a great knees up in the Brian Boru pub on the way to Clontarf with Joe Black on guitar and Robbie Sinnott on accordion leading the line.

Further photos & reports of Pvt. Manning’s family solidarity visit to Dublin: [ Photo Report: Manning's Welsh Family in Dublin | Photo report on Irish indymedia | Photo report on UK indymedia | Photos on flickr ]

ciaron
- Homepage: http://manningfamilyfund.org/2013/12/02/on-streets-of-dublin-manning-assange-snowden/

Upcoming Coverage
View and post events
Upcoming Events UK
24th October, London: 2015 London Anarchist Bookfair
2nd - 8th November: Wrexham, Wales, UK & Everywhere: Week of Action Against the North Wales Prison & the Prison Industrial Complex. Cymraeg: Wythnos o Weithredu yn Erbyn Carchar Gogledd Cymru

Ongoing UK
Every Tuesday 6pm-8pm, Yorkshire: Demo/vigil at NSA/NRO Menwith Hill US Spy Base More info: CAAB.

Every Tuesday, UK & worldwide: Counter Terror Tuesdays. Call the US Embassy nearest to you to protest Obama's Terror Tuesdays. More info here

Every day, London: Vigil for Julian Assange outside Ecuadorian Embassy

Parliament Sq Protest: see topic page
Ongoing Global
Rossport, Ireland: see topic page
Israel-Palestine: Israel Indymedia | Palestine Indymedia
Oaxaca: Chiapas Indymedia
Regions
All Regions
Birmingham
Cambridge
Liverpool
London
Oxford
Sheffield
South Coast
Wales
World
Other Local IMCs
Bristol/South West
Nottingham
Scotland
Social Media
You can follow @ukindymedia on indy.im and Twitter. We are working on a Twitter policy. We do not use Facebook, and advise you not to either.
Support Us
We need help paying the bills for hosting this site, please consider supporting us financially.
Other Media Projects
Schnews
Dissident Island Radio
Corporate Watch
Media Lens
VisionOnTV
Earth First! Action Update
Earth First! Action Reports
Topics
All Topics
Afghanistan
Analysis
Animal Liberation
Anti-Nuclear
Anti-militarism
Anti-racism
Bio-technology
Climate Chaos
Culture
Ecology
Education
Energy Crisis
Fracking
Free Spaces
Gender
Globalisation
Health
History
Indymedia
Iraq
Migration
Ocean Defence
Other Press
Palestine
Policing
Public sector cuts
Repression
Social Struggles
Technology
Terror War
Workers' Movements
Zapatista
Major Reports
NATO 2014
G8 2013
Workfare
2011 Census Resistance
Occupy Everywhere
August Riots
Dale Farm
J30 Strike
Flotilla to Gaza
Mayday 2010
Tar Sands
G20 London Summit
University Occupations for Gaza
Guantanamo
Indymedia Server Seizure
COP15 Climate Summit 2009
Carmel Agrexco
G8 Japan 2008
SHAC
Stop Sequani
Stop RWB
Climate Camp 2008
Oaxaca Uprising
Rossport Solidarity
Smash EDO
SOCPA
Past Major Reports
Encrypted Page
You are viewing this page using an encrypted connection. If you bookmark this page or send its address in an email you might want to use the un-encrypted address of this page.
If you recieved a warning about an untrusted root certificate please install the CAcert root certificate, for more information see the security page.

Global IMC Network


www.indymedia.org

Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video

Africa

Europe
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
brussels
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
liguria
lille
linksunten
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
northern england
nottingham imc
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
sardegna
scotland
sverige
switzerland
torun
toscana
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia

Latin America
argentina
bolivia
chiapas
chile
chile sur
cmi brasil
cmi sucre
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela

Oceania
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
perth
qc
sydney

South Asia
india


United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
Austin
binghamton
boston
buffalo
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester

West Asia
Armenia
Beirut
Israel
Palestine

Topics
biotech

Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech