Shell's illegal Glengad compound was dismantled last night and Goldman winner, Willie Corduff was assaulted by masked Shell security during truck protest.
Yesterday Shell’s attempts to restart their works on the Corrib Gas project were ground to a halt after only eight hours. At 6-30 a workforce of about 20, backed up by around 50 private security guards erected fences to re-establish a compound. This compound is the would-be on-shore pipe installation base. Works were seriously hampered when local people and solidarity camp activists occupied machinery.

By 4 o clock Rossport Five member Willie Corduff was still refusing to leave the from under the truck, which he had occupied in the compound and all work had ground to a halt. Shell were unable to continue as Willie was preventing necessary equipment being used.
As the evening drew to a close Willie was resolute that he would stay and the community rallied around in support. Throughout the evening supporters gathered at the compound to show support for the campaign and Willie Corduff’s stand bringing blankets and hot water bottles.

Related Links:
Shell to Sea website l Shell return to Glengad in force

Like many other trade unionists, our members voted overwhelmingly for industrial action against the pension levy. We thought that the trade union movement was serious about standing up for the interests of its membership. We did not think that the ICTU leaders could be so foolish as to throw away the energy and enthusiasm that was on display on the huge march on February 21st. But they did - for a promise of a ‘social pact’ with a government that is imposing wage cuts.

Related Links:
National Public Service Alliance Meeting | Belfast Rallies Against Job Cuts | Deflation's End | Workers Pay for Government and Speculators' Failed Policies | The Rescue

Sometime during the second decade of the sorrowful mysteries, I had a sense we were not alone. Martin, Katrina and I were sat alone in a small East London park facing the Excel Centre where the G20 of the most powerful government leaders were gathered to rearrange deckchairs on their sinking ship. Thousands of police had been deployed around the Excel Centre keeping the few hundreds of protesters who gathered a quarter of a mile from the site. A case of overcatering evidently.

Related Links:
The personal blog of Ciaron O'Reilly.
Previous writings of Ciaron O'Reilly on Indymedia.ie.
The website of London Catholic Worker.
G20 Summit Special from The Guardian.

For the third time this week nets at Glengad have been put up by Shell and taken down by local residents. The purpose of the net is to stop sand-martins from nesting in the cliff-face.

What was once thought to be a specially protected priority habitat for birds and wildlife has actually, in effect, become a priority habitat for Shell.

All sorts of chats, communications and rumours abound about the permission for this and the consent for that, the legality of one thing and the illegality of another. But as Kevin Moore, An Bord Pleanala Senior Planning Inspector predicted in 2002, everything about this project is wrong. And it’s the right thing to do to disallow it and to stop it whatever the law says.

Related Links from Indymedia.ie:
Previous Indymedia feature: Scuffles At Mountjoy As Maura Harrington Is Jailed
Indymedia.ie stories about Shell in Mayo from the Indymedia.ie Archives
Other articles by Niall Harnett on Indymedia.ie

Related Links outside of Indymedia.ie
The website of Shell-to-Sea - CorribSOS.com
Feel like doing something? Contact all politicians about this - Contact.ie

The purpose of this article is to challenge the assumption that it is the 'leaders' who sell out rank and file members, and to highlight that 'leaders' reflect the median moderate worker within Trade Unions. It therefore favours a more bottom-up grassroots focused analysis of Trade Union activity over a top down hierarchical 'leadership' focused analysis. It is my argument that constantly talking about the ICTU 'leaders' is disempowering and a more actor-worker-centered focus is better suited to Libertarian politics.

Related Links:
An article by Andrew F. concerning how the Governement attacks workers through hiring freeze in public sector | A second article by Andrew F. telling us Employers retreat but ICTU talks are not a victory| Sean Matthews argues that the "outburst of condemnation" against the bankers is legitimate class anger | Pat C reports on a call for the resignation of David Begg by a teachers' union. | Paddy Hackett does not like the bad leadership at IMPACT

According to many amongst the left In Ireland it is the 'leaders' of ICTU in Ireland that enter national socio-economic pacts, and that this is at odds with what their rank and file members want. However, most evidence indicates the complete opposite. Most empirical research (Bacarro, 2002, Geary, Roche 2005) concludes that rank and file members tend to be more conservative than their Trade Union leaders, and overwhelmingly support 'partnership' or 'dialogue' over militant industrial action. Furthermore, detailed research has found that greater internal trade union democracy actually favours the moderate over the radical. In countries where Trade Unions support national social-pacts (in wage bargaining and other socio-economic policies) there tends to be more democracy within Unions i.e. Ireland and Netherlands. In countries where Unions have been more militant and opposed to social pacts there tends to be less internal democracy within Unions i.e. Korea.