Rossport Solidarity Camp was born in June of this year. It is the first protest camp around an ecological theme to take place in Ireland for several years.
The camp began after local opponents of Shell’s plan to build an unprecedented high pressure gas pipeline through the hamlet of Rossport invited us there to back up their struggle.

The main activities of the campers have been picketing the Rossport compound, building and maintaining the camp, and helping the families of the prisoners.

The campaign has won significant victories:

• June 18th onwards there have been no deliveries of construction materials to the compound at Rossport.
• June 30th onwards pickets closed the Rossport compound and the refinery construction site at Ballinaboy.
• In August Shell was forced to cancel the arrival of the Solitaire, one of the world’s largest pipelaying ships, due to a planned blockade by fishermen.
• On September 30th the Rossport Five were released, because of popular pressure.

In Spring we are into a new “construction season” when Shell again will try to build this pipeline and refinery, and we need to get the maximum number of people on the ground in Mayo ready to help stop this. Bear in mind most of this development was supposed to be built this year.

In March Rossport Solidarity Camp will be re-launched for the 2006 “construction season” - late Spring, Summer, early Autumn. From March onwards we are looking for more people to come to the camp, be it for 3 days, 3 weeks, or 3 months. All are welcome, you don’t need to be an “expert”, everyone can take part in this, most people who have been on the camp have had as their previous sum total of camping experience the occasional trip to the likes of Witness. Many also have had no previous experience of campaigning

Older Camp Stories:

• The Rossport Solidarity Camp
• Photos from a Summer of Resistance in Erris
• A Few Days of Struggle in North West Mayo
• Rossport Solidarity Camp
• Shell bus blockaded in Glengad

It was first revealed to the NCAD Students Union on Thursday 20th October, by an anonymous source, that the Board of NCAD were strongly considering the possibility of relocating the college to the Belfield campus of UCD. Students have reacted swiftly to this largely unwelcome development. The Campaigns officer of the NCAD SU submitted this report on the first student action taken in opposition to the proposed move.

On Thursday (27th October) we held our silent protest as all members of staff went to the 'Questions and Answers' meeting regarding the proposed closure of our Thomas Street campus... The silence lasted only until the meeting began, to be followed by 3 hours of colourful and noisy opposition to the move! Hundreds of students lined the corridors around the meeting and shouted slogans, many directly to Colm O'Briain, the director of NCAD, one of the main men involved in the proposal of this plan. As of yet, there's no official word from the government in relation to the move.

Local Counciller's have been contacted and many are in opposition to the proposed plan, and will meet with City Council officials and Colm O'Briain on November 11th. . . . Local business' have been contacted and are all generally in disbelief about these plans, and are entirelly opposed to the porposal. Our local Centra even got involved at the protest with the manager bringing boxes of bottled water to the students in order to encourage us to continue the protest.

As the staff finished their meeting, the protest again moved to the entrance in order to allow staff to hear our opinions as they left. With music and chants ringing loudly through the campus, the staff walked through and applauded our protest, thanking us for having enough respect for ourselves, the staff, and the local community. The director, Colm O'Briain, left through the fire escape and walked around the campus in order to avoid having to face the students!

Overall, we believe the protest was hugely successful, and we promise the staff of NCAD, the local business' of the area, and the local community who benefit so much from the college's presence that we will continue to fight for an independent National College of Art and Design on Thomas Street!

Background Information On Proposed NCAD Move to UCD Campus

Killaan
Woodlawn
Ballinasloe
Co Galway

Dear Trevor

As you know members of the Local Community have several concerns about the Greenstar proposed landfill site in Killconnell. The situation came to a head over 2 weeks ago when I was forced to exercise my rights under Local Agenda 21 to stop Greenstar destroying a public Right of Way used by many members of our Local Community for generations. A stand-off developed and this was defused when the local Fine Gael TD Paul Connaughton arranged a meeting of all concerned people and Greenstar. The result of this meeting was that Greenstar would supply proof that they were entitled by law to dig up a Public Right of Way and they would not disturb the surface of the Public Right of Way until the matter was resolved to everyone's satisfaction.

Indymedia photo essays of Ploughshares’ anti-war vigils Saturday‘s Vigil at College Green | Still on the Loose… Daily vigils last week | Rebel Priest Joins Ploughshares Vigil | Keep Death Off Our Runways | Vigil For Jean Charles de Menezes, killed by UK police on London Underground | Budapest Solidarity | London Solidarity | Melbourne Solidarity | WashingtonD.C. solidarity

In August Ciaron O’Reilly of the Pit Stop Ploughshares spoke at the Greenbelt festival in the UK. As their trial begins, this essay is a reflection on his talk, and of how the actions of the Catholic Worker Five challenge all of us. The war still rages in Iraq and the situation is deteriorating, without any sign of the US-led coalition withdrawing. While the mass media presents little challenge to US use of Shannon, the Ploughshares trial keeps Irish participation in the war at the forefront of our minds.

“Together with Deirdre Clancy, Nuin Dunlop, Karen Fallon and Damien Moran, Ciaron is one of the group known as the Pit Stop Ploughshares. In early February 2003, these five took part in the non-violent disarmament of a US Navy War Plane at Shannon airport. They have been charged with US$2.5 million damage to the plane, which was forced to return to Texas rather than continue its journey to Iraq. Their trial begins on Monday at the Four Courts“.

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From 1st June 2006 any town, village or city suburb that has not formally claimed its right to hold markets may find that they are permanently prevented from ever doing so. There is a revival in the popularity of such markets which will likely be snuffed out if we don't act now. Katy Sinnott explains how you can preserve these rights for your locality - and it's easier than you might think.

EXTRACT: "So how do you know if your town has market rights? Almost every village does. To be sure, look at village place names. Is there a Fish Market Street or Market Square? Try to remember if you went to a market or fair in your town, or of being told of one by your parents or grandparents. If you don’t remember maybe someone else will. Ask. Look in town records. Check with the local history buff. If there ever was a market or ‘fayre’ they your village may have market rights. You don’t have to locate where the market was held or hold future markets where they were held in the past. It doesn’t matter. If the right is there it is there for the whole town as in Skibbereen. And don’t think if you live in the city market rights don’t apply to your area. It might be hard when trying to cross a road in busy Douglas to remember that it was once a small village district from Cork, but it was and most probably has market rights.

Don’t delay or you will find that the old rights have expired. The deadline is looming to find out if you can do this. To lay claim to the rights, the village must hold a market before June 1st 2006. It is a short time and it might sound daunting but doesn’t have to be. A table with a basket of turnips and carrots will do. There must be a public announcement of the event. A hand written notice in a shop window or a couple of lines in the parish newsletter will do. If the market is held at least once a year for ten years your market rights are secure."