Bin Tax Protest fiasco!

national | miscellaneous | news report Tuesday April 09, 2002 17:49 by Paul Kinsella - Dublin Anti Bin Tax Campaign paulkinsella53 at yahoo dot com 53 Lorcan Grove, Santry, Dublin 9, Eire 087 - 9748511

What happened?

Last night's Bin Tax Protest outside City Hall was a total flop! Only 12 people turned up - Myself, 10 members of the Worker's Party and Des Derwin, Trade Unionist and actively involved with the Socialist Alliance in Ireland. That's all! No Workers Solidarity Movement, no Socialist Workers Party, no Socialist Party, no Sinn Fein! Nor was the All Dublin Campaign Against the Bin Tax officially represented last night! I would have thought with this being the last Dublin City Council Meeting before the Election, and that was officially confirmed to me by one of the porters whom I know very well, that the next Dublin City Council Meeting won't take place till Monday 27th May, well after the Election, that an effort would have been made by ALL concerned to have had as good a show as possible of our anger and our dtermination to show both the Politicans and

Last night's Bin Tax Protest outside City Hall was a total flop! Only 12 people turned up - Myself, 10 members of the Worker's Party and Des Derwin, Trade Unionist and actively involved with the Socialist Alliance in Ireland. That's all! No Workers Solidarity Movement, no Socialist Workers Party, no Socialist Party, no Sinn Fein! Nor was the All Dublin Campaign Against the Bin Tax officially represented last night! I would have thought with this being the last Dublin City Council Meeting before the Election, and that was officially confirmed to me by one of the porters whom I know very well, that the next Dublin City Council Meeting won't take place till Monday 27th May, well after the Election, that an effort would have been made by ALL concerned to have had as good a show as possible of our anger and our dtermination to show both the Politicans and the Wider Public at large that this will be a big issue in the upcoming Election, and even after the Election it won't go away.

The establishment were laughing at us last night. The Councillors were certainly laughing at us last night as they made their way into City Hall. So too were the pigs. They sent up one pig on a motorbike to control us, but he had one look at the tiny crowd and just sped off again, never to be seen again for the rest of the night. So too must the General Public, although there was a lot of support from passing Taxis, Cars and Buses, as well as from people passing by.

I suppose the upcoming Election will be used as an 'excuse' for nobody turning from those Parties that do contest Elections such as the SWP, the Socialist Party and Sinn Fein. But this 'excuse', flimsy enough as it is, simply doesn't wash with those organisations that don't contest elections such as the WSM, and the All Dublin Campaign Against the Bin Tax.

Finally, I must salute the Worker's Party for being the only Party to have had an Anti Bin Tax Protest outside every City Council Meeting since this Double Tax was first mooted. Even the Porters on duty last night congratulated the Worker's Party from having stuck with their Monthly Protest through thick and thin, and having been there right from the very start, long before anybody else took it up.