Saturday April 17th Protest against EU Foreign Ministers Meeting @ Tullamore

offaly | eu | event notice Friday April 16, 2004 13:40 by Damien Moran - Dublin Catholic Worker & Pitstop Ploughshares dbamoran at yahoo dot com 087 9638398

Saturday April 17th Protest against EU Foreign Ministers Meeting at Tullamore, Co. Offaly

Saturday April 17th Protest against EU Foreign Ministers Meeting at Tullamore, Co. Offaly

On Saturday April 17th, 2004, members of the Offaly Anti-War Movement and the Dublin Catholic Worker will stage a vigil in commemoration of the Iraq war dead and injured and protest the Irish Foreign Affairs Minister's and Irish government's deep complicity in the ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The protest will take place as Minister Brian Cowen and the Irish government host EU Foreign Affairs Ministers at the Gymnich Informal Meeting in Tullamore, Co. Offaly.
Damien Moran of the Dublin Catholic Worker, currently awaiting trial and a potential 10 years imprisonment for his part in disabling a US Navy Warplane at Shannon Airport on February 3rd, 2003, said: "Minister Brian Cowen's intransigence, during Ireland's term on the UN Security Council at the end of 2002, about the Iraq sanctions and it's 1.5 million death toll was deafening and tragic.
By allowing 172,000 US troops to land and dutyfree shop since January, 2003, warplanes to refuel and munitions of war receive Irish blessings at Shannon Airport, while enroute to wage an illegal and immoral war in Iraq, the Irish government and Minister Cowen have ensured that Ireland's traditional role as neutral peacemakers has been severely damaged. The Irish people do not want to be complicit in sending young US soldiers to their deaths or to facilitate them in killing the people of Iraq. If this government and Minister Cowen had any sense of morality they would immediately withdraw the use of Shannon Airport by the US military."
Shannon Airport has become a key European stepping stone in the occupation and privatised plundering of Iraq aand we demand that this unethical practice be stopped."
The protest and vigil will end at O'Connor park at 4pm Saturday evening

*Gathering in O'Connor Square, Tullamore Saturday at 11am
*Funeral March towards the Tullamore Court Hotel (where Foreign Affairs Ministers are meeting)hi jd, Please forward on to main news agencies, etc. Thanks