Gardaí Endanger Life In Mayo

national | rights, freedoms and repression | news report Monday November 12, 2007 11:20 by éirígí - Oifig Phreas press at eirigi dot org (0044) 07831728438

Gary Ronaghan, the man struck by a lorry at Friday’s anti-Shell protest in Bellanboy county Mayo, is to make a formal complaint to the Garda Ombudsman in relation to the events leading up to, and following on from, the incident which saw the Monaghan man’s life placed in extreme danger.

Protecting Shell's property in Bellanaboy

Gary, who travelled to Mayo with a contingent of more than thirty éirígí activists, had his foot trapped for several seconds under the rear wheel of a large lorry belonging to Lennon’s Quarries Ltd - a company which has been supplying stone to the Shell site in Bellanboy. Following treatment in Mayo General Hospital in Castlebar it emerged that his foot had suffered tissue damage, in addition to severe bruising and swelling. Medical staff believe that, had Gary not been wearing steel-toe-capped boots, the damage would have been far worse.

Gary’s complaint to the ombudsman will focus on both the manner in which the Gardaí dealt with the sit-down protest and the manner in which the Gardaí dealt with him following the crushing of his foot.

Speaking on Sunday evening Gary said, “I went to Mayo on Friday to protest at the giveaway of the Corrib gas-field and the way in which Shell and the government are forcing a gas refinery and experimental pipeline upon the people of Erris. I was willing to take part in a peaceful sit-down protest if need be and having seen how the Gardaí previously dealt with these protests I knew I might expect to wake up with a few bruises on Saturday morning. At no time did I expect to end up being almost killed by a lorry.

“I have no problem admitting that I was part of a sit-down protest. I believe that the issues surrounding the Corrib Gas controversy are of such importance that the use of non-violent civil disobedience tactics is justified. It was clearly apparent on Friday that the Gardaí are completely unable, or unwilling, to deal with such protests in a proper manner.

“It was nothing short of lunacy to attempt to move a massive, fully-loaded lorry through hundreds of people, many of whom were lying or sitting on the road. The Garda appeared to be making it up as they went along. When faced with scores of people sitting on a road would it not have made far more sense to ensure that the road was fully safe before instructing the driver of the lorry to move forwards?

“While my foot has been seriously injured it could have been far worse. It could have been someone’s head or body that went under that lorry. Indeed the negligence of the Garda operation put not only protesters lives at risk but also those of the Gardaí themselves.

“The driver of that lorry could not have been able to clearly see around the entire vehicle. He was following the direction of the Gardaí who were instructing him when to move forward and when to stop. And yet, not one Garda could possibly have been able to see all around that lorry to ensure that it was safe to proceed.

“When the lorry went over my foot I was being manhandled by at least two Gardaí. The entire situation was in a state of flux with a mass of bodies, both protesters and Gardaí within inches of the moving vehicle. Why did the Gardaí not instruct the driver to wait until it was safe to move on?

“The worst part was when the lorry actually came to a stop on top of my foot. The pain was excruciating, I thought my entire foot had been crushed. As soon as I started shouting for help other protesters saw what was happening and began shouting at the Gardaí to move the lorry off my foot, but it still took a couple seconds for the lorry to move on.

“I was told later that a number of Gardaí who were asked to take witness statements in relation to the incident refused to do so. One Garda actually told a witness that he hadn’t ‘got the faculty’ to take a statement’ – which is absolutely bizarre. The numbers of these Gardaí were noted and this will form part of my complaint to the Ombudsman.

“In addition, it appears that all of the normal protocols relating to road traffic accidents were ignored. As far as I can determine the driver of the lorry that ran over my foot was not stopped or questioned at the scene, nor were witness statements sought. Indeed, it appears that the driver was directed by the Gardaí away from the scene of the incident and that witnesses were deliberately discouraged from making statements.”