Balloons and barks prove the only threat to Bush

TWO hours before Shannon’s protest left the town centre, activist Fiona Wheeler had some unexpected guests.

“They just appeared in our sitting room. Five of them just walked in as if the place was theirs,” she said of the Special Branch officers who had somehow entered the flat without breaking the door.

“All I can think is they must have had a key. They said they had a search warrant and they went through all our personal things,” Ms Wheeler said.

Nothing was found and the men soon left offering no apology or explanation.

The flat, just above Shannon’s shopping centre, was used as a base by peace activists to prepare for yesterday’s protest.

There was also no apology to the occupants of the peace camp outside Shannon town after gardaí raided it apparently looking for flares. Nothing but black balloons were found, but they were promptly burst.

No explanation was offered as to the supposed security risk represented by the balloons in question.

Indeed, as yesterday’s protest prepared to march towards Shannon airport there was nothing more threatening in sight than a few friendly dogs.

“The only time I have to put him on a leash is when the cops arrive. He doesn’t like Bush either,” explained Lisa McKee as she held two-year-old Labrador Kee.

Holly, a cocker spaniel from Gort, also had a message for the US President. “Bark somewhere else Bush,” read the sign tied to her back. “I had to bring her, she always barks at Bush on the telly,” said owner Maurice Crowe.

Meanwhile, Labour’s Jan O’Sullivan, holding an anti-war banner was struggling not to wince as the spiky-haired anarchists beside her drowned out the crowd with heavy metal.

“We want President Bush to hear, that no matter what our Government says, we do not support his war in Iraq. But we can’t trust Bertie Ahern to tell him that so we are her to tell him ourselves,” she shouted over the din.

Ultimately, despite the over-egged security, the march passed off peacefully.

Apart from former Army officer Ed Horgan, who was arrested with two others, attempting to fly a banner from a boat on the Shannon there were no arrests during the good-natured protest.

But by nine o’clock, with rain beginning to blow in from the Atlantic, and President Bush already tucked up in Dromoland Castle, the crowd soon dispersed leaving thousands of gardaí and troops on duty.