‘We’ll use people power to shut down Shannon’
The warning, to “demilitarise” or shut down the airport through non-violent measures, came yesterday.
One of the five activists, acquitted this week on charges of causing an estimated €2 million worth of damage to a United States Navy aircraft three years ago, said every effort would be made to close down the airport through “people power”.
Ciaron O’Reilly, 46, said: “We’re going to analyse how many people it will take to close down Shannon Airport until it’s demilitarised. In doing that we’ll be in discussion with student groups, human rights peace groups, environmental groups and community groups, to see — in the tradition of Martin Luther King and Ghandi — if we can initiate a process of non-violent direct action and close the airport down until it’s demilitarised.”
He said there are a number of ways such action could be achieved.
“We would use tactics like blockading, trespass, occupation of the runway, appeals to the workers to go on strike and appeals to churches to organise around this issue. We’re only limited by the power of our own imagination now.”
At a jury trial, the five activists were found not guilty on a charge of criminal damage on the grounds of “lawful excuse” because they said their actions would save lives by preventing the airplane from being used in warfare. The verdict ended a saga which began in February 2003, when the two men and three women from the Catholic Worker Movement, entered the airport grounds and allegedly attacked the aircraft with hammers.
The group said it would oppose any move by the Government to discuss the verdict with the American embassy, who expressed its disappointment with the decision.
Mr O’Reilly said: “For the Government to go crawling to the US Embassy to discuss a decision made in Irish courts would be a perversion of justice and a disrespect to the sovereignty of Ireland. It seems outrageous that the US Government treats Ireland like a colony.”
Another protestor, Damien Moran, 26 — who was also cleared by the court — called on politicians to make the Iraq war an election issue.
“It should be very clear within their manifesto that if you vote for them, you are voting to kick the US military out of Shannon.”
