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Rights, Freedoms and Repression
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Traveller And Settled Solidarity cork |
rights, freedoms and repression |
press release
 Wednesday July 09, 2003 12:30 by Joe Collins Cork
 Growing Awareness of TASS TASS, the new Traveller And Settled Solidarity Group formed in Cork, is opening a few eyes to the reality of the ethnic cleansing which the staff of Cork City Council are quietly trying to achieve. TASS, the new Traveller And Settled Solidarity Group formed in Cork, have been gathering signatures from the public in an attempt to stop the brutal eviction of Travellers from roadside sites in the city. Every Saturday afternoon they have an information stand at Daunts Square for a few hours, handing out leaflets and discussing Traveller issues with passers by. So far the reaction has been alomst 100% positive, whixch suggests that politicians have got it wrong when they assume there is electoral support for anti-Traveller legislation. Feedback to the TASS group is that the new levels of awareness they are achieving is opening a few eyes to the reality of the ethnic cleansing which the staff of Cork City Council are quietly trying to achieve. |
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Comments (5 of 5)
Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5Sounds like TASS are doing great work down in Cork. Well done and keep it up. However, I would caution about the wording in one part of your posting. You seem to be putting the blame on "the staff of Cork City Council". That's wrong. Lots of people work for Cork City Council and I'm sure they have nothing to do with the ethnic cleansing of travellers. Likewise those staff of the Council who are involved in this are working for the Council. So the blame lies with Cork City Council and ultimately the Government. Clearly people working for Cork City Council who are implementing this policy have to shoulder some of the blame.
But, I would respectfully suggest that you should amend the bit in your posting that fingers "the staff of Cork City Council" to read "Cork City Council and some of its staff" or some such.
Again, well done and keep up the good work and I hope I'm not being too picky.
The table quiz due to be held last night in support of the traveller and Settled Solidarity group was cancelled a number of hours before it was due to take place in the Grosvenor Inn, MacCurtain St, Cork. Another pub in the city, the Spailpín Fánach on South Main St previously refused to hold the quiz because they didn't want travellers on the premises. The excuse from the Grosvenor was some crap about insurance (they didn't know that when they accepted the booking?). At least we know now.
Ethnic cleansing is a very strong term to use. You're totally out of order accusing anyone of this, without proper evidence. The traveller community is probably accepted more in Cork than any other county. I would suggest that the refugee problems are a more pressing issue.
It was a great success actually. Over €300 was raised for the campaign and a good crowd attended. It was a very closely fought table quiz and a good cross section of campaign groups participated.
Travellers are gathering in Cork for a wedding this weekend. Some who came over from England had a generator removed from a roadside camp in Mayfield in Cork by a garda. That was last Sunday night. When the owner went to claim it back, and to ask why it was taken in the first place, the only "explanation" given was that some stolen generators were removed from the same spot over recent weeks. The garda added that they knew the one they removed last Sunday was not stolen. Still, he refused to give it back until the owner produced a receipt. Even though it had been bought second hand some years ago in England, remarkably the Traveller had a written receipt for the generator. But even that was not good enough. The Traveller wrote to the station sargeant, who ordered the generator to be returned. The Traveller came to the station the next day to reclaim it, and unluckily met the same garda who gave her grief the previous day. He caught her by the shoulders and pushed her out of the station. That was Tuesday morning. Watch this space for an update.