'The Ruck at the Truck’: Noise Protest Echoes Continue: All The News That Fits: Final Edition

international | summit mobilisations | feature

Saturday May 08, 2004 06:37

by danny boy

' 'Millions' of Wombles to Invade Ireland for 'Cricket' ' Sez Wag

Wombles Panic In Ireland Ahead of The Ashes: Poet begins laying Down Indecipherable Rules for Cricket: Dire Predictions of Millions of English Thugs Determined to Participate.
"The press will naturally organise the pre-game panic, with stories about wombles, and muppets and anarchists coming to spoil the bowling and batting.
But don't be put off.
It will be great.
hip hip hur RA!"

So it's all over and bound for legend. Tired cranky heads everywhere. So what? They tried to scare the biggest self-defined anti-authoritarian series of demonstrations and actions in recent memory off the streets with an orchestrated media/state moral panic and it did not work. That bears repeating - it did not work. They said the 'ruck at the truck' was a big riot and it wasn't. Now nobody is saying there weren't problems but it was a full on, good humoured, confrontational and effective climax to the weekend and the perfect retort to an anti-democratic Government attempting to scare it's own citizens off the streets. The RTS on Monday was the full on pinnacle of what a self-generated free party can be. Bring on the big bad Bush - the State may be cowed but the streets are alive and word travels fast - no matter what the 'Irish' rags tell you in the next few weeks just remember - 'OUR STREETS'!

***** ALL THE NEWS THAT FITS SPECIAL LAST EVER ISSUE TO CUT OUT AND KEEP: ALL THE FUN OF THE MAYDAYE FAYRE *****

DGN Accentuate the Positive
"But let’s be clear what has happened so far this weekend. 700 people walked and rode their bikes in the biggest Critical Mass yet on Friday. 200 people joined our "No Borders" morning of street theatre, and upwards of 1000 took part in our "Reclaim the City" actions. And several thousand people made the long walk from O’Connell Street to the Ashtown Roundabout in the face of the biggest security operation, and the biggest campaign of vilification, that many of us have ever seen. There was some pushing, and the Gardai started attacking people. We fell back, and brought everybody back to town (except for the 28 inside), and dispersed safely from O’Connell Street."

Gardai Divert Injured Protesters From Hospitals
Confirmed list of injuries to date
1. One broken arm and three gashed arms that required stitches
2. One broken leg
3. One broken wrist
4. Two head injuries that required stitches
5. Broken fingers
6. One person knocked unconscious by water cannon

Activists Refused Bail
"12 of the 18 male prisoners who were in Cloverhill since Saturday night were remanded in custody by the judge this morning. He refused to grant them bail despite no Garda objections to bail being granted to them."

Whatever happened To The Presumption of Innocence?
DGN expressed concern over comments by Judge Coughlan in the District Court, which appeared to imply a presumption of guilt. In response to defence lawyers' requests for bail on grounds such as impending examinations, disability or the risk of losing employment, the judge repeatedly made comments such as: 'He should have thought of that on Saturday night'. Cox asked: 'Whatever happened to the presumption of innocence?'

Rationale for ‘Pushing Bloc’ / Debate
"We feel that it is appropriate on a weekend of demonstrations against borders, to confront the lines of police creating a border between ourselves and those who create the policies which result in the deaths of thousands of desperate people on the borders of Europe, and the internment of many more in detention centres."

Police Provocateurs Bring the Noise?
"Also on the way back from the navan road a middle aged guy with a beige leather jacket was being very confrontational calling us all middle class students born with silver spoons etc.. urging us to go back and fight the gardai. Someone in the crowd claimed he recognized him as a cop and then the crowd all began to shout "Cop Cop Cop" at him. At which point he grabbed one of the crowd by the throat. There was a minor scuffle to separate him and then this guy disappeared. Very strange indeed."

Joe Reads Government the Riot Act
"Did it occur to the Minister that Gardaí may have been facing in the wrong direction on the day? The Government had as its guests the prime ministers of the occupation powers in Iraq which were responsible only five weeks ago for the slaughter of hundreds of women and children in Falluja and for the systematic torture and abuse of prisoners. Did it occur to the Ministers that the Government ought to have directed some gardaí to question these prime ministers about war crimes rather than stuffing them with duck, salmon and Château Lynch Bage?"

Three Sound Systems and Some Disappointed Media at RTS
"A photographer comes and sits beside me. "I wonder if it'll turn violent?" he commented, by way of conversation. I look out at the crowds of people having fun and relaxing in the early summer evening. I sigh and reply, "not likely. And there are more than enough people around here to defuse it if it did anyway." I added that it's a shame there seems to be a general assumption that there will be violence, and that if there is none then that is the exception to the rule. He seemed to take my point."

Other Ways of ‘Giving the Finger’ Better?
"Did anyone ever think of just sitting down and keeping the entire group together, making the Gardai with their water cannons and riot gear look like fools? Sit there and sing them a song or two? I know that is so sickeningly idealistic, but what really did the Wombles do for this protest? It looks good... a bunch of guys and girls marching up unafraid of the Gardai in black and masks like death... it's good media ops as well but is that we want? I marched for a total of eleven hours on Saturday, and threw nothing, did nothing out of the reach of peaceful protest, and so did 1800 other people. It is ridiculous that none of that was shown by the media. That is not our fault but we know how they work; next time don't give them a chance. Isn't it better to humiliate your enemy than to simply give them the finger when you know that have a knife that they can cut it off with?"

‘Put a Gorrilla in a Helmet and Boiler Suit and He’s Stilla Gorrilla’: More Tactics Discussion
"However, those who tried "forcing" their way through the cop lines were nothing more than posturing idiots. Kicking a riot cop's shield may do wonders for your ego, but it does nothing for the innocent bystander who later gets batoned by the riot cop in question. Yes of course in an ideal world the guardians of the peace would be trained in Gandhi-esque patience and innocent bystanders wouldn't get a drubbing, but this is the Irish cops we're talking about - put a gorilla in a helmet and boiler suit and he's still a gorilla. So in effect all the Black Bloc posers did was provoke a hiding for others - not their intention obviously, but not exactly a great way to display concern for your fellow-protestors' wellbeing."

Unity In Diversity
While the guardians of the peace sprayed high pressure water with sand and salt in it, I took solace from the fact that friends were building the future down in the woods.

Video and Photo-Essays: See it for Yizr Selves
47 Minutes, 28 Shots: Does Exactly What It Says on the Tin
AEIP March/Carnival Photos
Hi - Res Critical Mass from an Italian Friend
‘banging music going mad’
IndyVid/Pics
Noise Hacker: dublin / mayday2004 / news report
Facts VS Facts
May Day '04 March to Farmleigh { photo essay } by redjade
From The Front Lines
This is the real story of the noise demo march today, as refereced by the media and the reality on the ground. Video/Report
Both of these incidents are examples of acts of violence that were completely unwarranted.
IndyVideo - Pictures of the standoff
Tags – ‘Water cannon Chic’

Indymedia Ireland Non Dubbalin Euro Mayday Mayday Reports
Barcelona 1 2
Belfast 2
Cork
Cooley
clare : ecotopia

Poetry Corner:
Watch out you Wombles!
(those few of you who have not already capitulated to our superior technology, indymedia system,
cricket, sense of humour, cryptography, ministry of truth and blogging skills.)
It is only 24 hours since I declared war on the social assemblies of England and their
representatives in Ireland the British Thugs who think to turn water cannon on my little babies.
And you're trounced!
Reclaim Ireland!
If any Womble wishes to Surrender, just make the journey to the border "YOUR BORDER" where
we'll take your posters off you, and do our best to make you fine cricketers, sober, clean, hard-
working, rational, civilised, and trustworthy just like us.
Don't worry you will be treated well, we Irish treat our Prisoners with Honour."

Extra Extra Always Read The Small Print!

more on ‘cricket’ from future nobel prize winner
Future Prize Winner on ‘Horses for Courses’
Irish Republican View of the Wombles
IMC IRL joins Indo in the Firing Line / United Kollectives and IMC IRL at War?
BOC Attempts to Provoke Anarchist Rage By Head-Butting Puppet
Mayday – Down with Anarchy say Young Fine Gael! And up with what Exactly?
Mad English Cowboy Accuses IMC IRL of all sorts of things and stirs the Shit
UK Travelling Circus EuroMayday Roundup