Upcoming Events

Antrim | Anti-War / Imperialism

no events match your query!

New Events

Antrim

no events posted in last week

Blog Feeds

Anti-Empire

Anti-Empire

offsite link The Wholesome Photo of the Month Thu May 09, 2024 11:01 | Anti-Empire

offsite link In 3 War Years Russia Will Have Spent $3... Thu May 09, 2024 02:17 | Anti-Empire

offsite link UK Sending Missiles to Be Fired Into Rus... Tue May 07, 2024 14:17 | Marko Marjanović

offsite link US Gives Weapons to Taiwan for Free, The... Fri May 03, 2024 03:55 | Anti-Empire

offsite link Russia Has 17 Percent More Defense Jobs ... Tue Apr 30, 2024 11:56 | Marko Marjanović

Anti-Empire >>

Human Rights in Ireland
Indymedia Ireland is a volunteer-run non-commercial open publishing website for local and international news, opinion & analysis, press releases and events. Its main objective is to enable the public to participate in reporting and analysis of the news and other important events and aspects of our daily lives and thereby give a voice to people.

offsite link Julian Assange is finally free ! Tue Jun 25, 2024 21:11 | indy

offsite link Stand With Palestine: Workplace Day of Action on Naksa Day Thu May 30, 2024 21:55 | indy

offsite link It is Chemtrails Month and Time to Visit this Topic Thu May 30, 2024 00:01 | indy

offsite link Hamburg 14.05. "Rote" Flora Reoccupied By Internationalists Wed May 15, 2024 15:49 | Internationalist left

offsite link Eddie Hobbs Breaks the Silence Exposing the Hidden Agenda Behind the WHO Treaty Sat May 11, 2024 22:41 | indy

Human Rights in Ireland >>

Lockdown Skeptics

The Daily Sceptic

offsite link Judges Told to Avoid Saying ?Asylum Seekers? and ?Immigrants? Fri Jul 26, 2024 17:00 | Toby Young
A new edition of the Equal Treatment Bench Book instructs judges to avoid terms such as 'asylum seekers', 'immigrant' and 'gays', which it says can be 'dehumanising'.
The post Judges Told to Avoid Saying ?Asylum Seekers? and ?Immigrants? appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link The Intersectional Feminist Rewriting the National Curriculum Fri Jul 26, 2024 15:00 | Toby Young
Labour has appointed Becky Francis, an intersectional feminist, to rewrite the national curriculum, which it will then force all schools to teach. Prepare for even more woke claptrap to be shoehorned into the classroom.
The post The Intersectional Feminist Rewriting the National Curriculum appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Government Has Just Declared War on Free Speech Fri Jul 26, 2024 13:03 | Toby Young
The Government has just announced it intends to block the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act, effectively declaring war on free speech. It's time to join the Free Speech Union and fight back.
The post Government Has Just Declared War on Free Speech appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link I Wrote an Article for Forbes Defending J.D. Vance From Accusations of ?Climate Denialism?. Forty Ei... Fri Jul 26, 2024 11:00 | Tilak Doshi
On July 18th, Dr Tilak Doshi wrote an article for Forbes defending J.D. Vance from accusations of 'climate denialism'. 48 hours later, Forbes un-published the article. Read the article on the Daily Sceptic.
The post I Wrote an Article for Forbes Defending J.D. Vance From Accusations of ?Climate Denialism?. Forty Eight Hours Later, Forbes Un-Published the Article and Sacked Me as a Contributor appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Come and See Nick Dixon and me Recording the Weekly Sceptic at the Hippodrome on Monday Fri Jul 26, 2024 09:00 | Toby Young
Tickets are still available to a live recording of the Weekly Sceptic, Britain's only podcast to break into the top five of Apple's podcast chart. It?s at Lola's, the downstairs bar of the Hippodrome on Monday July 29th.
The post Come and See Nick Dixon and me Recording the Weekly Sceptic at the Hippodrome on Monday appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

Lockdown Skeptics >>

Voltaire Network
Voltaire, international edition

offsite link Netanyahu soon to appear before the US Congress? It will be decisive for the suc... Thu Jul 04, 2024 04:44 | en

offsite link Voltaire, International Newsletter N°93 Fri Jun 28, 2024 14:49 | en

offsite link Will Israel succeed in attacking Lebanon and pushing the United States to nuke I... Fri Jun 28, 2024 14:40 | en

offsite link Will Netanyahu launch tactical nuclear bombs (sic) against Hezbollah, with US su... Thu Jun 27, 2024 12:09 | en

offsite link Will Israel provoke a cataclysm?, by Thierry Meyssan Tue Jun 25, 2024 06:59 | en

Voltaire Network >>

Judgement in Stormont Anti-War Protest Sham

category antrim | anti-war / imperialism | news report author Friday January 23, 2009 21:10author by éirígí PRO - éirígí Report this post to the editors

Judgement was finally reached today in the case of three éirígí activists who had been charged in connection with an anti-war protest at Stormont in May 2007.
Sit Down Protest
Sit Down Protest

Judgement Reached:
After nearly two years and more than ten separate court appearances the case of the three éirígí activists charged in relation to the
Stormont Anti-War protest finally reached judgement today.

The men, Cormac Ryan [Dublin], Dominic McGlinchey [Derry] and Scott Masterson Dublin], were arrested during a peaceful protest against the visit of British war criminal Tony Blair to the Stormont assembly in May 2007.

Despite the fact that all three men were charged with the same offences and that the ‘evidence’ against the three men was equally weak the judge handed down three separate judgements.

While the case against Scott Masterson was struck out by the judge and Cormac Ryan was found not-guilty due to insufficient evidence, Dominic McGlinchey, who was unable to make the court appearance due to his being out of the country, was convicted in his absence. This three-way judgement is fully in line with a case that has been farcical from start to finish.

Background to Case:
While the original charges against the three men had included allegations of ‘riotous behaviour’ and ‘assault causing actual bodily’ harm these were dropped to lesser charges when it became apparent that the PSNI were unable to produce
any evidence to support them.

Following a series of charge changes all three men were eventually charged with two charges each, namely that of ‘disorderly behaviour’ and ‘assault’.

But even with these lesser charges and the accompanying lesser burdens of proof the PSNI were unable to produce any substantial evidence against the men. The conviction against Dominic McGlinchey was only made possible by the fact that he was not present in court today.

Scott Masterson Speaks Out:
Speaking outside the court today Scott Masterson said,

"For all the talk of change in the Six Counties our case has demonstrated that it is really business as usual for the PSNI and so-called British Justice.

‘When the three of us were originally charged the PSNI claimed that the nose of female member of their force had been broken by Cormac Ryan. They also claimed that an entirely legitimate and peaceful protest against war criminal Tony Blair
had descended into a riot. All of these claims have now been exposed as being completely false.

‘For close to two years Dominic, Cormac and I have had this case hanging over us. At one point Cormac and I were signing on weekly in Newry PSNI barracks requiring a lengthy and costly round trip from Dublin.

‘Dominic, like Cormac and I, has appeared in this British Court on more than ten occasions in relation to these charges. We have also signed on at PSNI barracks on dozens of occasions.

‘We did so because we knew these charges to be complete fabrications and we wanted to expose that in public. At almost every court appearance the PSNI, or the courts themselves, have caused the case to be postponed. The reasons for these postponements have included such laughable excuses as alleged ‘key witnesses’ having the flu or being on training courses.

‘Today, for the first time one of the three of us was unable to make the court appearance – due to an understandable mix-up with dates which resulted in Dominic being out of the country – and now, all of a sudden, the wheels of British justice move so quickly that his case can’t be adjourned for a couple of days.

‘It was well within the power of the judge to deal with mine and Cormac’s cases today while adjourning Dominic’s till he was back in the country. People will see Dominic’s conviction for what it was – an opportunistic conviction of a man who was not given the opportunity to defend himself. The issuing of a bench warrant for his arrest is an equally transparent attempt to blacken his character.

‘Had the judge adjourned Dominic’s case till he was back in the country and able to contradict the PSNI’s so-called evidence there is no doubt that his case would also have been thrown out of court.

‘If proof was needed that there is still no British justice in Ireland today’s judgement was it. A British police force in collusion with the British courts system have attempted for almost two years to portray what was a legitimate political protest as a criminal act. The judgements made today have only further confirmed the political motivation behind this whole farce.

Cormac Ryan Assaulting Cops
Cormac Ryan Assaulting Cops

Cormac Ryan, Dominic McGlinchey, Scott Masterson
Cormac Ryan, Dominic McGlinchey, Scott Masterson

Justice Denied
Justice Denied

author by Ciaran Gallagher - Queens Socialist Societypublication date Sat Jan 24, 2009 01:07author address author phone Report this post to the editors

That's bloody harsh!

The article doesn't say what the judgements actually were, though?

author by Justin Morahanpublication date Sat Jan 24, 2009 01:24author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Looks like the courts up North are as bad as the ones down here.

Well done for your non-violent anti-war protest against war crimes accomplice Anthony Blair.

author by Séamuspublication date Sat Jan 24, 2009 01:54author address author phone Report this post to the editors

The story states that Following a series of charge changes all three men were eventually charged with two charges each, namely that of ‘disorderly behaviour’ and ‘assault’.

I imagine that Dominic McGlinchey will only be sentenced after he has returned to Ireland.

Still, an absolute joke that the two present were cleared while the only one unable to defend himself was found guilty.

author by paul o tooolepublication date Sat Jan 24, 2009 03:38author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Fair play to you all, expose the treacherous lot of warmongering murderers. It is the reality that you must be brought to court, charged and found guilty. Like here in the 'republik' ...activists must be found guilty because if there not it means that the govrrnment is guilty, by de-fault. In the case of the Shannon 5, Catholic worker/pitstop ploughshares action and unanimous acquittal, it remained an open pending, un-answered question.....if they are innocent ...then is it not obvious that ALL the government are guilty??...Wheres the lawyers when you need them, waiting for an apointment to higher office or something.
Some day we might see real criminals in the dock...Welll done lads

author by Infopublication date Sat Jan 24, 2009 08:16author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Ciaran,
I think you might want to get your eyes tested. The article states:

"While the case against Scott Masterson was struck out by the judge and Cormac Ryan was found not-guilty due to insufficient evidence, Dominic McGlinchey, who was unable to make the court appearance due to his being out of the country, was convicted in his absence."

Masterson - Case Struck Out
Ryan - Acquited
McGlinchey - Guilty

author by shane - wsm pers cappublication date Sat Jan 24, 2009 09:27author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Well done and fair play to ye for going through all of this. It's probably stating the obvious but Dominic ought to seek legal advice. Seems to me (but I'm no lawyer) he would have grounds for appeal because due process was not observed.

author by lulupublication date Sun Jan 25, 2009 09:32author address author phone Report this post to the editors

As for the police and the courts in the Republic, and the North, I look from one to another, and cannot see the difference between them, excepting the labels.

Number of comments per page
  
 
© 2001-2024 Independent Media Centre Ireland. Unless otherwise stated by the author, all content is free for non-commercial reuse, reprint, and rebroadcast, on the net and elsewhere. Opinions are those of the contributors and are not necessarily endorsed by Independent Media Centre Ireland. Disclaimer | Privacy