Today's good news is that Mary Kelly had her conviction for criminal damage to a US military aircraft (29 January 2003) overturned by the Court of Criminal Appeal in Dublin this morning. This has been revealed by Shannonwatch, the excellent anti-war and human rights group that monitors the foreign military use of Shannon airport.
The original trial was heard in Kilrush and on 4 July 2003 resulted in a hung jury. Subsequently Mary Kelly was tried in Ennis Circuit Court and, on 29 October 2004, she was convicted and sentenced to two years suspended. The appeal against this sentence was heard on 29 July 2008.
It took almost four years for the courts to hear her appeal or facilitate the appeal by producing a full and accurate transcript of her trial.
And it has taken a mere two years and seven months for the three learned judges to deliver their judgement!
What a travesty.
"Justice delayed is justice denied". What excuse is there for this unbelievable delay in giving judgement? For those six and a half years, Mary Kelly has been denied justice .
Yet, having represented herself over all of that time, she sat alone again today to hear the judgement.
That judgement vindicated her. For she has succeeded after a gigantic struggle in forcing the courts to acknowledge that her lone action in Shannon airport on that long night in January 2003 was a good action.
She acted to save lives in Iraq. Our State prosecuted her as a criminal and the State has lost.
Friday, 25 February 2011
Thursday, 24 February 2011
Irish Elections - Other Priorities
7. Stand up to Europe. Take their cash, not for the toxic banks, but to regenerate the economy.
New Government, new ball game.
8. Bring back the Freedom of Information Act in its original form.
It was neutered after we gave Shannon airport to GW Bush. Nothing to hide, no fear of free information
9. No to a European Army
Goes without saying. Armies are for killing. No Irish Army, no European Army
10. No to stag hunting
Keep cruel sports out of Ireland
11. Whistle blower's Charter
To end corruption at every level and in every sphere whistle-blowers should be encouraged and protected
12. Encourage small home industries
So stopping the dependence on capitalist multi-nationals
13. Tax the rich more and the poor less. Start creating an equal society
14. End the party whip system. Let elected representatives be free to vote according to
their consciences
15. Reform the prison system and then abolish it.
Replace it with a system of restorative justice and probation service
16. Let emigrants vote for first six years of exile
A new emigrant constituency would elect its own quota of TDs depending on the number of emigrants registered in that new constituency.
17. Investigate all psychiatric hospitals and methods used in them and stop all treatments not acceptable to the patients
18. Remove the blasphemy law.
It is a dangerous and ludicrous anachronism
New Government, new ball game.
8. Bring back the Freedom of Information Act in its original form.
It was neutered after we gave Shannon airport to GW Bush. Nothing to hide, no fear of free information
9. No to a European Army
Goes without saying. Armies are for killing. No Irish Army, no European Army
10. No to stag hunting
Keep cruel sports out of Ireland
11. Whistle blower's Charter
To end corruption at every level and in every sphere whistle-blowers should be encouraged and protected
12. Encourage small home industries
So stopping the dependence on capitalist multi-nationals
13. Tax the rich more and the poor less. Start creating an equal society
14. End the party whip system. Let elected representatives be free to vote according to
their consciences
15. Reform the prison system and then abolish it.
Replace it with a system of restorative justice and probation service
16. Let emigrants vote for first six years of exile
A new emigrant constituency would elect its own quota of TDs depending on the number of emigrants registered in that new constituency.
17. Investigate all psychiatric hospitals and methods used in them and stop all treatments not acceptable to the patients
18. Remove the blasphemy law.
It is a dangerous and ludicrous anachronism
Sunday, 20 February 2011
The Irish Elections - What I want from the next Government - No 6 Lower the voting age gradually
No 6 Lower the voting age
For years the age at which we were entitled to vote was 21. It is now 18. This means that anyone under 18 has no say whatever in how our country is governed.
Students enter post-primary school at 11 or 12. Who dares to think that the vast majority of those who leave primary school at that age are not mentally capable of a mature decision on how they themselves are governed?
Children's lives are affected by Government decisions. Irish children have been badly served in the past by Irish Governments. Irish children who were abused in institutions had no power to stop the abuse. Irish children have been abused in their own homes. They too had no voice or power. In the words of a glib and dangerous aphorism: Children were supposed to be seen and not heard. Children were battered in State schools by day and night and had no redress. The culture of adults decided and children had no remedy.
Children should be allowed to vote as son as they come to the use of reason.
The sooner the better. There may be difficulties in putting this into practice but no-one better than children themselves to overcome these difficulties.
At the very least the voting age for the next elections, whatever they are, should be reduced to 14. Then to 11. Then to a lower age.
For years the age at which we were entitled to vote was 21. It is now 18. This means that anyone under 18 has no say whatever in how our country is governed.
Students enter post-primary school at 11 or 12. Who dares to think that the vast majority of those who leave primary school at that age are not mentally capable of a mature decision on how they themselves are governed?
Children's lives are affected by Government decisions. Irish children have been badly served in the past by Irish Governments. Irish children who were abused in institutions had no power to stop the abuse. Irish children have been abused in their own homes. They too had no voice or power. In the words of a glib and dangerous aphorism: Children were supposed to be seen and not heard. Children were battered in State schools by day and night and had no redress. The culture of adults decided and children had no remedy.
Children should be allowed to vote as son as they come to the use of reason.
The sooner the better. There may be difficulties in putting this into practice but no-one better than children themselves to overcome these difficulties.
At the very least the voting age for the next elections, whatever they are, should be reduced to 14. Then to 11. Then to a lower age.
The Irish Elections - What I want from the next Government - No 5 Stop the bullying of children in Irish schools
5 Stop the bullying of children in Irish schools
I have the dubious and onerous privilege of knowing more about the extent of bullying in Irish schools than almost any other person in Ireland.
For four years I worked at the coal face in trying to end bullying in one such Irish school.
Through the Box and Interview method I became aware of the vast amount of often unconscious bullying that plagued the lives of vulnerable children.
Through my website http://antibullyingireland.nfshost.com/ I know that bullying is widespread in Ireland and there is almost nothing effective being done to prevent or end it. I believe too that the incidence of bullying here has almost doubled in the past twelve months.
At the late Tony Gregory's funeral I mentioned the subject to Enda Kenny and he agreed with me that the excellent Department Guidelines (1993) should not remain as mere Guidelines to end bullying but should have the force of law.
Some members of the Oireachtas made valiant efforts to get Minister Mary Hanafin to meet me to make a presentation on the method that had been proven to work. They were; Joe Higgins (Socialist Party), Finian McGrath, (Independent) and Jan O'Sullivan (Labour Party).
The Minister did not meet me. She deputed her private assistant to have a look at a printed copy of my submissions. In the Dáil she granted that the Box and Interview method was one that Boards of Management could use.
I am asking the next Government :
1 to make the Department Guidelines (1993) law
2 to recommend the Box and Interview method to schools
3 to seriously tackle the bullying culture with all their might.
I have the dubious and onerous privilege of knowing more about the extent of bullying in Irish schools than almost any other person in Ireland.
For four years I worked at the coal face in trying to end bullying in one such Irish school.
Through the Box and Interview method I became aware of the vast amount of often unconscious bullying that plagued the lives of vulnerable children.
Through my website http://antibullyingireland.nfshost.com/ I know that bullying is widespread in Ireland and there is almost nothing effective being done to prevent or end it. I believe too that the incidence of bullying here has almost doubled in the past twelve months.
At the late Tony Gregory's funeral I mentioned the subject to Enda Kenny and he agreed with me that the excellent Department Guidelines (1993) should not remain as mere Guidelines to end bullying but should have the force of law.
Some members of the Oireachtas made valiant efforts to get Minister Mary Hanafin to meet me to make a presentation on the method that had been proven to work. They were; Joe Higgins (Socialist Party), Finian McGrath, (Independent) and Jan O'Sullivan (Labour Party).
The Minister did not meet me. She deputed her private assistant to have a look at a printed copy of my submissions. In the Dáil she granted that the Box and Interview method was one that Boards of Management could use.
I am asking the next Government :
1 to make the Department Guidelines (1993) law
2 to recommend the Box and Interview method to schools
3 to seriously tackle the bullying culture with all their might.
Saturday, 19 February 2011
Irish Elections - What I want from the new Government - No 4 Stop the US or any other military from using any of our airports for war purposes
No 4: Stop the US from using Shannon airport for the purposes of war in Afghanistan
No army personnel should be allowed to travel through Irish airports for the purposes of making war.
Since the Fianna Fáil Government allowed George Bush's army to use Shannon civilian airport to wage war on Iraq, millions of troops have passed through Shannon to kill people in Iraq and Afghanistan, essentially making Ireland a participant in war.
Up to that point we had not been participants in war. On a day of shame we surrendered our neutrality. Those of us who opposed this madness were told that we needed the United States. If we didn't support Bush's evil and immoral killing in Iraq, we would lose untold jobs in Ireland.
Our masters supported Bush but we also lost jobs. Not only that but we have lost our economic independence. We are in a depression. Hundreds of thousands are forced to emigrate, mortgages are gone through the roof, suicides are sadly far too common. The EU and IMF are the new masters of Ireland.
We chose immorality and immorality has let us down.
Now we should choose to do the right thing for once and say to the United States; "You are engaged in an immoral and useless and unjust war in Afghanistan. We are a neutral nation. We will no longer allow you to use our airports to engage in war."
No army personnel should be allowed to travel through Irish airports for the purposes of making war.
Since the Fianna Fáil Government allowed George Bush's army to use Shannon civilian airport to wage war on Iraq, millions of troops have passed through Shannon to kill people in Iraq and Afghanistan, essentially making Ireland a participant in war.
Up to that point we had not been participants in war. On a day of shame we surrendered our neutrality. Those of us who opposed this madness were told that we needed the United States. If we didn't support Bush's evil and immoral killing in Iraq, we would lose untold jobs in Ireland.
Our masters supported Bush but we also lost jobs. Not only that but we have lost our economic independence. We are in a depression. Hundreds of thousands are forced to emigrate, mortgages are gone through the roof, suicides are sadly far too common. The EU and IMF are the new masters of Ireland.
We chose immorality and immorality has let us down.
Now we should choose to do the right thing for once and say to the United States; "You are engaged in an immoral and useless and unjust war in Afghanistan. We are a neutral nation. We will no longer allow you to use our airports to engage in war."
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