ReOccupy Galway 2013- A short film detailing Gardai abuse of power

zootshooter · 01-07-2013 12:04am #1

Here is a link to a short film about the abuse of power and the infringement of the basic rights of Irish citizens in contemporary Ireland by its national police force- An Garda Siochana. This short amateur film was made by myself after witnessing the abuse of rights of peaceful protesters by Gardai and happening to have my camera with me to record the spectacle.

I know that the occupy protesters divide opinion on this site, but I still wonder whether Irish people have become so apathetic as to disregard the flagrant abuse of the rights of Irish citizens to peaceful protest, as is documented in this short film I made.

I am in no way affiliated with Occupy Galway. I was just a man walking by with a video camera who was fairly disgusted by the behavior of our national police force in how they treated the people they are supposed to protect.

Please take a look and let me know what you think.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZoldtp39IA&feature=youtu.be

ben.schlomo · 01-07-2013 12:17am

Too long, too noisy and ranty to really bother trying to listen. Glad the guards stopped people defacing the Square on a sunny day.

IBTL.

zootshooter · 01-07-2013 12:32am

Well thanks for sharing such an enlightened opinion. I'm glad you've got your eyes open and your ear to the ground. The country needs more people like you.

flynnlives · 01-07-2013 12:32am

so why didnt the owner come forward and claim the property?

huge leap there lads from a garda taking property, that none of ye supposedly owned, to some sort of anti democracy/right to assemble conspiracy.

What really annoys me is your arrogance of other peoples opinion. As if you have seen the light and look down on the rest of us.

I went down to the occupy tent and had a look around and it was good but then i looked on some of the posters and saw the freemen nonsense posted up.
Thats when i know ye were full of it. Its kinda hypocritical to state and quote the constitution and laws inferred from it whilst on the other hand peddling
nonsense about human entities and legal names and pseudo maritime law bull****.

If ye really believed in what you preach you would do what ming did, get elected. At least he now has a platform and a mandate.

Instead its easier to go around saying we are all disillusioned and arent enlightened has much as ye. Goin around spouting "i told ya so!" is the typical irish hurlers in the ditch approach. Sorry lads but that isnt going to get ye support.

pleasant Co. · 01-07-2013 12:32am

I'm gonna leave this here for now, but would like to know what line of discussion you're hoping to open up keeping in mind that this is the Galway City forum, not politics, not cool vids and pics...so what's the aim of this thread in the Galway sense?

To all posters, keep cool heads and be polite, if you can't then please don't waste your energy posting

zootshooter · 01-07-2013 12:37am

Well I'd say its a pretty relevant topic considering this happened in the center of Galway and the guards are the protectors of peace and the servants of the people and some might just see stopping people writing with chalk in the rain as a bit of waste of tax payers money. Especially in light of rising levels of crime throughout the city and what with Anglo bankers pulling 7 billion euros out of their arse and all.

flynnlives · 01-07-2013 12:45am

zootshooter wrote: »

Well I'd say its a pretty relevant topic considering this happened in the center of Galway and the guards are the protectors of peace and the servants of the people and some might just see stopping people writing with chalk in the rain as a bit of waste of tax payers money. Especially in light of rising levels of crime throughout the city and what with Anglo bankers pulling 7 billion euros out of their arse and all.

you didnt answer the question?

why didnt the owner come forward?

pleasant Co. · 01-07-2013 12:46am

zootshooter wrote: »

Well I'd say its a pretty relevant topic considering this happened in the center of Galway

That's the only reason I can see for leaving the thread here, I was hoping you could enlighten me with some other reason.

zootshooter wrote: »

and the guards are the protectors of peace and the servants of the people and some might just see stopping people writing with chalk in the rain as a bit of waste of tax payers money. Especially in light of rising levels of crime throughout the city and what with Anglo bankers pulling 7 billion euros out of their arse and all.

these national issues are largely why I think the Galway city forum is not the most suitable place for this thread.

Systemic Risk · 01-07-2013 12:50am

Fair play to the protesters for coming out and protesting issues that they feel strongly about. I think that greed and corruption has become endemic many sections of society. I think the right to protest is great and fair play for people coming out and doing so to highlight this issue.

Now on the other hand, the occupy group came out and said they were going to reoccupy eyre square. I disagreed with the last group waiting so long in the square and turning it into an eyesore and turning a section of a public square into a mini shanty town.

The Gardai came in and made sure this did not happen again. In your video they clearly confiscated the materials that the group had which would have aided their stated aim to reoccupy the square. They told the protesters they could get their property back at the station. I think the Gardai were courteous and dealt with the protesters with respect despite the shouting and cameras stuck in their faces.

I found that behaviour disgraceful...3-4 cameras stuck directly in the faces of Gardai who were doing their jobs. Surely if the group wanted to record the conversation with the gardai for whatever purpose 1 camera would have sufficed. I was pretty disgusted with that. The protesters made their protest about the conflict with gardai and their aim to draw all over the square and (as they claimed) reoccupy it. I know chalk washes off easily but if large numbers of people went around the city drawing all over everything in chalk the city would look pretty terrible in my opinion.

As the garda recommended they should have used a bit of cop on. They could have protested, had their voices heard, handed out flyers and gotten people in on their cause without all the extra drama. The behaviour of the protesters in this video makes it harder for many normal people to protest alongside them.

Anyway you asked for opinions and than is my honest one.

maki · 01-07-2013 12:53am

zootshooter wrote: »

Well I'd say its a pretty relevant topic considering this happened in the center of Galway and the guards are the protectors of peace and the servants of the people and some might just see stopping people writing with chalk in the rain as a bit of waste of tax payers money. Especially in light of rising levels of crime throughout the city and what with Anglo bankers pulling 7 billion euros out of their arse and all.

The Gardaí were ordered to the square in the first place in order to prevent another reoccupation. You could say that the occupiers themselves were causing a waste of taxpayers money.
Not to mention that defacement of public property is what it is, regardless of how temporary it may be.

MadYaker · 01-07-2013 1:14am

Are we really gonna do this again?

ben.schlomo · 01-07-2013 1:15am

zootshooter wrote: »

Well thank you for an honest and thoughtful reply. I don't see why you think i am affiliated with the group. What makes you think I am? I was just a curious bystander who happened to want to try out their new video camera and i think i managed to capture something worth documenting. I also think it is pretty obvious why it is relevant to the people of Galway. This is directly linked to how the city is policed by the gardai, in the light of frustrations felt by a lot of resident of Galway, myself included, with how the gardai respond to crime in the city, I think this video highlights a monumental waste of resources.

I don't see why a debate like this can't be allowed to continue.

If its just about the use of Galway garda resources then im sure it wont go down the toilet like all the other Occupy threads but if not then..........

Gatling · 01-07-2013 1:15am

Bunch of scrounging loons

Rather than wastes taxpayers money having to deal with these eyesores
Try contribute to society and get a job rather than moaning and freeloading

Mod note, banned

pleasant Co. · 01-07-2013 1:23am

zootshooter wrote: »

I also think it is pretty obvious why it is relevant to the people of Galway. This is directly linked to how the city is policed by the gardai, in the light of frustrations felt by a lot of resident of Galway, myself included, with how the gardai respond to crime in the city, I think this video highlights a monumental waste of resources.

I don't see why a debate like this can't be allowed to continue.

Take this feedback at face value, your opening post does not make that clear at all: re-read it, edit it and make your point clear as no-one in this thread so far seems to have copped that you want a discussion about how the gardai respond to crime. I initially thought you wanted reviews of your short :pac:

xtradel · 01-07-2013 8:50am

Fair play to the garda...kept his cool and treated them with respect. If i was the guard and had cameras put in my face like that i'd have fired them into a paddy wagon and let them occupy a cell in Mill St for a while where they could chant all the sh1te they want.

biko · 01-07-2013 9:20am

A quick search on boards, or your own site OP, show more camera work from you at the square.
I'd be inclined to think this is more that "a man walking by with a video camera".
Also your choice of title kinda gives it away.

Storm 10 · 01-07-2013 2:10pm

Yes the Garda done a great job there nothing wrong that I can see, as a matter of fact I walked by several times during the day and looking at the film angles I saw you filming there that day, there was another guy who kept walking around the Garda filming them, I thought they showed great patience with him sticking his camera almost in there faces, well done Galway Gardai.

inisboffin · 01-07-2013 2:34pm

To view it impartially as someone who doesn't know about the protest or Occupy, the Gardaí in this video came across as very courteous and reasonable.
If I was a conspiracy theorist, in fact I might think it was made by them.

Not the best example to use if you are trying to indicate abuse of power. There are others floating around from the last week in Ireland that do show that.

Paddyfield · 01-07-2013 2:40pm

Sorry for wandering off topic, but doesn't Eyre Square look mighty in the sunshine compared to the grey dampness at the end of the video?

ben.schlomo · 01-07-2013 2:47pm

inisboffin wrote: »

To view it impartially as someone who doesn't know about the protest or Occupy, the Gardaí in this video came across as very courteous and reasonable.
If I was a conspiracy theorist, in fact I might think it was made by them.

Not the best example to use if you are trying to indicate abuse of power. There are others floating around from the last week in Ireland that do show that.

Bought tinfoil yesterday Inis,i'll make you a hat

.

desaparecidos · 01-07-2013 3:17pm

I started off the video but it bored me silly.

Where's the baton charge at?

zarquon · 01-07-2013 4:20pm

i can see absolutely nothing wrong with what the gardai did in the video. They kept their cool despite provocation from the occupiers shoving cameras in their faces hoping they would at some point let their guard down which never happened. This is a farce if it's the best that occupy galway can provide as evidence of Garda abuse. It's also an affront to the intelligence of everyone to try and pass this off as just an impartial bypasser who happened to have a camcorder. If you are going to lie blatently then don't forget to delete the multitude of historical posts you have related to Occupy Dame Street!!!

squonk · 01-07-2013 4:34pm

Do we have to do this again? We had a very long thread about ReOccupy Galway a few weeks ago that went nowhere. I think most people have seen the Occupy/ReOccupy movement in Galway now for what it is. In any case, I think people are less interested now in what the movement have to offer than they were even when the camp started first.

Lennonist · 01-07-2013 6:12pm

zootshooter wrote: »

Here is a link to a short film about the abuse of power and the infringement of the basic rights of Irish citizens in contemporary Ireland by its national police force- An Garda Siochana. This short amateur film was made by myself after witnessing the abuse of rights of peaceful protesters by Gardai and happening to have my camera with me to record the spectacle.

I know that the occupy protesters divide opinion on this site, but I still wonder whether Irish people have become so apathetic as to disregard the flagrant abuse of the rights of Irish citizens to peaceful protest, as is documented in this short film I made.

I am in no way affiliated with Occupy Galway. I was just a man walking by with a video camera who was fairly disgusted by the behavior of our national police force in how they treated the people they are supposed to protect.

Please take a look and let me know what you think.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZoldtp39IA&feature=youtu.be

I'm inclined to believe you that you are in no way affiliated with Occupy Galway. That video paints Occupy Galway people in a very bad light, so maybe you are trying to undermine their campaign.

There is plenty of reasons for people to protest the current political and economic environment, however having it hijacked by certain groups doesn't help.

sphincter_boy · 01-07-2013 6:19pm

I am a "friend" of zootshooter, since he got banned for starting this very thread, it's not possible for him to post anymore and respond to all these mental conspiracy theories that are being suggested regarding his links to occupy.

I can assure you that he was just walking by at the time of the protest on his way to Marks and Spencers and he stuck around for about half an hour in order to try out his brand new slr camera. It is true that once he took a photograph of the occupy protest the year before, but I'm not sure that really counts as being affiliated with that group. He also defended some of their principles after many members criticised his photograph on the irrelevant basis of whether or not they agreed with the protest.

Members of this site now feel like they can ascribe his political allegiances and affiliations simply on the basis that he once took a picture of a protest and once partook in a discussion about it.

Freedom of speech is completely absent from this site never mind the wider Irish community. My "friend" was banned for simply starting this thread under a new account because he couldn't remember his password for his old account that he gave up using last year. When his new account was deleted for starting this thread. He got a reminder sent for his old one and so he posted in under that. Zoot shooter was then banned for "spamming". I have never heard of one post being defined as spamming before, but there you go.

As a result this discussion can't really continue.

I will just say that the Gardai clearly violate protestors' right to protest in the film that was posted by taking away chalk from them as well as a gazebo used to shelter speakers and the crowd from the many rainshowers that occurred on the day.

They also violated their right to property when doing the same.

These are clear violations of Irish constitutional law by our national police force and noone really gives a toss. Fair enough they are small things, mostly symbolic perhaps, but just because you break a constitutional right in a small way, it doesn't change the fact that these rights are a pretty important facet of the document that governs law and order in our country.

Good luck ever talking about any of the big issues in our society on a site that stifles discussion in a country that doesn't even allow people to protest populated by people who don't even care about their constitution.

endacl · 01-07-2013 6:23pm

Watched movie. Mind unchanged. Position confirmed.

endacl · 01-07-2013 6:35pm

First 'Godwin' @ 9'10".

Does it count in a video?

Bobeagleburger · 01-07-2013 6:36pm

The thread title is misleading as Eyre Square wasn't re-occupied as only 3/4 people turned up.

endacl · 01-07-2013 6:44pm

rarnes1 wrote: »

The thread title is misleading as Eyre Square wasn't re-occupied as only 3/4 people turned up.

True. A genuine 'occupy' demands a quorum of 10 people, two dogs, and a tent. What they had there was a 'hang about in'. While the 'hang about in' does have a long and noble tradition, in modern times it has been somewhat devalued by teenagers with no actual agenda to speak of. I have no doubt the 'hang about in' might potentially have developed into a relatively minor 'occupy', but it turns out that nobody was really interested. Probably too busy getting on with life to be hanging around whining...

jjpep · 01-07-2013 6:46pm

The whole occupy thing I thought was great right at the start( not just in galway but worldwide). There is a lot of unfairness in our society and its something we should have a conversation about but the moment people involved in started spouting freeman crap etc I lost interest. Replacing a self serving system with another self serving system isn't really progress. Pity, cause I feel it was an opportunity lost.

sphincter_boy · 01-07-2013 6:54pm

endacl wrote: »

True. A genuine 'occupy' demands a quorum of 10 people, two dogs, and a tent. What they had there was a 'hang about in'. While the 'hang about in' does have a long and noble tradition, in modern times it has been somewhat devalued by teenagers with no actual agenda to speak of. I have no doubt the 'hang about in' might potentially have developed into a relatively minor 'occupy', but it turns out that nobody was really interested. Probably too busy getting on with life to be hanging around whining...

A great use of Garda Resources so, 20 or so Garda spending the day and well into the night policing a "hang about in".

Now I finally understand why we can't afford all those police stations closing down around the country, and why the Guards never bothered turning up when I made a noise complaint at 5am on a Monday morning cause my neighbours were throwing their furniture out the window onto the traffic.

It's cause they're doing real valuable policing. They are stoppping the real gangsters from protesting peacefully in a public space, they are earning their money by pulling chalk out of peoples hands when they are trying to write on a wet footpath.

Good to know that my taxes are being spent on such valuable police work.

endacl · 01-07-2013 7:02pm

sphincter_boy wrote: »

A great use of Garda Resources so, 20 or so Garda spending the day and well into the night policing a "hang about in".

Now I finally understand why we can't afford all those police stations closing down around the country, and why the Guards never bothered turning up when I made a noise complaint at 5am on a Monday morning cause my neighbours were throwing their furniture out the window onto the traffic.

It's cause they're doing real valuable policing. They are stoppping the real gangsters from protesting peacefully in a public space, they are earning their money by pulling chalk out of peoples hands when they are trying to write on a wet footpath.

Good to know that my taxes are being spent on such valuable police work.

Better a day spent easily moving a 'hang about in' than a weekend spent dismantling a camp and moving an 'occupy'.

Clever use of resources I'd have to say. Maybe if you were genuinely concerned about wasting Garda resources, you wouldn't support these pointless wasterpaloozas in the first place?

Doctor_Socks · 01-07-2013 7:08pm

Guards came across as being very professional in that video, don't really see what the problem is regarding the way they are carrying out their work

sphincter_boy · 01-07-2013 7:09pm

endacl wrote: »

Better a day spent easily moving a 'hang about in' than a weekend spent dismantling a camp and moving an 'occupy'.

Clever use of resources I'd have to say. Maybe if you were genuinely concerned about wasting Garda resources, you wouldn't support these pointless wasterpaloozas in the first place?

Irregardless of whether you believe in a specific protest movement or not. You should believe that everybody in Ireland has a right to protest peacefully. This country has a long proud tradition of peaceful protests doesn't it?

The garda stood in the way of Occupy's peaceful protest by seizing property and stifling free speech.

Voltaire said memorably that: "I disagree strongly with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

This quote is kind of the basis for our modern democratic society of which the Irish constituion is its basis.

You might not give a toss about these fundamental rights, but anyone with their head out of their ass really should.

endacl · 01-07-2013 7:27pm

I do of course agree with their right to protest. The problem is that when a notion like occupy implants itself in a certain sector of Irish vocational protestry, instead of them being an temporary annoyance, they become a semipermanent fixture. An annoying whiney one. If, for example, victims of clerical abuse, or any number of other groups with a genuine and addressable grievance wanted to occupy a square and make their voices heard, I'd support that. I'd even join them.

When its the usual suspects turning up to compare dreadlocks and djembes though, sorry. Move 'em on. 'I don't like the way the world works' is not an addressable grievance. Nobody who could make a blind bit of difference paid a blind bit of notice to them. Even when they were moved on. I engaged occupiers in both Galway and Dublin. Heard lots of semi coherent ranting about what was wrong with the world. And not one single idea of a solution to address those issues beyond 'let's stay here for a bit and whine'.

The net effect of occupy in Ireland? Some people who hadn't thought much about the various and rambling issues raised by occupiers, thought that those problems must be ridiculous, because the people who told them were ridiculous. Total effective change? Zip. Nada. Nothing.

As it happens, I do care about many of the issues that the more coherent occupiers raised. I have done since long before occupy. As somebody who goes care about those issues, occupy pissed me off no end. They turned many people away from caring.

sphincter_boy · 01-07-2013 7:34pm

endacl wrote: »

I do of course agree with their right to protest. The problem is that when a notion like occupy implants itself in a certain sector of Irish vocational protestry, instead of them being an temporary annoyance, they become a semipermanent fixture. An annoying whiney one. If, for example, victims of clerical abuse, or any number of other groups with a genuine and addressable grievance wanted to occupy a square and make their voices heard, I'd support that. I'd even join them.

When its the usual suspects turning up to compare dreadlocks and djembes though, sorry. Move 'em on. 'I don't like the way the world works' is not an addressable grievance. Nobody who could make a blind bit of difference paid a blind bit of notice to them. Even when they were moved on. I engaged occupiers in both Galway and Dublin. Heard lots of semi coherent ranting about what was wrong with the world. And not one single idea of a solution to address those issues beyond 'let's stay here for a bit and whine'.

The net effect of occupy in Ireland? Some people who hadn't thought much about the various and rambling issues raised by occupiers, thought that those problems must be ridiculous, because the people who told them were ridiculous. Total effective change? Zip. Nada. Nothing.

As it happens, I do care about many of the issues that the more coherent occupiers raised. I have done some long before occupy. As somebody who goes care about those issues, occupy pissed me off no end. They turned many people away from caring.

Well thanks for proving my point, to cut a long story short you don't agree with this specific protest movement so therefore you're happy for their right to protest to be stifled. That's the exact opposite of "I disagree strongly with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

At least you should know the point that you are trying to make.

endacl · 01-07-2013 7:36pm

sphincter_boy wrote: »

Well thanks for proving my point, to cut a long story short you don't agree with this specific protest movement so therefore you're happy for their right to protest to be stifled. That's the exact opposite of "I disagree strongly with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

At least you should know the point that you are trying to make.

That's not what I said, but of course you know that...

endacl · 01-07-2013 8:01pm

Lennonist wrote: »

The video that was uploaded does nothing to promote your protest, in fact it undermines it and paints the OG people in attendance in a very bad light. If you can't see that you haven't a hope of getting your message across. People are unhappy with a lot of things in the economy and well organised and focused protests can put pressure on government to act, ye are going the wrong way about it and turning people off the notion of street protests. Ye are undermining your own agenda.

Actually......

Yep. That's what I said.

01-07-2013 11:45pm

A more apt tittle would be 4 people in a square in Galway 2013- A short film detailing how courteous Guardai deal with uncooperative, ignorant and rude individuals who believe themselves above the law.

happyoutscan · 01-07-2013 11:55pm

Were they really shouting 'who invited you' to the Gardai?

How ironic.

flynnlives · 02-07-2013 1:08am

still didnt answer my question from page 1

not surprising really, when i questioned the people at the previous camp/tent about the freeman nonsense they were just as vague.

Actually they just stared into space....they knew it was bull****, i knew it was bull**** and for a second i could see they hadnt a fecking clue what they were doing. And the world was as one.

Donnielighto · 02-07-2013 1:23am

sphincter_boy wrote: »

A great use of Garda Resources so, 20 or so Garda spending the day and well into the night policing a "hang about in".

Now I finally understand why we can't afford all those police stations closing down around the country, and why the Guards never bothered turning up when I made a noise complaint at 5am on a Monday morning cause my neighbours were throwing their furniture out the window onto the traffic.

It's cause they're doing real valuable policing. They are stoppping the real gangsters from protesting peacefully in a public space, they are earning their money by pulling chalk out of peoples hands when they are trying to write on a wet footpath.

Good to know that my taxes are being spent on such valuable police work.

Something all bar one of the lads i know that were involved in the first occupy had no familiarity with. having never been gainfully employed.

Edot: Galway mods really protective of the protesters (thats not an insulting term before I get done for it, if you think it is edit the post pls.)

Wompa1 · 02-07-2013 3:06am

Well since this thread is meant to be whether or not it was a misuse or that somehow the Garda in Galway are misused or something. I don't agree with that. I assume the goal of having them there was to prevent the setup of another camp in a public place, which from what I personally perceived at the end of the last occupation, I think the majority of people in the city wanted the camp to be dismantled. The Galway exist to server and protect, in this case they needed to serve the best interests and wishes of the majority.

I have had issue with the way they have been used previously. I use to feel that they would look the other way quite a bit during race week which I'm sure was a directive from above. I also dislike that they need to setup that surveillance van for RAG week, it's getting a bit mad.

biko · 02-07-2013 9:06am

Ok protesters and protest-protesters alike, I'm going to abuse my power and shut this down. Since OP got admin banned he can't come back to speak for himself.
I also want to commend the attending Gardai on their calm and controlled way of dealing with the situation.

ReOccupy Galway 2013- A short film detailing Gardai abuse of power

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