Citizen will never be too small to matter - McDonald

Mary Lou McDonald TD told a meeting of County Wexford Sinn Féin in Ferns last Thursday night that Sinn Féin was now the main opposition party in the country. The Sinn Féin Vice-President told the packed meeting in the Courtyard that both this government and the previous Fianna Fail led coalition had taken a political decision to put the needs of failed banking institutions before the needs of ordinary citizens.

“A political decision was taken,” Deputy McDonald said, “Successive governments decided that banks were too big to fail and citizens were too small to matter. Of course this is clearly wrong and that is why we have so venomously opposed the government’s unfair austerity measures. The reason the so called main opposition party, Fianna Fail, haven’t been attacking these measures is because the Fine Gael and Labour government are only carrying out Fianna Fail instructions. They are implementing the failed Fianna Fail economic program which they campaigned against in the last election.”

“During the 2011 general election campaign Sinn Féin told people that we would be their voice in the Dail. We kept that promise. We are not opposition for the sake of opposition. We are not negative. We are positively asserting the rights of the people. Sinn Féin is a working class outfit and we have no apologies for that.”

Deputy McDonald acknowledged that the real crisis in Ireland for the average citizen is the lack of work. “Sinn Féin has opposed the unfair measures being drafted by this government but we have also put forward alternatives. We have pushed for the investment of funding in the state and the people rather than in toxic banks and unsecured bondholders. We have pushed for the implementation of a realistic job creation program.”

Deputy McDonald said that Sinn Féin was a growing force in County Wexford once again. She urged people who felt disenfranchised to join the party, stating that there will always be more room in the party for genuine people who want to make their communities better.

“Wexford is a county with a long proud tradition,” Deputy McDonald said, “I see no reason why with the right people working for their communities that Sinn Féin can’t be the catalyse of real and lasting change in County Wexford. Change for the better for this county and its people. I’m urging people to make a stand and to join the fastest growing party in Ireland. Sinn Féin believes in a republican Ireland, an Ireland of equality and fairness. An Ireland where banks can sometimes fail but the citizen will never be too small to matter.”

Fight to abolish the household tax will go on - Kelly

On the day of the deadline for registration to the household charge, Cllr Anthony Kelly has said that this is not the end of the campaign to reverse the unfair tax. Cllr Kelly insisted that the fight to abolish the controversial tax was not ending and cited Sinn Fein’s household charge repeal bill in June as another opportunity to have this inequitable tax quashed. The Wexford Sinn Féin rep made the comments as he urged as many people as possible to attend today’s national protest against the tax in Dublin.

“Today might be the government’s deadline for registration, but the fight to have the household tax abolished is by no means over,” Cllr Kelly said. “Up to a million people have not yet registered. Minister Hogan can leave the local authority buildings opened all day and night but a large percentage of the 1.6 million households eligible for this tax will not pay no matter how much spin or threats are thrown at them. Fine Gael should acknowledge at their Ard Fheis today that they have lost the battle to intimidate the people of Ireland into paying this unfair tax.”

“In June, Sinn Féin will be bringing its Local Government (Household Charge) (Repeal) Bill 2012 before the Dail. The aim of this bill is to repeal the household charge and allow the Department to reimburse those households that have already paid it. Sinn Féin has argued from the start that the only way to beat this charge is to have it abolished. If this level of pressure remains on the government they will have to relent and allow this inequitable tax to be quashed.”

“Sinn Féin has supported the protests organised by the people of Wexford against the household tax across our county. Today we will be supporting the national protest outside the Fine Gael Ard Fheis in Dublin. I’m calling on the people of County Wexford to support today’s protest. The fight to abolish the household charge will go on and together we can beat this unfair tax.”

Two faced Ministers have lost the respect of the people – Kelly

Cllr Anthony Kelly has condemned the government for initiating a huge ‘scare and spin’ campaign aimed at trying to break the will of household tax protestors while they squander tax payers’ money. The Sinn Féin rep said that the governments undemocratic move to buy Irish Life for €1.3 billion under emergency banking legislation yesterday while insisting that homeowners refusing to pay the controversial household tax were in danger of bankrupting local government was the height of hypocrisy.

Cllr Kelly said;

“On the day that our government paid €1.3 billion of taxpayers’ money for Irish Life, Enda Kenny demanded that the 1.1 million householders who had not paid their household tax should ‘measure up and obey the law.’ Does Mr Kenny and his cabinet not realise that Irish people can do a simple bit of arithmetic and work out that the money paid out for Irish Life yesterday is eight times the amount to be raised from the household tax?”

“Despite previous spin, it now appears certain that the government will pay out another €3.1 billion this Saturday to honour the promissory note. €4.4 billion paid out to honour the sins of failed banking institutions in a matter of days. That amounts to 27.5 times the maximum amount that could be generated from the household tax.”

“The constant mutterings coming from government ministers over the past week can only be described as a huge scare and spin campaign aimed at intimidating the Irish people into paying the household tax. How can families who have been hammered with austerity over the past four years put their faith in a government who speaks and acts with two very different faces?”

“Attempts to convince household tax protestors that they are responsible for bankrupting local government while state money is squandered on banking assets and debts are the height of hypocrisy. The government’s move to buy Irish Life without any debate on the issue is completely undemocratic and shows the dangerous mentality at the heart of this regime. I truly believe they have lost the respect of the people.”

Minister Howlin has forgotten it was the people who elected him – Kelly

As Sinn Féin announces its intention to publish a household charge repeal bill today, Cllr Anthony Kelly has attacked Minister Brendan Howlin over comments he made regarding the controversial tax yesterday. Cllr Kelly said Minister Howlin's description of the household tax as being “a fair and a just imposition on people” showed that he was out of touch with public opinion and had forgotten that it was people opposing this charge who had elected him to government.

“Minister Brendan Howlin's comments regarding the household charge yesterday were ill-timed and out of touch with public opinion,” Cllr Kelly said. “As of yesterday only 360,000 homeowners had paid the controversial tax. Over 1.2 million citizens had chosen not to register with only three days to go to the deadline. To say that this tax is a fair and just imposition on people is a prime example of how far Minister Howlin is prepared to go to implement Fine Gael’s right wing policies.”

“Later today Sinn Féin spokesperson on local government Brian Stanley TD will be joined by party colleagues to announce details of the party's Local Government (Household Charge) (Repeal) Bill 2012. This will be another attempt by the party to have the tax abolished. Sinn Féin has put forward its alternatives to the household tax. We have consistently argued that those who can afford to pay more should do so.”

“Minister Howlin said yesterday that revenue raised from the tax was vital to fund local government but the truth is that funding that was available to local government up until now has been filtered into the bailout fund. If there is no money to fund local services it will be because our government decided to use it to pay off unsecured bondholders rather than because overstretched families were unable to pay a grossly unfair tax.”

“Yesterdays comments from Minister Howlin were just one in a line of carefully managed diktats coming out from government reps to try to bully and scare the people of Ireland into a tax they have overwhelmingly rejected. This country is still a democracy. It is unacceptable for any government to so blatantly oppose the will of the masses. Minister Howlin’s statement shows that he has forgotten that many of the people opposing the household charge voted him into government a little over a year ago on the promise of reform, growth and fairness.”

Palestinian 'Stall with the Wall' street theatre in Wexford’s Bullring

People walking into Wexford town’s iconic bullring today found themselves face to face with sirens, a scale model of the West Bank wall and armed Israeli soldiers manning a menacing checkpoint. Luckily it was only part of a street theatre event organised by the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) to highlight awareness of the day to day horrors being endured by the Palestinian people under Israeli occupation. Well known Wexford human rights campaigner and Sinn Féin rep. Ger Barron said the event was also organised to highlight “the shameful role of Irish cement multinational CRH plc in Israel’s occupation.”

“The IPSC are staging the ‘Israeli Checkpoint Bethlehem’ street theatre event across the country to highlight the routine difficulties and restrictions on freedom of movement faced by people in the occupied Palestinian territories as they attempt to go about their daily lives,” Mr Barron said. “One and half million Palestinians are currently ‘locked in’ in Gaza, imprisoned in their own country. 65% of them live in poverty while 52% are at risk of hunger.”

“Their day to day lives are even further complicated by the grid of checkpoints that they must pass through each day. At these checkpoints, Palestinians are routinely humiliated, beaten and even killed. This is the day to day horror that they must endure and that we have tried to bring to life in Wexford with this street theatre.”

“It is also necessary to highlight the role that an Irish multinational company is playing in the suffering of the Palestinian people. Irish cement multinational CRH plc is profiteering in Palestine through the sale of cement used for the construction of the Separation Wall and the illegal settlements in the West Bank. At a recent tribunal, leading human rights barrister Michael Mansfield concluded that the conduct of CRH in occupied Palestine was ‘morally reprehensible and exposes the company to legal liability for these violations.’ CRH are currently under investigation by the OECD for alleged complicity with Israel’s violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law.”

Household Tax Bully tactics won’t work – Kelly

Cllr Anthony Kelly renewed his call on the government to abolish the household tax ahead of today’s rally against the controversial charge in Wexford town. The Wexford Sinn Féin councillor said that the governments bully tactics and scaremongering were failing to break the resolve of the Irish people after it had emerged that less than 20% of those eligible to pay the household tax had registered with only a week to go before the deadline.

Cllr Kelly said;

“There’s only one week to go to the deadline for registration to pay the household charge yet fewer than 20% of those eligible have signed up. At this time a little over 300,000 households have paid the charge. That leaves 1.3 million households who have not paid. If that’s not a clear rejection of the household tax by the Irish electorate then I don’t know what is. The people have rejected this tax, and today as a local democratically elected representative I am calling on the government to listen to the wishes of the people and abolish this controversial charge.”

“We are now witnessing government reps appearing hourly on national and local media desperately trying to scaremonger the remaining 1.3 million households into paying this tax. I don’t believe the majority of these people will be fooled by their frantic rhetoric. I don’t believe that the household tax is collectable. Which leaves the question; what will the government do next week after the deadline? Will they begin the process of criminalising hundreds of thousands of Irish people who have never been in any trouble with the law before?”

“Sinn Féin supported the protest rally against the household tax on Wexford Quays this afternoon. I called on all Wexford Sinn Féin members, supporters and voters to come out and help us make a stand against this unfair tax and call for its immediate abolishment. The government has completely misjudged the applicability of this tax and must back down now to avoid a long summer of conflict with their own electorate.”

Wexford Sinn Féin reschedule Rally against Austerity to support the People of Wexford's protest against the household tax this Saturday

Wexford Sinn Féin has rescheduled its Rally against Austerity which was due to be held in Wexford town on Saturday in order to support the peoples protest against the household tax being held on the same day on Crescent Quay.

The Rally against Austerity had been planned to highlight Sinn Féins complete opposition to unfair austerity measures like the household charge, septic tank tax and severe cuts to education and health services while our government prepares to hand over €3.1 billion of taxpayers’ money to cover the debts of a toxic bank next week. The decision to reschedule the event has been taken in order to support the people of Wexford's public protest against the household tax on Saturday.

Wexford Sinn Féin is renewing its call on the government to immediately abolish this controversial tax and prevent a situation where it risks criminalising hundreds of thousands of innocent citizens. We are calling on all Sinn Féin members and supporters to attend Saturdays protest rally on Wexford Quays at 2pm.

Odious Debts must be written off - Mythen

A message from Cllr Johnny Mythen

They say truth is the first casualty of war. Truth is also the casualty of a propaganda financial war. We have in this Country, an unprecedented jobless growth, unprecedented Emigration growth and unprecedented unaccountable power growth.

When a Government will not provide money for hospitals, schools, nurses, teachers, Gardaí, or the creation of much needed jobs across all sections of society, but can find billions to pay broken down financial institutions like Anglo Irish Bank along with unguaranteed bondholders and developers whom are the very people who caused the financial crash in the first place, while at the same time refusing to negotiate or even consider a change in the conditions or terms of this rotten deal, then they are not being true to their Country or their people.

These are odious debts and must be written off. In International law, odious debt is a legal theory which holds that the national debt incurred by a regime for purposes that do not serve the best interest of a nation should not be enforceable. Such debts are considered to be personal debts of the regime that incurred them and not DEBT OF THE STATE.

Its time to start running our Country as a Country, and not as a satellite state under the cosh of total European dominance.

"It’s time to shout stop!” – hears rural meeting

REPORT ON RURAL CONCERNS PUBLIC MEETING IN COOLGREANY
"It’s time to shout stop!” – hears rural meeting

“Enough is enough – it’s time to shout stop!” This was the message that came loud and clear from a well attended meeting public meeting under the heading “septic tanks and the attack on rural Ireland ”which was held in Coolgreany on Wednesday night, and which was organised by North Wexford Sinn Féin.

Chairman, Fionntán Ó Súilleabháin, claimed these attacks included “post office and garda station closures, planned septic tank upgrading costs, water and household taxes, increases in school transport costs, among others. Banks in villages are closing. Government policy is exiling people to the far side of the world, once again, which is also affecting GAA clubs. Closing the local school-the heart of the local community, would be the final nail in the coffin"

Wicklow County Councillor, John Brady, who was almost elected a T.D. in last years general election, and who has addressed several similar gatherings in recent times, was guest speaker on the night. He gave a wide-ranging address covering every facet of rural Ireland “the very fabric of which is being torn apart”, he claimed.

On the contentious issue of septic tanks, he said that “the report in the media earlier this week that an initial 1,984 homes in Co. Wexford and as many as 165,000 throughout the state would be targeted for random inspection has frightened people. The same report estimated upgrading costs of between five and twelve thousand euro. However, the government hasn’t given any guarantee of grant funding.”

He outlined how Sinn Féin politicians were fighting these attacks at every level.

Wexford Sinn Fein Councillor, Anthony Kelly also spoke on the night saying that austerity wasn’t working but added that “people were staring to fight back - just 15% of people have registered for the household tax. It will be simply unworkable.”

Enniscorthy councillor, Johnny Mythen graphically highlighted how emigration was affecting rural areas pointing out that “seven members of Camolin football team and five members of the Bunclody team that won the county final two years ago are now in Australia”

RURAL SCHOOLS

The issue of the threat to small rural schools also came up with the warning that “as many as eleven small schools in North Wexford could either face losing a teacher or closure in the long term, if local people power doesn’t force government politicians to back down.” said Ó Suilleabháin

“Ministers like Ruairi Quinn make these anti-rural decisions while sipping coffee at mahogany tables in Dublin 4. They then dream up with grandiose terms like “rationalisation” to describe cuts that rip the heart out of rural Ireland.”

“Coolgreany’s Scoil Íosagáin have been actively campaigning for the retention of their four mainstream teachers and hope to be successful. They have a very strong, clear cut case. If they are not successful, then no other school in the state will.” He added optimistically, “that the campaign around the DEIS urban disadvantaged schools recently, saw what parent power can achieve. People can force the hand of politicians if they are determined enough”, claimed Ó Suilleabháin.

Howlin merely “paying lip service” over Boucher’s Super Wage

Wexford Sinn Fein has condemned both the Bank of Ireland and the Government after revelations of the outrageous salary received by Bank Chief Ritchie Boucher. Cllr Anthony Kelly described local government TD’s condemnation remarks on the hugely controversial issue as merely “paying lip service” to the Irish tax payer. The Wexford Borough Councillor was particularly critical of Minister for Public Reform Brendan Howlin's refusal to accept any responsibility for the issue.

Cllr Kelly said;

“Minister Howlin should have intervened earlier and insisted that Bank of Ireland and Richie Boucher comply with the Government cap on bank official’s salaries. The Governments acceptance of this unacceptable salary and remunerations is a direct slap in the face to the public. It is entirely unacceptable to allow tax payers money to be abused at a time when the majority of Irish citizens are expected to live under austerity measures imposed by this Government.”

“Brendan Howlin is the Minister in charge of imposing wage caps on senior civil servants and top level bankers. The Ministers government made a huge fanfare of setting a €500,000 price cap on senior bankers. Mr Boucher’s basic salary exceeds this amount by €123,000. With benefits his package is worth €831,000. This is at a time when the people of this country are being threatened with fines if they refuse to register for the household tax. Once again it is remarkably straightforward to see the two tiered Ireland of haves and not-haves in existence.”

“The Government will attempt to camouflage the turning of a blind eye to Mr Boucher’s payment by blaming this on the last Government. People will remember that it was the Fine Gael and Labour parties that gave a solemn promise to the Irish electorate that these golden handshakes to high ranking bank officials at the expense of the tax payer would never again be tolerated under their watch. For a government TD to say that Mr Boucher’s wages upsets them is merely paying lip service to long forgotten election promises.”