Event filled day outside Dáil for Kevin Tracey ongoing protest

national | rights, freedoms and repression | news report Tuesday September 27, 2011 12:23 by Justin Morahan

Taoiseach Enda Kenny told of corrupt judicial system as camers click

On Wednesday 21 September 2011, an ill Kevin Tracey continued his protest against corruption in the Judicial system, DPP's office, Gardaí, Judges, Courts Service in Ireland.

On the day Troy Davis was facing execution in Georgia for a crime he almost certainly did not commit, I made my way to the Dáil to support Kevin Tracey in his own struggle against a corrupt Irish judicial system. I wore a home-made arm band with the logo "I AM TROY DAVIS" in support of the condemned man in Georgia.

THE TAXI MAN'S STORY

On the way in, the taxi man asked me if I were interested to hear the Dáil debates but I told him I would be outside the Dáil, protesting, and eventually told him in summary the story of how Kevin Tracey has been set up by the State and refused permission to take action against the State after he had proven himself innocent of several malicious charges. (Judge Kearns refused to accept his Doctor's certificate as acceptable.)

The taxi man was suitably shocked saying he had always believed in the fairness of the system until nine months ago. A young woman ran her car into the back of his taxi causing extensive damage to her own vehicle but no apparent damage to his. The taxi man wanted just to ignore the incident but the young woman insisted on getting the attention of a Garda she had spotted in the vicinity. Her first words to the Garda were: "My own father is a Garda". The Garda told the taxi-man to contact him if there was any problem.

When the taxi man got home he was unable to open the boot and, as instructed, phoned the Garda. The Garda said he would get back to him.
A month later he rang again and was told the Garda would contact him. Now, nine months after the incident, there had been no further contact.

REACTION OF PASSERS-BY

Once again passers-by were shocked by the Kevin Tracey story. They included members of the general public from Ireland and overseas. A contingent of students from Limerick found it hard to come to terms with the injustice of it all

TARGETING OF POLITICIANS

These included Senator Pascal Mooney who told me he had been taught in Carrick-on Shannon by my late brother Basil, Mary Mitchell O'Connor, TD a school friendof my nephew Seán, (son of Basil) who assured us that she had already passed on information on the case to the relevant authority in the government, Caoimhín Ó Caoileáin TD who spent a lot of time with Kevin, Mattie McGrath who for the second time did likewise, and Senator Maurice Manning of IHRC who invited us to a Human Rights meeting down the road. I also met Amnesty International Chairman Colm O'Gorman and shared concerns with him about the impending execution of Troy Davis.

FACE TO FACE MEETING WITH TAOISEACH ENDA KENNY

Normally, outside the Dáil, press photographers have little interest in individual protestors or their causes. The arrival of Taoiseach Enda Kenny however changed all that. Amid a flurry of camera shots from assembled press, I introduced myself to the Taoiseach as he approached accompanied by Mary Mitchell O'Connor TD. We shook hands and he recognised me -"From Louisburgh, isn't it?" he asked. He listened politely as I summarised Kevin's complaints and he asked for the leaflet that further summarised them. This I gave to him, he promising to read it carefully,
As the cameras still clicked I pointed to my arm band concerning Troy Davis's execution on the same night. I said that there was some similarity
between the Troy Davis case in Georgia and Kevin Tracey case in Dublin. The former had been framed by the State of Georgia, the latter by the Irish State, both for crimes they had not committed. It was a blessing that there was no capital punishment in Ireland. There the interview ended.
Photographers asked Kevin if they could take his picture and got both of our names.

NO ENTRY TO THE HUMAN RIGHTS MEETING

Unfortunately we were denied entry to the Human Rights Meeting when we went down to it on Maurice Manning's invitation. The meeting had already begun and outside in the hall two nervous PRO ladies apologised several times. While very polite and accommodating there seemed to be more worry about the promised amalgamation of their organisation with Equal Opportunity than with the very pertinent human rights of an Irish citizen.

The ill Kevin Tracey hopes to continue his protest every Wednesday outside the Dáil insofar as his health and his doctor allow