It'll Be a Winter of Discontent - The Old and the Young Arrived at the Dáil

national | rights, freedoms and repression | feature

Monday October 27, 2008 11:53

by Seán Ryan

Ah there's the minister now ...

Today thousand of protesters, young and old, marched on the Dáil to tell our government to shove their plans, regarding fees and medical cards for the over 70's, where the sun don't shine.

15 to 20 thousand people visited the Dáil today to have a chat with the government. Twas a beautiful day, weather-wise and because the people of Ireland have taken to the streets to voice their absolute disgust with those charged with running the country. There were two protests, the first consisting of mainly the elderly who were angry with the government’s decision to sacrifice them and the second group consisted of mostly the young who came to tell the State that fees were not on the table for discussion.

The Medical Card Protest

I arrived at Leinster House fifteen or so minutes before noon. I thought I’d get there before the pensioners and set myself up for the day’s festivities. So much for that idea, fifteen hundred or so angry pensioners had had the same idea and were in full swing, chanting and waving placards when I arrived.

It was impossible for me to figure out how many folks turned up at the medical card protest as hundreds were leaving at any one time whilst hundreds more were arriving.

An Garda Síochána pulled out all the stops for this protest and policed the event with the best behaved and good humoured bunch of Gardaí I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing. Though some of them did act a little strangely (see the photos).

I didn’t focus too much on the speakers who roared their stuff from the big blue truck parked opposite the Dáil, I wasn’t there to listen to them (I’m sure the mainstream media will give a good account of what they had to say anyway). I attended to interact with the folks whom our government have attempted to throw on the slag heap.

They’re very angry. To put it mildly. One woman, who looked very reserved, told me that we “should shoot the fuckin’ lot of em.” I agreed with her.

It was a very emotional protest, as the politicians who joined the crowd that remained after the protest. Ruari Quinn was told that he was part of a government that were openly practicing treason and that he should “hand himself in - now!”

The elderly gradually and angrily petered out and I awaited the students.

The Fees Protest

At first I thought they weren’t coming. I thought maybe that the gathering at the Garden of Remembrance had been small and that the protest had been called off. Many possibilities went through my mind. Then I heard the distant sound of war drums. A low murmur became an ear-splitting roar as thousands of young people roared their defiance and jubilation, having reached their destination.

I’d thought that the medical card turn out had been huge. The body of people that arrived to protest fees was much larger and not surprisingly, a lot more animated. For many, this was their first large protest. And I think they liked it.

The Gardaí were take totally by surprise at their number and had to hurriedly draft in horses and dogs to help make up numbers. And one or two very strange Gardaí, one of whom, I swear was trying to levitate (see the last photo).

The mood of the crowd was very defiant and party-like at the same time. All in all though, they were very well behaved and the Gardaí need not have worried.

And this is only the start of it. What’ll happen next week when educational cuts and broken promises are up for grabs?

We’re in for a winter of discontent methinks. Our government had bloody well better get their act together. And quickly. We’re taking no more shit.