Shannonwatch

Gardai protecting warplanes from expressions of peace

Hercules C-130T at Shannon

Easter Sunday saw two more Hercules C-130T warplanes at Shannon. As they sat on the airport ramp, a group of peaceful protestors gathered for the regular second- Sunday-of-the-month vigil. As usual the protestors were blocked from entering the airport, with a line of Gardai denying access to anyone who openly opposed the military presence.

John Arden at the Shannon vigil in June 2010

For everyone involved in the campaign to end US military and CIA use of Shannon Airport, the death of peace activist, playwright and novelist John Arden on 28th March is a sad loss. A lot of tributes to John have been written, including pieces in The Guardian and New York Times, but it was John's lifelong commitment to peace and social justice that we in Shannonwatch remember best. Over the last four years he regularly attended the monthly vigils at the airport, and continued to do so right up to January of this year despite illness and being wheelchair bound.

US Hercules C-130T at Shannon on 4th April, with troops arriving to board on 3 buses.

Shannonwatch observed and photographed two US Hercules C-130 aircraft at Shannon Airport in the last week. The first, on Wednesday April 4th, was being boarded by troops brought to its side by a cavalcade of buses. The second which was at Shannon on Friday 6th April was a similar aircraft, a C-130T.

The killing of at least 16 Afghan civilians, including nine children, by a 38 year old US army Staff Sergeant near Kandahar in Afghanistan was an appalling act of brutality and will have inevitable repercussions. US military spokespersons described the perpetrator as deranged, but sadly his actions follow a pattern of murder and human rights abuse by US and NATO personnel and the people they train. In 2011 a group of American soldiers were found to have been part of a "kill team" that deliberately murdered Afghan civilians for sport. In January of this year a video surfaced showing US marines urinating on the corpses of three insurgents. And earlier this month the UN reported that NATO and Afghan security forces were between them responsible for 410 civilian deaths in 2011. This was about 14% of the total number of civilians killed in the country.

Not only was the killing of 16 innocent people on Sunday deranged, the entire war waged by the US and NATO against Afghanistan could also be described as deranged and inappropriate from the beginning.

Galway Alliance Against War Press Release

A motion proposed by Labour councillor Colette Connolly to Galway City Council calling for the cessation of US troops travelling to war via Shannon Airport was defeated by the casting vote of the Deputy Mayor, Fianna Fail’s Ollie Crowe. Cllr. Connolly had proposed that Shannon airport should cease being a US military hub and instead be transformed into a hub for humanitarian aid. All FF, Independent PD Councillors opposed the motion as did most FG members of the council. However, to the surprise of many, FG’s Cllr Padraic Conneely supported the neutrality motion.

Up to 50 peace and anti-war activists gathered outside Shannon Airport on Sunday March 11th to mark the ninth anniversary of the airport’s involvement in the illegal invasion of Iraq. They called on the Irish government to end the ongoing use of Shannon by the US military, and to investigate years of rendition flights through the airport. The peaceful demonstrators were accompanied by almost as many Gardai and airport police, and barriers were erected to block entry to the airport during the peaceful event.

In 2003 the Irish government allowed Shannon to be used as a base by the US military, despite a clear message from the Irish people that they did not want that to happen. The current Irish government continues the same unacceptable policy by allowing 600 armed troops a day to pass through Shannon on their way to and from Afghanistan. Furthermore, by supporting sanctions against Iran and closing the Irish embassy there, this government seems intent on supporting the same terrible mistakes that led to millions of deaths in Iraq.