In Dublin anti-cutback themed public meetings have been held in Quarryvale in North Clondalkin, Fatima in the South Inner City and Cherry Orchard. To date more then ten thousand homes across the city have received éirígí leaflets which detail the main elements of the budget and encourage people to actively oppose the draconian cutbacks.
On the night of the Budget (December 9) several dozen éirígí activists protested at the gates of Leinster House itself – delivering a strong and colourful message directly to those who have declared war on the poor of the Twenty-Six Counties.
On Saturday morning (December 12) up to thirty people joined an anti-cutback’s protest in North Clondalkin that had been organised by éirígí’s South Dublin Ciorcal Áitiúil (local branch).
Outside of Dublin, in Wicklow, Cork, Donegal and Sligo a number of banners have been erected and thousands more leaflets distributed.
Speaking in relation to éirígí’s campaign of opposition to the cutbacks national chairperson Brian Leeson said, “Brian Lenihan’s claims that the worst of the cutbacks are now over stand in stark contrast to the commitments that he has already given to the European Union and the international banks from whom he is borrowing tens of billions of euros. He has told them that he will cut at least 11 billion euros over the next three years, in addition to the 4 billion he cut last Wednesday. So how can the worst have already passed?
“Others have already stated that Brian Lenihan’s budget constituted a declaration of war on the poor. On one side of this war are those who have amassed great wealth and power and on the other side are the workers that created the wealth, the young, the old, the sick, the marginalised and the poor. It is now clear that Fianna Fail and their allies in the business world intend to use the current economic depression to drive through a neo-liberal agenda that would be unthinkable and un-implemental in ordinary times. What we are witnessing now is an Irish version of disaster capitalism.
“The very future of Irish society is at stake in this war between the rich and the poor, between the apparently powerful and the apparently weak. That which Brian Lenihan has portrayed as ‘necessary’ for economic recovery is nothing short of a neo-liberal wish list. The deconstruction of the welfare state, the defeat of the organised labour movement, reductions in the wages and conditions of workers, deregulation of the so-called market place, the privatisation of public services have long been promoted by those who represent the interests of the elite, both in Ireland and globally.
“We in éirígí understand that that at the end of this war there can only be one winner. And we are determined to make sure that it will be the workers and not the bosses that claim Ireland for their own. Over the last few days our party has made a relatively small contribution to a campaign that must be built over the coming months. For the first time in a generation the stark realities of capitalism are coming home to roost for millions of Irish citizens. The time for moderation and negotiation has past. The time for action is upon us. There is nothing the right wingers and the political establishment fear more than an organised, mobilised working class movement for revolutionary change. We in éirígí are fully committed to making their greatest nightmare into a reality.”
If you are interested in helping or joining éirígí please phone 00353 (0) 86 236 72 98 or email: eirigimembership@gmail.com
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