Students protest 'garda brutality'

A student group has taken to the streets of Dublin this evening in protest at the response of gardaí to a demonstration in the city centre last Wednesday.

Free Education for Everyone (FEE) said it had decided to hold a peaceful demonstration against “Garda brutality” and “attacks on those who protest”.

Today’s protest began at 6pm at the Wolfe Tone Statue on St Stephen’s Green and made its way to Pearse Street Garda station. Up to 500 people took part in the march which passed off peacefully.

The Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission has received 28 complaints about the behaviour of gardaí following a protest organised by the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) last week. Some 25,000 people participated.

After last week's march across the city a group of breakaway protesters became involved in clashes with gardaí at the Department of Finance on Merrion Street. Supporters of Sinn Féin, the Socialist Workers Party and Éirígí were prominent among about 50 protesters who made it inside the Finance building, before being ejected by gardaí.

Officers in riot gear drew their batons and mounted officers and the dog unit were deployed during clashes that lasted about 45 minutes. Some protesters suffered injuries during the scuffles and a garda was admitted to hospital with a broken nose, while two others were treated at the scene for minor injuries.

There were three arrests and two people were charged with criminal damage and breach of the peace offences and released. Gardaí believe a core of “militant and aggressive” protesters had hijacked the event and the USI blamed “left-wing” groups for the “destructive and anti-social violence” which it said would only divert attention from its campaign against higher student fees.

FEE said any violence on the day was instigated by the “inept response of gardaí to protesting students”.

“Students sitting on the road in protest were baton charged repeatedly by gardaí, with many suffering injuries,” the organisation said. “One female student was knocked unconscious during the assault on the crowd, and other students clearly displayed head injuries.”

“It is essential Irish people show the government that we are not afraid to resist. The budget is only around the corner, and we must remain strong,” FEE activist Lorcan Myles added.

Gary Redmond, president of the Union of Students in Ireland said it and its affiliate student unions did not support tonight's protest and that it had nothing to do with its own planned protests in Galway on November 18th and Cork on December 1st.

He said the actions of those who had occupied the lobby of the Department of Finance after last week's protest were the actions of a minority and “played into the hands of Government” meaning that the focus in the days after the protest had been taken away from the unprecedented numbers of students who had taken part in demonstrations.

He noted that, some of the union's members had been caught up unwittingly in the violence as they made their way back to buses after the protest, adding that some USI members had been advised to make complaints to the garda ombudsman.

“Certainly some of the Facebook videos don't make for good viewing, nor do they make for easy viewing,” Mr Redmond said.