Defying torrential rain, some 50 people marched through the centre of Galway yesterday to highlight equality issues for Travellers.
Representatives of the Irish Traveller Movement, the Community Workers' Co-operative, the Galway Travellers' Support Group (GTSG) and several other groups from various counties participated in the demonstration, which marked the culmination of a month-long equality campaign being run by the GTSG.
The campaign was initiated in response to the attempts by the Vintners' Federation of Ireland to impose a blanket ban on Travellers in licensed premises, but also aimed to highlight more general discrimination against members of the Travelling community.
The march was supported by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and messages of solidarity were sent by the Equality Authority, the National Women's Council of Ireland, the Irish Human Rights Commission and the Irish Centre for Human Rights at NUI, Galway.
"Blanket threats to bar Travellers from pubs and other establishments ordinarily accessible to the public constitute unacceptable discrimination that is contrary to both Irish and international law", Prof William Schabas, director of the Irish Centre for Human Rights, said in a statement read at the march. A petition was handed in to the City Manager at City Hall and a number of marchers spoke on equality. Travellers' representatives from Mayo, Limerick and Dublin were among those who supported the demonstration.
Ms Margaret Ó Riada, co-ordinator of the GTSG, said that the demonstration was not singling out Galway City Council.
"We have chosen City Hall because it is the symbol of government, and as such plays a large role in the co-ordination of services, but our appeal for equal treatment is being extended to all the service-providers in education, health and employment."
"We are calling on these services to stop paying lip service to equality," Ms Ó Riada explained.
"They must live up to their responsibilities and actively promote social inclusion and equality at all levels, and protect those who are most vulnerable."