A GROUP campaigning against the Government’s bailout strategy and the management of the banks has agreed to temporarily vacate the Peace Park in Cork city centre this weekend to facilitate Remembrance Day ceremonies.
Occupy Cork established an encampment in the park at the top of the South Mall on October 15th, as part of a global movement that has seen protesters set up similar camps in New York as well as in Dublin and Galway.
However, the Peace Park is home to a first World War memorial, and this weekend a number of groups are planning to hold ceremonies there to mark Remembrance Day when those who died in the first and second World Wars will be remembered.
Occupy Cork spokesman Liam Mullaney said the group had met representatives of both the Cork branch of the Western Front Association and the British Legion, and would facilitate ceremonies by vacating the park on both Friday and Sunday.
Between 30 and 35 people have been camped out in the area each night since the protest began a month ago.
Mr Mullaney said that the group would put down straw at the park to make it more secure underfoot and would also powerhose the decking area.
Representatives of both groups were happy with the steps they were taking to facilitate the ceremonies, he added.
“People from both the British Legion and the Western Front Association have come down and spent time with us and have a good handle on what we’re at,” he said.
Ross Glennon, spokesman for the Cork branch of the Western Front Association, said they had some concerns initially when the Occupy Cork movement took over the Peace Park, but after meeting its members, their concerns had been allayed.
“The actual protest itself isn’t an issue for us – we fully recognise the group’s right to protest, a right which they have thanks to the sacrifices made by the men that we are remembering, and they recognise that too and are very respectful,” he added.
The Western Front Association commemoration takes place at the War Memorial on South Mall at 10.45am on Friday. It will involve a poetry reading, a bugler sounding The Last Post, and a wreath-laying ceremony by representatives of the combatant nations.