The words of the famous ballad “The West’s Awake” describe
how the people of the West of Ireland rose up in the past against oppression
and dispossession. The spirit of the song and its application to current
circumstances, particularly in the West, cannot be lost to any keen observer of
current affairs in Ireland.
Below: LL West protest at banks
Formed in the last number of months, Land League
West (the regional grouping of Land League branches including Mayo, Galway,
Roscommon etc) has been very pro-active. Not only have they shown an
evangelical zeal in terms of organising and providing advice and assistance to
those in fear of eviction, but also in the form of protest. Gerry O’Boyle,
recently elected chair of the Mayo and Land League West branches, and Eddie
Brennan, amongst many others, have been carrying out flash protests throughout
their region.
Gerry O’Boyle, in an interview, said of recent
League developments in Mayo, “ We have to address the eviction emergency on all
fronts. We can’t decide to just give advice, not when 100,000s face the road
over the coming year. We have to protest too, to highlight the plight of so
many people, men, women and children.”
Amongst the many actions carried out by Land League
West, often with the assistance of The Hub, Galway, are
- Working with the Hub Galway to prevent the eviction of 8 families in one housing estate in Co Clare. The family received notice on the 17th of December to be out of their homes by the 19th of December. They remain in their home as I write.
- A picket at the Offices of Seamus Carty, Auctioneers and Estate Agents that profit from selling repossessed properties.
- Protests at Mayo, Galway and Roscommon Court Houses. Land League members have attended numerous court sittings to protest the mass eviction of thousands of families in the West of Ireland. Members of the League also enter the court rooms peacefully to assist and support homeowners inside.
- Land League West halted a recent eviction attempt at Ballyvary, Castlebar.
- Land League west and its supporters, within the last few weeks, stopped the sale of a home that did not even have a possession order on it. This happened at the Plaza Hotel in Westport, being sold by Tuohy auctioneers.
- The men and women of the Western branches also regularly protest at banks and set up pickets at Enda Kenny’s constituency office.
The actions listed above are only a
fraction of the activities of members in
the West of Ireland but serve to be an inspiration to branches throughout the
country. It is no mean achievement to, on the one hand, roll out an escalating
plan of peaceful agitation whilst at the same time arranging the organisational
structures necessary to make the League build and work, but it is happening in
the West of Ireland. We will continue to report what Land League West are up
to, but for now it is a safe bet to say that the west is well and truly awake.
Above: Land League West protest at Courthouse
Author - FM
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