Jobstown f ive say ‘martyr us, we did nothing’
Protesters hit out at ‘demonisation’
FIVE people arrested over a demonstration in Jobstown which allegedly saw Joan Burton trapped in her car have defended their actions and blamed a child for the water balloon that hit the Tánaiste.
Keith Preston, Paul Kiernan, Ken and Carole Purcell and Frank Donaghy yesterday spoke out and said they fear they will be charged over the protest after it emerged this week that more than 20 people are likely to face charges.
Mr Kiernan said he is ‘scared’ at the prospect of being charged but added: ‘If they want to martyr us, so be it.’
However the protesters warned that the Government should expect ‘a hell of a lot worse’ in terms of protests.
Mr Kiernan said he believed the protesters had been ‘set up’ in order to demonise the anti-water charges protest movement.
The controversial protest took place last November and it was reported Ms Burton was unable to leave her car for more than two hours as a result.
Yesterday those who fear they will now face criminal charges joined Anti-Austerity Alliance TD Paul Murphy a short distance from where the incident took place to speak out.
Mr Kiernan said: ‘I do not protest solely over water charges, but against all that is wrong and bad in this country.
‘I do not believe the sit- down protest was in any way violent. ‘It is a legitimate protest that has been going on for many years. Every weekday for the last two years we have seen these protests at water installation sites.’
Speaking about the prospect of being charged, he said: ‘ I am scared, more for my family, who are taking this all really badly.
‘They know what I do, and they know that I do it for them. And for all people of this island and for the future generations.
‘A lot of people are awake to what is going on in this country now.
‘Why does the Government fight against us like this when all we want is a better country which they seem determined that we will not have? I expect I will probably face charges.
‘I don’t think I’ve done anything different than what the likes of Pat Rabbitte and many other protesters have done (in the past).
‘I do not see myself as taking part in any violence.’
The protesters said yesterday they believed children had thrown water balloons and eggs that day, with one hitting Ms Burton.
Mr Kiernan said: ‘I wasn’t there when any water balloon was thrown but I see kids running around the streets day in day out throwing water balloons at each other. I wonder are they going to be prosecuted?
‘Secondly, Joan Burton got out of her car at least on two occasions and walked so she was not held. She was well capable of getting out of her car.’
When asked what he will do if he is charged, he said: ‘If it comes down to it, what choice do I have? Jump on the boat? Everything I have is here. This is where I am fighting for, if they want to martyr us, so be it... All we did is set out to have a peaceful protest.’
He added: ‘I think Joan Burton came into Jobstown, she had been told, we all know this, by many, many people that she was not wanted in there.’
He added that some sections of the State were trying to demonise the whole movement.
Ms Burton previously spoke out about the incident and said: ‘They were rocking the car, banging on the windows on the doors and the roof. And, you know, Paul Murphy is a TD.
‘He was standing at the back with a loud-hailer leading the chanting. If that’s his idea of a peaceful protest I would not like to see that norm being set for Ireland by him as the way people i n Ireland protest.’
Another protester who was present on the day, Carole Purcell, said that she found out she was likely to be charged the day after her husband buried his mother.
She said: ‘My husband’s mother died this week and (we) buried her on Wednesday and we woke up on Thursday morning seeing in the press that we were going to be arrested. We should have been told by the gardaí, we should have been warned.
‘This has been a really tough week for us.’
That the media were allegedly informed before some of the individuals involved has incensed Mr Murphy, who has lodged complaints with t he Garda Commissioner, the Garda Ombuds- man and t he DPP. Another protester, Keith Preston, said he feared the possibility of going to jail.
In footage of the protest, TD Paul Murphy is heard asking the demonstrators: ‘Should we let her go?’
He told reporters yesterday he fears this phrase will be used against him in the impending court cases. ‘Joan Burton, in my opinion, was not trapped in her car,’ he said. ‘She exited her car on at least two occasions.
‘In effect, her car was delayed, and was slowed down, stopped for half an hour, for the guts of two hours, for a slow march.
‘Obviously, that form of words I used in a high-intensity stressful situation is going to be used in the court case and has been used in the media.’
‘She was capable of leaving the car’