No formal garda complaints from protestors removed during Gaza rally at Leinster House
None of the demonstrators removed from a rally for mothers and children killed in Gaza at the Dáil last month have made a complaint to the Garda Ombudsman, the Irish Examiner has learned.
Up to 40 people – including members of the Mothers Against Genocide group – were involved in the overnight staged encampment that began on Mother's Day at the gates of Leinster House in Dublin.
The group blocked the entrance to the Dáil and were given a direction and a period of time by gardaí to move under the Public Order Act the following morning.
However, when they failed to do so, gardaí removed the protesters, causing outrage among some members of the public and TDs.
In the Dáil, People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett described it as a 'peaceful sit-down protest' and said the women were arrested 'violently, in some cases.'
He said one woman told him: 'I was stripped completely naked and was asked to remove my underwear. When I questioned the necessity of this, I was told I would be forced violently if I didn't comply,' the account read.
'After removing my underwear, they looked inside my private areas and touched all my sensitive parts.' Deputy Boyd Barrett described the alleged behaviour as 'absolutely disgusting' and said the women 'were a threat to nobody.'
While Solidarity–People Before Profit TD Ruth Coppinger said, 'Some of those women were strip-searched and one was subjected to a cavity search.'
Mothers Against Genocide protesting outside Leinster House, Mother's Day 2025
The Irish Examiner has since learned that none of the protesters who were removed from the gates of Leinster House have submitted a formal complaint to the new garda Ombudsman.
A spokesperson for Fiosrú, the Office of the Police Ombudsman, said it has received '61 contacts from concerned members of the public about the media reports of the protest.'
The statement continued: 'It is open to anyone directly affected by or who has witnessed an act or omission by An Garda Síochána members to make a complaint to Fiosrú.
'Fiosrú does not share information relating to complaints made by or against individuals. This is to protect the investigative process, and the rights of both complainants and those complained against.
'Fiosrú is not in a position to comment any further.'
The 61 complaints from members of the public include those who viewed videos of the incident on social media or read about it on the internet.
It does not include anyone who was directly affected by the incident that unfolded during the encampment.
Complaints can be submitted to Fiosrú up to a year after an alleged incident occurs involving gardaí.
Megan Ní Ghabhláin of Mothers Against Genocide said at the time there had been a complete escalation by the gardaí against women involved in a peaceful protest at a time when few people were going in and out of the Dáil.
'Unfortunately, this morning, the gardaí decided they were going to remove these precious faces of these children in the most disrespectful manner,' she said.
Garda presence as Mothers Against Genocide protest outside Leinster House, 31 March 2025
Labour Leader Ivana Bacik later said she was 'shocked' that anyone from Mothers Against Genocide would be arrested.
Meanwhile, Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon said it was a 'heavy-handed approach' by gardaí.
A garda spokesperson said at the time: 'The direction given by gardaí was not complied with and a number of individuals were subsequently arrested for offences contrary to the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994 and conveyed to garda stations in Dublin.
'10 females (20s, 30s, 40s and 50s) and one male (20s) were arrested under Section 8 of the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act, 1994.
'All 11 people have received adult cautions.
'An additional three men (20s and 30s) were also arrested for alleged offences under sections 6, 9, and 19 of the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994.
'The three individuals have been charged and are now before the courts.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTÉ News
10 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Crowds turn out in Kenmare to pay respects to Gaine family
Hundreds of people have been gathering in Kenmare, Co Kerry, to pay their respects to the family of Mike Gaine. The 56-year-old sheep farmer went missing from his farm 6km north of the town on 20 March. Eight weeks later, remains found on his land were subsequently confirmed by gardaí to be human tissue which belonged to him. More human tissue was found during a search of his farmyard and adjoining fields in the days that followed. The garda investigation into Mike Gaine's disappearance was initially treated as a missing person's case. However, on 30 April gardaí announced that the investigation had been reclassified. His death is now being treated as murder. On 19 May, gardaí arrested and questioned a man in his 50s on suspicion of Mr Gaine's murder. The man was released without charge, after he had spent 24 hours in garda custody. Former US soldier Michael Kelley, who had been living on Mr Gaine's farm for almost three years before he moved to Tralee in April, identified himself in an interview with RTÉ News as the man who had been arrested. Mr Kelley has denied any involvement in Mr Gaine's murder. He claims he is being framed by a subversive criminal organisation. Mr Gaine farmed a 1,000-acre holding on the scenic Ring of Kerry, between Kenmare and Moll's Gap. He was well known in the farming community as well as in car rallying circles. He was a former participant in the Rally of the Lakes in Killarney and was a member of Killarney and District Motor Club. Many of his friends from rallying spent the week restoring his Ford Escort Mark II rally car. They put an engine in it and have made it roadworthy. The car is among a number of rally cars parked outside Finnegan's Funeral Home in Kenmare. Mike Gaine's Fiat tractor is also parked close by, symbolising his love of farming. Mourners passed both as they gathered to sympathise this evening with Mr Gaine's wife, Janice, his sisters, Noreen and Catherine, and with other family members. Mr Gaine's funeral mass will take place at Holy Cross Church in Kenmare tomorrow morning, after which an urn containing his ashes will be placed in his rally car and driven in a procession around the town. His family say the resting place for his ashes will be kept private. Fiosrú, the Office of the Police Ombudsman, has said it cannot comment on reports that Michael Kelley made a formal complaint to the ombudsman about his treatment by gardaí. Fiosrú was formerly know as GSOC. It is the independent statutory office dealing with complaints about gardaí. In a statement, Fiosrú said it could not comment on the reports. "Fiosrú does not confirm or deny the existence of complaints made by or against individuals," a spokesman said. "This is to protect the investigative process and the rights both of complainants, and those complained against. Fiosrú is not in a position to comment further."
Irish Examiner
15 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Michael Gaine murder suspect makes complaint to Garda Ombudsman over interviews by gardaí
A man who has admitted to being a suspect in the investigation into Michael Gaine's murder in Kerry has lodged a complaint to the Garda Ombudsman's office. Michael Kelley lodged the complaint with Fiosrú, formerly known as the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (Gsoc), about two weeks ago. According to a source, his complaint centres around interviews that took place between him and investigating gardaí last month. In a newspaper interview, the 56-year-old American — who lived on Mr Gaine's farm for three years — openly criticised detectives. Mr Kelley was arrested on May 18 after human tissue belonging to Mr Gaine was found at his farm near Moll's Gap, Co Kerry. A large queue outside Finnegan's Funeral Home in Kenmare on Friday, as mourners gather to pay their respects to the late Michael Gaine. Picture: Dan Linehan Although he was questioned at length in Killarney Garda Station, he was released without charge, but has since confirmed he was a suspect. He denies any involvement in Mr Gaine's death. A local farm contractor, who has carried out work for the Gaine family for years, had been spreading slurry when the machinery jammed and human tissue was found. The farm was sealed off and officially declared a murder scene. The last sighting of Michael Gaine buying phone credit in Centra in Kenmare on March 20. After an extensive search, Mr Gaine's dismembered body was found in one of his two slurry tanks on May 18. The complaint to the Ombudsman comes as Mr Gaine's funeral is to be held at Holy Cross Church from 10.30am on Saturday. Afterwards, his old rally car — restored by friends — will take part in a procession around Kenmare after his funeral. Members of the Killarney and District Motor Club, who restored a Ford Escort Mk2 Mr Gaine once raced in, have organised the procession. At the head of it will be the car, with an urn of ashes, going on a lap of the town accompanied by other rally drivers from around the country. Initially, Mr Gaine's disappearance on March 20 was treated by gardaí as a missing person's case, but was later upgraded to a murder probe.
Irish Independent
2 days ago
- Irish Independent
Almost four out of 10 Irish earners are paying no income tax, says Revenue
While the number of taxpayer units earning enough to be liable for the standard rate will be just over 2.2 million, an estimated 1.06 million of these, or 30pc, will not pay anything because their liability is fully covered by their tax credits. Another 256,600 taxpayer units, or 7pc of the total, are exempt from income tax. The statistics, contained in an answer by Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe to a Dáil question, means 37pc of earners will pay no income tax this year. In an annual report on the Irish economy, published yesterday, the European Commission emphasised the need to reduce the risks created by the high concentration of tax revenue among a relatively small number of payers. Ireland should broaden its tax base, given the reliance on relatively few foreign-owned multinationals, and there is particular scope for expanding the local property charge, the commission says. 'Ireland's labour-tax system is highly progressive, but it relies on a narrow tax base,' according to the report, which says the top 10pc of taxpayers accounted for approximately 60pc of the tax yield in 2022. This concentration of revenue means the tax base is vulnerable to economic shifts. Ireland's labour-tax revenues are well below the EU average, and 'to cope with high projected budget expenses, diversification in Ireland's public revenue structure is warranted', the report says. Ireland's share of labour taxes as a proportion of GDP is not even half the EU average, and remains below the EU average when adjusted to GNI*, a measure of economic activity that takes out the distorting effect of multinationals. There is also scope to expand the local property charge, since the revenue collected – which was 1.8pc of GNI* in 2022 – is also below the EU average, which was 2.1pc that year. On the spending side, the European Commission calls on Ireland to 'reinforce' defence spending in line with decisions reached by the European Council in March. The report points out that spending on defence in Ireland remained stable at 0.2pc of GDP between 2021 and 2023. According to its forecast, it will remain at this level for both last year and this year. This means there has been no change in four years. As the healthcare system is overly reliant on costly hospital care, exacerbated by the lack of universal primary care coverage, there is scope for reform to alleviate the strain on hospitals The commission says there are still concerns about the impact that spending by the healthcare system is having on fiscal sustainability. The ageing of the population is going to mean an increase in health spending of 1.5pc of GDP by 2070, while across the EU the average increase is projected to be 0.4pc. 'As the healthcare system is overly reliant on costly hospital care, exacerbated by the lack of universal primary care coverage, there is scope for reform to alleviate the strain on hospitals,' the report says. Given the heightened political uncertainty, Ireland's dependence on foreign multinationals needs to be looked at, and the European Commission warns there is an 'urgent need' to build a more resilient, innovation-driven domestic economy. It points out that spending on research and development (R&D) in Ireland is at one of the lowest rates in the EU, accounting for just 0.4pc of GNI*. This has led to a noticeable technology innovation gap between Irish SMEs and their counterparts in comparable European countries. 'Boosting R&D expenditure and providing targeted Research and Innovation (R&I) support could help boost SME productivity,' it says.
