Row breaks out at protest over Government plans to buy CityWest Hotel
A row erupted between TD Paul Gogarty, two councillors and protesters demonstrating outside the Dáil over Government plans to buy Citywest Hotel.
The State is to buy the Citywest Hotel to be used as part of the country's immigration system, according to the Business Post.
Advertisement
Around two dozen protesters gathered outside Leinster House on Wednesday holding signs that read 'Public consultation, not secret conversation' and 'Save Citywest Hotel from being purchased by our Government'.
Locals who protested raised concerns about losing a significant amenity in the area.
Dublin city councillors Malachy Steenson and Gavin Pepper, who do not represent the electoral area Citywest is located in, were also seen at the protest.
As Independent TD for Dublin Mid-West Paul Gogarty addressed the crowd by megaphone, a row broke out between protesters, Mr Gogarty, Mr Steenson and Mr Pepper.
Advertisement
Independent TD for Dublin Mid-West Paul Gogarty (left) speaks to protesters with Dublin councillor Malachy Steenson (right) as people demonstrate outside Leinster House (Brian Lawless/PA)
Asked whether there was some confusion over how his comments had been taken, Mr Gogarty said 'maybe one or two people jumped the gun there'.
'But I felt it was important to say what I stand for first of all, which is respect towards everyone whether or not they are economic migrants abusing the asylum system, genuine people fleeing persecution or IT professionals coming to this country.'
Bernie Cronin, from Clondalkin, said 200 people attended a meeting two weeks ago where concerns were raised about the Government plans to buy Citywest Hotel.
Mr Cronin, who is a former member of Fine Gael and a current member of Independent Ireland, said it has been the area's 'greatest amenity' for 40 years.
Advertisement
People demonstrating outside Leinster House in Dublin over Government plans to buy Citywest Hotel (Brian Lawless/PA)
'If the Government buys it, it will never come back to the people of Saggart and the surrounding districts as the superb and magnificent luxury hotel that it has been for 40 years,' he said.
He said locals have 'no concern' about its current use as an IPAS centre for housing asylum seekers.
Mr Cronin said there have been concerns by the group that others could 'hijack what we are trying to do'.
Asked about 'outside elements' at the protest, Mr Cronin said: 'They don't help us. They don't help us and I know that's a concern.'
Advertisement
'It's not a question about race, it's about space,' Saggart resident Susan Murphy said.
'We don't have the space, we have two shops, one chemist, one post office, no Garda station. We cannot accommodate groups and groups of people.
'If the Government buys Citywest Hotel, they have free rein to do whatever they want with all the land there, which isn't fair on the residents here.
Another local, Karen Tracey, said the village was already 'overwhelmed' and it was difficult to get a GP appointment or school place.
Advertisement
'Within a five-minute walk within the hotel, there's about 8,000 new homes, not all of them have been occupied just yet and when they are occupied you can imagine how overwhelmed we'll be without this.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
44 minutes ago
- BBC News
Sen Alex Padilla dragged out of Noem immigration briefing in LA
Democratic US Senator Alex Padilla has been forcibly removed from a news conference held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in Los was offering the latest figures on immigration enforcement in the area, which has led to nearly a week of protests in the city, to members of the news media when Sen Padilla interrupted and started shouting a removed from the room, the California senator was removal caused condemnation on both sides of the aisle, with fellow senators calling the arrest shocking and a "sickening disgrace" and the Trump administration dubbing it "disrespectful political theatre". "I'm Senator Alex Padilla," he said as he was confronted by authorities. "I have questions for the secretary!" Noem, who was speaking about immigration and the protests in LA, continued addressing reporters and law enforcement officers while the senator was ejected from the office said he was "forced to the ground and handcuffed" by federal agents when trying to ask the secretary a question, and added that he was not currently being detained. The Department of Homeland Security said Padilla had engaged in "disrespectful political theatre" and that Noem met with the senator after the news Mayor Karen Bass called the incident "absolutely abhorrent and outrageous", adding that the Trump administration's "violent attacks on our city must end". Padilla told reporters that he was already in the federal building for a previously scheduled meeting. He said he stopped by Noem's news briefing because he and his colleagues have received "little to no information in response" to several immigration-related the son of Mexican immigrants, is the most senior Democrat on the Senate's Border Security and Immigration subcommittee."I came to the press conference to hear what she had to say, to see if I could learn any new additional information," he said. "If this is how the Department of Homeland Security responds to a senator with a question, you can only imagine what they're doing to farm workers, to cooks, to day labourers out in the Los Angeles community and throughout California and throughout the country."He urged Americans across the country to "continue peacefully protesting" the Trump administration and its DHS in a statement said Padilla didn't identify himself and was not wearing the Senator's pin on his clothing so officers thought he was an attacker. Video footage of the incident shows Padilla saying he was he was a senator as he was being pushed outside the room. California's Governor Gavin Newsom called on Republican congressional leadership to condemn the detaining of Padilla. "If they can handcuff a U.S. Senator for asking a question, imagine what they will do to you," Newsom wrote on social the White House accused the California senator of storming the press conference, and said he "yelled and lunged toward Secretary Noem". "Padilla didn't want answers; he wanted attention," Abigail Jackson, White House spokesperson said. "Padilla embarrassed himself and his constituents with this immature, theater-kid stunt – but it's telling that Democrats are more riled up about Padilla than they are about the violent riots and assaults on law enforcement in LA."Former vice-president and Trump opponent, Kamala Harris also criticised the move and said the California senator was trying to get answers for his constituents about the ongoing immigration raids in the state. "United States Senator Alex Padilla was representing the millions of Californians who are demanding answers to this Administration's actions in Southern California," she said on Twitter. "This is a shameful and stunning abuse of power."
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
US rights groups warn of Republican effort to undercut LA advocacy work
Immigration and civil rights organizations across the US are warning of a growing effort to undermine their advocacy work as rightwing lawmakers accuse them of fueling the demonstrations against federal raids in California. Advocacy groups voiced alarm on Thursday after Josh Hawley, a Republican US senator from Missouri, threatened multiple immigration and civil rights groups with investigations over claims that they are 'bankrolling civil unrest' in Los Angeles. Hawley, who chairs the senate subcommittee on crime and counterterrorism, accused the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (Chirla), the Party for Socialism and Liberation, as well as Unión del Barrio of their 'alleged role[s] in financing and materially supporting the coordinated protests and riots that have engulfed Los Angeles in recent weeks'. As part of a letter he wrote to the organizations, Hawley, who was famously captured raising his fist in a salute to supporters of Donald Trump outside at the US Capitol on 6 January 2021, then later fleeing the mob after they invaded the building to stop the certification of Joe Biden's election victory, said that 'bankrolling civil unrest is not protected speech'. He referred to 'credible reporting' that the organizations were providing logistical and financial support to 'individuals' engaged in disruptive actions, the Los Angeles Times reported on Thursday, as Hawley followed up on a committee announcement in the House of Representatives that it will investigate 200 organizations it accuses of helping 'inadmissible aliens' during the Biden administration. The attacks on Chirla and others also came after advocates and lawyers rushed to advise people arrested and detained, and their affected family members, during the latest immigration raids in the LA area that sparked the most fierce protests over the weekend, the LA Times further reported. Hawley added: 'You must immediately cease and desist any further involvement in the organization, funding, or promotion of these unlawful activities,' also demanding that Chirla preserve a slew of records including all internal communications, financial documents, grant applications and funding proposals. 'Failure to comply will result in additional action by this subcommittee, including potential referral for criminal investigation,' Hawley said. In response, Chirla executive director Angelica Salas rejected Hawley's accusations, saying: 'Our mission is rooted in non-violent advocacy, community safety, and democratic values … We will not be intimidated for standing with immigrant communities and documenting the inhumane manner that our community is being targeted with the assault by the raids, the unconstitutional and illegal arrests, detentions, and the assault on our first amendment rights.' Similarly, the United Farm Workers Foundation, which represents a sizable presence across California's farmlands that are largely worked by undocumented workers, said that it 'unequivocally denounces the disturbing tactics' brought forth against Chirla. 'Republican members of Congress are launching a troubling and politically motivated attack on non-profit organizations, including Chirla. These actions appear designed to intimidate and discredit the work of groups that serve immigrant communities across the country,' UWF Foundation said. In an additional statement, Erica Corcoran, the UWF Foundation CEO, said that Chirla's 'work is grounded in nonviolent action, community empowerment, and the defense of democratic values, principles that should be protected, not targeted, in a free society'. The Guardian has reached out to the Party for Socialism and Liberation, as well as Unión del Barrio for comment. Hawley's letters have also alarmed civil rights organizations. David Loy, the First Amendment Coalition's legal director, said: 'The first amendment … guarantees that … anyone who organizes or supports or participates in a protest cannot be held legally responsible for the actions of a few individuals who might do illegal things like throw rocks or bottles, unless the organizer or the participant had the specific intent to commit those illegal acts or further the commission or aid and abet those illegal acts. 'The problem with the senator's letter is that it's ignoring this fundamental principle, and the effect of what he's doing is to frighten and intimidate people against speaking out,' Loy said, adding: 'No one in government should ever be … taking action which has the effect of intimidating and chilling people from exercising their freedom speech, full stop.' Hawley's letter follows federal authorities' arrest earlier this week of David Huerta, the 58-year-old president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) California who was charged with 'conspiracy to impede an officer' while serving as a community observer during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) raid in Los Angeles. Huerta, who was initially hospitalized after federal officers knocked his head into a concrete curb last Friday, said: 'Hard-working people, and members of our family and our community, are being treated like criminals. We all collectively have to object to this madness because this is not justice. This is injustice. And we all have to stand on the right side of justice.' Hawley's letter also comes after Bill Essayli, the interim US attorney for the central district of California, threatened advocacy groups with federal investigations over their involvement in the protests. Eric Rodriguez, UnidosUS's vice-president of policy and advocacy, told the Guardian on Thursday: 'What we have seen is the Senate committee now using this accusation to be able to put pressure and intimidate organizations from engaging in peaceful protest … that's something I think that should be objectionable to all Americans. 'Some of the folks who are putting an eye on the protesters or the organizations that are responding are the very same people who did not hold or did not have the desire to hold anyone accountable for the insurrection on January 6,' he added.
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
‘Political pawns': Morale among California National Guard and Marines deployed in LA is underwater, report claims
The 4,000 California National Guard troops and 700 US Marines sent to Los Angeles in response to the ongoing anti-immigration raid protests are reportedly suffering from low morale, according to members of the veterans community, amid allegations of a chaotic initial deployment and widespread concerns of the military being drafted into domestic law enforcement. 'Among all that I spoke with, the feeling was that the Marines are being used as political pawns, and it strains the perception that Marines are apolitical,' Marine Corps veteran Janessa Goldbeck, who runs the Vet Voice Foundation, told The Guardian. 'Some were concerned that the Marines were being set up for failure. The overall perception was that the situation was nowhere at the level where Marines were necessary.' 'The sentiment across the board right now is that deploying military force against our own communities isn't the kind of national security we signed up for,' added Sarah Streyder of the Secure Families Initiative in an interview with the outlet. Controversy has followed the deployment since President Trump first federalized the California National Guard and ordered the state troops into Los Angeles on Saturday and a battalion of Marines was activated two days later. California has sued the Trump administration over deploying the Guard, alleging the decision has 'caused real and irreparable damage' to both Los Angeles and the state's larger sovereignty. Governor Gavin Newsom has also accused the White House of sending in thousands of troops without adequate provisions or training, sharing photos obtained by The San Francisco Chronicle of guardsmen sleeping head-to-foot on bare floors. 'You sent your troops here without fuel, food, water or a place to sleep,' he wrote on X. 'Here they are — being forced to sleep on the floor, piled on top of one another.' 'This is what happens when the president and (Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth) demand the National Guard state assets deploy immediately with no plan in place … (and) no federal funding available for food, water, fuel and lodging,' a source involved in the deployment told the Chronicle of conditions during the early stages. 'This is really the failure of the federal government. If you're going to federalize these troops, then take care of them.' U.S. Northern Command later said the photo showed soldiers who weren't current on a mission in what were only temporary accommodations due a 'fluid security situation.' When asked for comment, a spokesperson for U.S. Northern Command pointed to a website for Task Force 51, which is coordinating the protection mission in Los Angeles. 'The Soldiers and Marines have contracting for billeting, latrines, showers, handwashing stations, food service, full laundry service, bulk ice, and bulk fuel,' the website reads, in regards to troop conditions. 'While awaiting fulfillment of the contract, Soldiers and Marines have adequate shelter, food, and water.' Federal officials say the military members in Los Angeles will not be formally arresting protesters, though they might temporarily detain individuals to stop threats or interference against federal agents, and they have authorization to provide security to federal buildings and operations. U.S. Northern Command shared a photo Thursday showing Marines training in non-lethal tactics with riot shields, and the military has said the troops could deploy within the next 48 hours. President Trump has faced larger criticisms for allegedly politicizing the military in response to the protests, including upset over a campaign-rally style speech about the crisis in front of jeering troops at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. Base officials reportedly screened the crowd for those who disagreed with Trump and asked them to alert their superiors so others could be put in their place during the speech.
