TARA update -

PRESS RELEASE 17 September 2008

Save Tara Campaigners stopped work on the M3 Motorway yesterday in Solidarity with Shell-to-Sea.

Campaigners and Activists from the Save Tara Campaign brought their peaceful protests out of the Gabhra Valley Monday 15th of September and stopped construction work on other sections of the illegal M3 Motorway for over 5 hrs. Wanting to bring attention to local gombeen man Minister Noel Dempsey's involvement in both the Corrib Gasline as Minister for Marine and Natural Resources at the time of its planning, and to his involvement in the illegal M3 Motorway in his present capacity as Minister for Transport, Campaigners explained to idle construction workers and Gardai that the peaceful action was in solidarity with Shell to Sea and Maura Harringhton's Hunger Strike. In complete contrast to the shenanigans in Mayo and Tara, Gardai were civil, professional and impartial. When the SuperIntendant was asked what he thought of the Garda involvement in Mayo he replied, "thats not the force I joined 20 yrs ago".

At 9.30am 13 Pixies entered the construction site of the illegal M3 north of Kells stopping approximately 10 machines in their tracks.
Negotiations commenced with Paddy Clarke, a subcontractor, via phone from the top of his machine where he explained that if the tarmac was allowed to harden for even 10 mins longer it would cost him e250,000 personally to fix it. Campaigners agreed to allow the machine unload in the middle of the site on condition that no more work would be done in that section until mid-day. This was agreed on by all, Mr Clarke, the Campaigners and the SuperIntendant and at mid-day the Campaigners walked off site leaving the workers chiselling away.

It has become common knowledge that none of the sub-contractors on the M3 have been paid properly by SIAC/FERROVIAL. Some of them are now owed for over 16 months work. Howley Construction, one of the main contractors on the Motorway went into liquidation last month but
yesterday one of the workers explained that SIAC had bought all of Howleys machines, hired Howleys drivers and put them back on the road.

Several of the other sub-contractors have pulled out of the project since they were told that SIAC /FERROVIAL are not legally obliged to pay them for 5 yrs! Rumours of Willis Bros selling machines at half price for cash in order to pay workers and the threat of men being let go without redundancy or notice are flooding the county. Yet again its the ordinary decent folk who suffer.

At 2.00pm 13 Pixies entered the construction site of the illegal M3 proposed Double Tolled Motorway south of Dunshaughlin at Fairyhouse stopping approximately 17 machines in their tracks. One Digger Driver explained that it was his first day back to work after 9 wks while having been unpaid due to bad weather and flooding . The flooding didn't surprise him and he said, "sure they are trying to build this
damned road through every bog in the county", a fact that residents of Trevet and the Red Bog know only too well. Since construction started the water-table is completely polluted and undrinkable.

Some quite comical and pathetic attempts by one of the workers to spray The Pixies with muddy water from a tanker pulled by a tractor on Marcus Hargreave's orders (Project Manager) kept the dormant
construction workers entertained. By 4.30pm , neither Gardai nor private security - MD Security, had showed up and The Pixies ended their demonstration of passive resistance and left the site
disappearing into the hedges yet again.

Nil neart go cur le Cheile - Erin Abu

www.tarapixie.net
www.savetara.com
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