At a press conference today TDs from the United Left Alliance, Independents and Sinn Féin joined trade unionists calling for support for a pre-budget anti-austerity march this Saturday in Dublin.
The march called by the Dublin Council of Trade Unions, and supported by ICTU, SIPTU, Unite, Mandate, the United Left Alliance, Sinn Féin, Independent TDs and a wide range of community and campaign groups, will assemble at 12pm, this Saturday November 26th in Parnell Square Dublin.
The recently established Alliance Against Austerity, who hosted the press conference, will also hold a mass public assembly directly following Saturday’s march, following the example of similar assemblies taking place as part of the Global Occupy movement and the mass protest movements in Egypt, Greece and Spain.
The new Alliance believes that austerity policies being implemented in Europe, the US and elsewhere in response to the Global economic and financial crisis are grossly unfair and are deepening the current economic crisis, and may lead to a further world-wide economic slump.
The Alliance and participants in the press conference are calling on the Irish government to abandon austerity policies aimed at low and middle income workers, and vulnerable sectors of society, and instead place the burden of the current economic crisis on the private financial sector and the wealthy in society.
The alliance is also calling for major direct state investment in job creation and the protection of the welfare state and public services.
This march will not be once-off event but will be a step towards a sustained campaign of popular mobilisation – demanding policies which put jobs creation, public services and the protection of the vulnerable ahead the profits of bank and financial elites.
Richard Boyd Barrett TD for People Before Profit-United Left Alliance said today, “We are calling on workers, the unemployed, pensioners, students and others unfairly targeted with EU-IMF directed austerity – to take to the streets this weekend, in advance of the budget, to tell the government and the troika that people cannot take any more of this brutally unfair and economically stupid austerity.
We believe we need people power to resist the agenda where working people and vulnerable sectors of society are being forced to pay for the criminal greed and gambling of banks, speculators and wealthy elites.
It is absolutely outrageous that in the forthcoming budget, the government are now contemplating cuts in child benefit, rent allowance, prescription and medical card charges, a household tax, further education cuts and fees, or VAT increases. These measures will impose untold suffering on hundreds of thousands of working people, the unemployed and the poor, when they are already near breaking point.
This sort of austerity has to stop, not just because of the terrible misery and unfairness it is imposing on huge numbers of citizens but also because it simply is not working – it is making the crisis in this country and across Europe. After two and half years of austerity, the evidence is clear, both here and across Europe, these policies are worsening the crisis and threatening to turn a recession into an all-out slump. So we are calling on the public to follow the example of people in Greece, Spain, Italy and even the US, and to resist this brutal and misguided policy of cuts and austerity.
Joe Higgins, Socialist Party-United Left Alliance TD said, "I would urge every worker, unemployed person, student and anybody who depends upon public services to come out in force on Saturday’s demonstration and people’s assembly
"Around the world in 2011 we see the potential rewards of people power struggle, demonstrations and strike action. Such action coupled with a political struggle for a radical alternative offers us the only alternative to the disaster of austerity and further economic decline and misery.
"This protest will not be a one off event but a launch pad for a sustained struggle against a government which is committed to a programme of savage cuts and impositions until at least 2015."
Thomas Pringle, Independent TD said in his statement, “I am calling on the people to support this protest on Saturday. Austerity is destroying our society. Nursing homes, libraries and community services are being sacrificed to bailout German and French banks. It is time to say no more”.
For information/comment:
Sara O’Rourke 087 2886646
Michael O’Brien 087 2400331
Eddie Conlon 087 6775468