Proteste contro gasdotto in co Mayo

Families demand boycott of Shell and Statoil





THE families of the five men jailed over their objections to a new gas pipeline in Mayo have called on the public to boycott Shell and Statoil in support of their campaign.

The three farmers and two retired teachers spent their second night in Cloverhill prison in Dublin last night after failing to give an undertaking to the High Court that they would stop breaching orders preventing them obstructing the construction of the Corrib gas pipeline.

A special Dail debate was held and there were demonstrations at the Shell depot in Rossport, Co Mayo and its oil terminal in Galway city. And three of the men are due back in court this morning on other issues relating to the pipeline.

The five men are Vincent McGrath, Philip McGrath, Willie Corduff, James Brendan Philbin and Micheál ó Seighin.

Yesterday, some family members at a press conference in Dublin called on the public to boycott Shell and Statoil (both partners in Corrib), support demonstrations at Rossport and other Shell and Statoil outlets as well as support those in jail.

They read a short statement given from the men in jail, which said: "This pipeline is unsafe by Statoil international standards. It must not pass the houses. There is an easy solution to this. Clean it (the gas) at sea."

Mary Philbin, a sister of James Brendan Philbin, said her brother was in prison because "of unrefined gas going through his front garden".

She added: "He is not against the gas going through but the fact that it is unrefined. This is a health and safety issue. It is just a few yards in front of my mother's house. And there was a generator going for two nights non-stop. There is noise pollution and a constant light shining through the bedroom window of a woman who is over 80."

Bríd Ní Sheighin, a daughter of Micheál ó Seighin, said they felt they had been sold out by the Government and agencies "supposed to protect the citizens of this country".

They asked people to picket and boycott Shell and Statoil. "We would appreciate if people would write to the prisoners of conscience in Cloverhill. And we want people to come to the High Court from 10.30am tomorrow to support the three who have been called before the courts again," said Ms Ní Sheighin.

Shell E&P Ireland (SEPIL) said it regretted the High Court had to jail the men, adding that it wanted to meet with the landowners to discuss the situation.

However, its chairman Andy Pyle said that each of the individuals had "continually obstructed" Shell from carrying out preparatory work on the pipeline.

"We very much regret getting to the situation we are in today particularly as we have taken great steps over the last few months to have an open dialogue with the landowners. It's very unfortunate that they have refused to meet us."

He said various options for Corrib had been reviewed.

"We are not doing this to save money. This is the best development option for Corrib.

"It is really unfortunate that there is a small group of protestors who are not prepared to accept the decisions that are made by the authorities," he said.

"If we can enter into a dialogue with them I believe we can address their concerns," he added.

Shell confirmed it had met public representatives from Mayo at a meeting chaired by the Council for the West. "The meeting was very useful and the company agreed to consider all of the issues that arose."

Martha Kearns