Workers’ Party representative for Dublin North-West, Jimmy Dignam, has described the legal charges brought against water activists as an “outrage and an affront to democracy”.
He commented, “these proceedings are designed to intimidate people into both paying water charges and to dissuade the water movement from exercising its democratic right to protest”.
“The arrests and charges are a blatant example of political policing and must be resisted through widespread public protest. The Workers’ Party offers its full solidarity to those summoned and calls on the water movement to weigh in behind them”.
The Workers’ Party, which has consistently urged people to boycott this regressive and unjust double tax, also believes that the figures on alleged payment rate released yesterday by Irish Water are highly questionable.
Dignam added, “Irish Water’s latest compliance figures are dubious at best; how many of those within the proclaimed 51% have paid both first and second bills? By Irish Water’s own admission 19% of direct debits have already been cancelled, how can we trust anything they say?”
“Considering the phenomenal amount of pressure put on people to pay, both through intimidation and the obscene amount spent on advertising, it would be unsurprising if there was a trickle of people signing up out of fear. However, Irish Water should release clear and precise details of registration and payment, as these tit-bits of inaccurate figures, selectively released to journalists, are not acceptable”.
The Workers’ Party urges people to attend Saturday’s ‘Jobstown not Guilty’ demonstration at the Central Bank beginning at 1pm. It is imperative we show the government that we will not be intimidated off the streets or into paying.