Limerick woman whose grandfather fought against British rule arrested at protest in London

A LIMERICK woman was among the 532 people arrested in Westminster this week carrying placards opposing the banning of the activist group Palestine Action by the UK Minister for Justice, Yvette Cooper.

Palestine Action is proscribed as a terrorist organisation in the UK.

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Sinéad Ní Shiacáis, of Caherdavin in Limerick city, travelled to London to join the protest last Saturday. She said that Metropolitan Police carried out a mass arrest that detained anyone carrying a sign saying, "I oppose genocide, I support Palestinian Action". 

Ms Ní Shiacáis described it as “a terrifying example of how far authoritarianism has crept into the so-called democratic West.”.

She said she travelled to the UK to “peacefully protest this draconian law because its impact goes far beyond British citizens”. 

“I see authoritarianism growing and our civil liberties like the right to peacefully assemble and speak out being steadily eroded. This dangerous trend is spreading across Europe, falsely normalised as ‘counter-terrorism'. So normalised that even cultural practitioners and artists such as Moglaí Bap have to answer to the courts again in August for expressions made on stage during a performance,” said Ms Ní Shiacáis.

She said while she has not directly participated in actions with Palestine Action since their founding in 2020, “I have always admired their courage in standing up against weapons factories from afar”. 

“When I see the starvation and suffering of Palestinian people, it hits me as I see my own family’s history and what we endured. My grandfather Thomas Jackson fought against British rule for dignity, freedom, and the right to live without fear. Something I believe we all should be able to take for granted today.”

“The arrests under section 13 of the Terrorism Act comes amid growing international condemnation of the UK government’s treatment of pro-Palestinian activists.

"Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International and the United Nations, have criticised the UK’s decision to label groups like Palestine Action, who campaign to end the arms trade with Israel, as 'terrorist organisations',” said the Caherdavin woman. 

Speaking on the arrests, Ms Ní Shiacáis said the Met’s own figures prove how “absurd and unenforceable this ban is”. 

“Around a thousand people in Parliament Square held placards supporting Palestine Action, yet only about half of us were arrested. I was one of those branded a ‘terrorist’ for holding a sign, while hundreds of others with the exact same sign were left alone.

"This is a clear case of two-tier policing, a waste of public resources, and part of an authoritarian crackdown on fundamental freedoms,” said Ms Ní Shiacáis, who, if charged, is due to appear in UK courts next month.

The next protest is on September 6 with the Limerick woman confirming she will be going back again “despite my bail conditions".

"The UK government has used terror laws to ban Palestine Action. This has created a world where people are dragged away by Met Police and risk 14 years in prison for holding a simple cardboard sign.

“None of these people are terrorists. It is an insult to victims of real terror to label them as such.”

Ms Ní Shiacáis continued: “We will not comply with any government that defends the indefensible and prosecutes people who act on their conscience. We will stay on the streets until the ban on Palestine Action is lifted and protest rights are restored.”

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said over the coming days and weeks, officers from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command will work to put together the case files required to secure charges against those arrested as part of this operation.

“Securing a charge for an offence under the Terrorism Act is a distinct process, which in some instances not only involves the approval of the Crown Prosecution Service, but also the Attorney General.

"Last week we confirmed the first three charges in England and Wales for offences against Section 13 of the Terrorism Act relating to Palestine Action. The three charged were arrested at a protest in Parliament Square on Saturday, 5 July.

“A further 26 case files relating to arrests on the same day are due to be submitted to the CPS imminently, with more to follow in relation to later protests,” said the spokesperson.