There’s something of an Easter rising afoot in Fermoy. The ‘Fermoy Says No’ group are inviting people to join them on their peaceful marches beginning this Easter Sunday, March 31st and every Sunday afterwards. The meeting place is outside St. Patrick’s Church at 12.30pm. The march will then proceed to the town park. All are welcome to join in when they can. Organisers point out that it’s a tangible way for people to show to the powers-that-be their opposition to the debt imposed by the ECB.

A number of opposition groups are operating locally in Fermoy, namely the ‘Fermoy Says No’ group, the ‘Fermoy Campaign against Household & Water Charges’ and the ‘Fermoy and District Campaign against Austerity’. All say they are not in any way aligned to any political parties.

UNFAIR BURDEN

The ‘Fermoy Says No’ group was formed as a reaction to the bondholder bailout. They say public money should be used for the provision of public services and not to fund bank and bondholder bailouts.

The ‘Fermoy Campaign against Household & Water Charges’ (CAHWT) was formed in February 2012 as part of a national campaign against the imposition of new household taxes. Again, they say householders shouldn’t have to bear the burden of funding the bailouts.

The ‘Fermoy and District Campaign against Austerity’ (FDCA) has evolved from both of the above groups and various members have been active in supporting both. It was felt there was a need to broaden the campaign to include all of the austerity measures the government has proposed on citizens. This group meet regularly.

The original agreement by the previous government to bail out the banks is central to all three group’s campaigns. “The injustice of this is that the vast majority of Irish citizens find themselves being taxed and impoverished to fund the bank bailouts,” a spokesperson said, adding “The present administration has just continued the policies of the previous one, despite their pre-election promises to the contrary.”

The ‘Fermoy Says No’ group highlighted that original concern and Fermoy CAHWT then showed its opposition to the government with the taxes that followed. FDCA brings up the rear, so to speak, acting as an umbrella group opposing austerity while supporting both of the original groups.

OPPOSING AUSTERITY

“We must encourage all groups who oppose the imposition of austerity to come together in coalition to achieve recognition from the government that it is not implementing the wishes of the people who elected them,” the spokesman said.

They’ve issued a warning shot across the bows of government too – saying that, if they don’t act on the wishes of the vast majority of its citizens, it will be for voters to support candidates in all future elections who will represent the mandate they receive from the electorate. They say that a number of groups are likely to field candidates and that disillusioned voters should consider them.