Protesters play- same sad tune
By - Comment.
Perhaps there should be a prize for Protest of the Year. If it did exist, the front-runners would surely be the people who mounted the demonstration on the Hill of Tara yesterday.
More than 3,000 protesters against the construction of the M3 motorway close to the ancient site formed themselves into the shape of a harp for an aerial photograph. The Irish harp has been called a symbol of peace and culture. Yesterday it symbolised peaceful protest and recalled cultures stretching back to the beginning of history and beyond.
But it had its modern side as well. The organisers brought in the famous actors Stuart Townsend and Jonathan Rhys Meyers to support their case. Evidently they understood the value of publicity and celebrity. And Mr. Rhys Meyers, in a speech to the crowd, showed that he had been well briefed. He made an important point when he said that not only was the motorway project "horrible", so was the development it would bring.
Motorways are not horrible in themselves, but as the Tara protesters claim they may be built in the wrong place. Objectors to the present project have proposed an alternative route and/or the rebuilding of the Navan railway line. Their pleas have gone unheard, and in all probability the M3 will run as planned through the Tara- Skryne Valley.
That, however, does not have to mean permission for ugly and harmful associated development. Along with the archaeological finds, we must preserve the beauty of the landscape.
© The Irish Independent, 24th. September 2007.
Photo: Paula Geraghty.
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