'Defend the Right to Protest' rally in Derry's Guildhall Square

In blazing sunshine and with a discreet PSNI presence, more than 100 people have taken part in a 'Defend the Right to Protest' rally in Derry's Guildhall Square.

The rally, which took place on Saturday afternoon, was addressed by veteran socialist, Eamonn McCann, supported by some of the people who were involved in the North's Civil Rights Movement in the late 1960s.

We stand in homage to the people of Gaza and also we stand in order to draw attention to the connection between what is happening in Gaza and what was happening here, 50 years ago, more than 50 years ago - the whole idea of human rights which we had then," said Mr McCann

"This is what gave us the nerve to say, 'Okay, we are going to do something about Gaza,' he added.

"Back in the 1960s, when communications weren't nearly as sophisticated as they are today, when that sign 'You Are Now Entering Free Derry' was scrawled upon the wall, and when we sang 'We Shall Overcome', coming down Creggan Hill, William Street and Rossville Street, we were talking about something universal.

Mayor calls for reversal of Palestine GAA visa snub

'I am calling on the Dublin Government to listen to those voices, to show compassion and decency and to ensure visas are secured and these children are welcomed to our shores'

Redress needed for ' tsunami' of Derry defective homes councillors told

100% Redress Party TD urges councillors, Stormont and Westminster to be 'proactive not reactive' to impending crisis

"It wasn't just 'We Shall Overcome', we were aware there were struggles going on elsewhere, from The Black Panthers who were being murdered by the US police to the struggles in Angola, Mozambique and Guinea-Bissau.

"But genocide hasn't stopped in the whole world, and we can contribute our voice and the voice of Derry to the cause of Palestine and that is a homage to 1968 and to everybody who took part in that sort of rising here in the North of Ireland.

"The most important thing of all is that we have the mass of the people and nothing can stop the mass of the people. They are making a contribution to the mighty ocean of resistence to Israeli oppression, which is taking place in the Middle East at the expence of the Palestinian people," said Mr McCann.

"So we are not standing here just for ourselves, just as when we marched in 50, 60 years ago, we are not simply marching for ourselves, we are marching against opression all over the world," he added. 

"To say 'You Are Now Entering Free Derry' did not just mean the Bogside and Creggan, it meant the whole world. I wanted to remind everybody of that, that's our purpose here and has been the underlying purpose of radical politics in the North for many years in the past. So, once again, thatk you for coming."

Speaking after the 'Defend the Right to Protest' rally, Derry City and Strabane District councillor Shaun Harkin (PBP) said: "I was proud to stand with Civil Rights veterans at the Guildhall challenging the British government's use of anti-terror legislation to criminalise Palestine solidarity.

"Civil Rights campaigners are an inspiration for facing down state repression decades ago in Derry, and for doing it again now in solidarity with the Palestinian people. They are legends, not terrorists. Keir Starmer and Yvette Cooper aren't fit to lace their shoes.

"Starmer's government is complicit with Israel’s monstrous crimes against the people of Palestine and humanity. They are the ones who are guilty of supporting a terrorist regime that has murdered tens of thousands of Palestinian children. No amount of legislation and intimidation will hide this.

"Instead of stopping the Israeli death machine in Gaza, the British government is trying to stop people from taking action to stop ethnic cleansing and mass starvation. It is shameful. Draconian legislation proscribing Palestine Action should be scrapped immediately. Let's keep ratcheting-up the pressure on Westminster, the Dáil and Stormont Executive to impose full sanctions on Israel and businesses profiteering from slaughter in Gaza."