ger flares at politicians and Gardaí in Tallaght
By Michael Pierse
The anger, sadness and frustration felt by the Tallaght community
and others at the murder of 14 year-old Ben Smith and the
inaction of relevant authorities, was exposed at a public meeting
organised by Killinarden Action Against Drugs (KAAD) and the
Coalition Of Communities Against Drugs (COCAD) on Tuesday night.
Ben, in his father's words, was a bright, intelligent and
talented boy. He had everything to offer to society, he embodied
that which we all aspire to emulate in all children and in
ourselves. His brutal death was marked at the meeting with a
minute's silence followed by a submission by his father Pete.
``Their condolences and their compassion helped us no end,'' he
said of those people throughout Dublin who had offered comfort
and friendship to the family. ``If the powers that be had listened
to the community,'' he said, ``this horrific death could have been
averted''.
dré Lyder outlined briefly the progression of COCAD's community
policing policy since 1996, when besieged communities, neglected
by Gardaí and local authorities, were left with no choice but to
police their own community through patrols and vigils. Gardaí,
which he said are driven by a political agenda, intimidated
anti-drugs activists while launching a series of what he termed
``PR exercises''
Noel Mulligan of KAAD said that three COCAD members, recently
arrested but then cleared, had been sent to court on ``spurious
allegations'', and he castigated the ongoing harrassment of anti
drugs activists. The harrassment which occurred throughout Ben's
stay in hospital and most ignobly at his funeral by the Garda
Special Branch, was outlined by a woman in the audience who was
visibly moved by the Grada actions.
In the face of this public anger Garda Superintendent Conway and
Jim Byrne, a senior executive in South Dublin County Council's
Housing Division, in reply to questions from the audience, denied
that they or their organisations had any responsibility for Ben
Smith's death.
Dublin South West SF representative, Seán Crowe, recounted an
anecdote which conveyed the travesty of County Council policy
towards anti social behaviour. One woman, a lone parent with a
young child, he said, had been transferred out of her house, due
to the threatening and abusive behaviour of her male next-door
neighbour. ``Rather than the perpetrator being evicted, the victim
was moved,'' he said.
Leaving the meeting, one felt a sense of momentum achieved. That
this would be a new beginning. This feeling was dampened when the
van in which this reporter was travelling was stopped and its
occupants harrassed by Gardaí.
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