20:24 - After a 15 minute break the march continues on to the Phoenix Park.
I've been in the city center since about 12 o'clock. I've listened to speech's at the Central Bank and music at Heuston Station it was a very enjoyable day.
I get to the GPO just as the march moves off to the Phoenix Park. The mood is good as we walk along the Cabra and Navan Roads, after about 7 km we the march stops to let everybody have a rest and a break.
Here are 28 shots which show what happend over the next 47 minutes.
20:24 - After a 15 minute break the march continues on to the Phoenix Park.
20:27 - I cycle on to see what is a head of us, multiple rows of Gardai are blocking all access from the Navan Road to the roundabout.
20:27 - The march stops 200 meters from the roundabout at the entrance to a housing estate. The march organisers relay the news about the route being block, they ask that the march disbands peacefully and not to confront the Gardai.
20:33 - A number of marchers seem to want to confront the Gardai.
20:33 - A group of hooded and masked marchers (The Wombles) can be clearly seen moving forward.
20:35 - The stand off begins, most people seem to just want to watch. I don't want to get involved and stay well clear of the front lines.
20:38 - The march organisers sit down well clear of the front lines, I believe they know what is going to happen and are not happy about it.
20:41 - The stand off continues.
20:42 - Something has happened, a number of Gardai vans and water cannon move in.
20:44 - The water cannon start spraying.
20:49 - There is a pause as the second water cannon moves up.
20:55 - I move a bit closer to get a better shot of the action. A Garda films (takes pictures?) of the crowd with riot a helmet on, there where a number of Gardai doing this all day.
21:56 - I'm not sure what they are trying to do here.
21:01 - The Gardai start to move forward.
21:01 - Some of the marchers start to move back down the Navan Road, slowly.
21:02 - The Gardai continue to push forward.
21:03 - They are getting closers, I move back.
21:04 - The marchers have bunched up again.
21:04 - Wet, but it doesn't seem to have dampened there spirits.
21:05 - The Gardai let them have some more of the water cannon.
21:06
21:06 - I was able to see that it was not just the marchers throwing objects at the Gardai, there were also a number of local young men going it.
21:07
21:07
21:07 - I watched a stone thrown from within the crowd at the Gardai. It hit a marcher directly in front of the Gardai on the back of the head, he fell to the ground. Other marchers quickly pulled him away from the Gardai.
21:08 - Ok too close, time to move away. I'm surprised I'm not soaked, just some heavy splashing around my legs.
21:09 - The marchers are still defiant.
21:11 - The batteries in my camera are gone, I start to head back to the city center and home.
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Last updated 2006-04-22. Copyright © 2004, 2006 Robert Fitzsimons. robfitz at 273k dot net