Protesters demanding the Irish government slash punishing taxes on fuel, which they say have made global price spikes unbearable for farmers and truckers, are successfully starving the country of fuel, bringing the crisis down to who will blink first in a battle of wills in Dublin.
Ireland is facing a “very dangerous economic moment” as days-long blockades of the nation’s only refinery and depots have seen the Republic on the brink of running out of fuel, the Republic’s Deputy Prime Minister Simon Harris said on Friday evening. By the end of the day, a national industry group estimated that a full third of Ireland’s fuel stations had run dry, up from less than a tenth that morning.
The government held emergency talks through the afternoon on how to end the protests, but, incredibly, refused to admit representatives of the protesters, with a spokesman explaining, “We can’t have a situation where we’re engaging with people who are blockading key parts of our country”. Given these circumstances, the talks ended Friday evening without finding any answers.
The protests have been ongoing for four days across Ireland. Actions by groups representing truckers and farmers — protesting under the banner ‘no farmers no food’ — have included blockading the country’s only oil refinery, located in County Cork. Protesters forming a human chain to prevent any truck carrying fuel from leaving the facility have been engaged in a tense standoff with riot police. The country’s two major fuel depots in Limerick and Galway have likewise been blocked. Reports on social media have also claimed that police cars are even running out of fuel as protesters block access to stations.
According to Fuels for Ireland CEO Kevin McPartlan, 600 of the nation’s 1,500 gas stations ran dry by Saturday morning, the Irish Times reports.
Even if fuel tankers could get out of the facilities, go-slow protests by tractors driving up and down the country’s main roads have brought traffic nationwide to a near-standstill. Static protests have also taken place in Irish towns, and a large number of tractors and trucks have been parked up in central Dublin near the government’s offices, blocking roads in the capital. On Friday, a coffin emblazoned “RIP IRELAND” was carried through the city, and roads to Dublin airport were blocked.
Five tankers were allowed to drive out of the refinery on Friday lunchtime, with protesters having been assured that the fuel would be used only by the emergency services. Earlier in the day, the Fire Brigade and Ambulance Service announced fuel-saving measures, stating they would use their vehicles only for emergencies.
Protesters expressed outrage at the government’s absolute refusal to meet with their representatives. Gript Media reports spokesman for the movement has complained of a double standard, noting that in the past, the government was keen to meet with protesters from hard-left green extremist groups when they blocked roads in Ireland, but now the state claims it would be a grievous breach of their own rules to meet with the farmers and truckers.
All the while, rhetoric from the Irish government has hardened. They are no longer referring to the blockades as protests, stating the days-long action has pushed Ireland to the breaking point and has crossed into the realm of criminality. State broadcaster RTE reports Deputy Prime Minister Harris called on the public to “step back from the brink”, stating: “I don’t think the word protest adequately captures what is happening in our country now. This is an extremely dangerous moment; economically dangerous, economically damaging”.
“Action will be taken” if the protests don’t end immediately, the government threatened, noting the riot police and even the small Irish Army — which has just 7,000 soldiers — have been activated and placed on high alert to take on the protesters.
As observed by the Daily Telegraph, the language around this potential use of the Army to clear away the protests was one very much veiled in threat, with its report citing Helen McEntee, the defence minister, calling the protesters “criminal”. Most remarkable were the words of justice minister Jim O’Callaghan, who warned the protesters that if they didn’t drive their tractors and lorries away — the very equipment that keeps Ireland supplied and fed on a daily basis, and the core of the livelihood of their owners — then they would be liable to be damaged by the government as they were towed away by Army trucks.
He is reported to have said the owners “should not complain later about any damage caused during removal”. In further threats, O’Callaghan claimed protesters were involved with the far right and warned: “It might not arise today or tomorrow, but people have licences to drive vehicles, those licences will be affected”. The minister said he’d see the insurance cover of the vehicles at the protests voided because they were “involved in such illegal activity”.
One prominent protest leader dismissed the threats, saying there were more protesters than soldiers in the country, and: “We’re not afraid of the Army… The Army will not move this protest, and if any vehicle is touched on that protest, there’ll be ten more to replace it immediately.”
The question is now who will blink first. The Irish government has promised “intensive engagement” talks over the weekend and a “substantial and significant” support package for key industries, but says it won’t specify what that package is until after the protests end. The protesters, on the other hand, say they won’t step down until the government actually takes action to cut fuel prices, which are so high they threaten their industries; particularly in their sights is the hated carbon tax. One leader said they would be willing to keep the economy shut down for the next month.
Some taxes have already been cut slightly in response to the war in Iran, but even so, Irish consumers buying gasoline or diesel at the pump will see half of their spend go straight to the government’s coffers.
The farmer protest has become a familiar feature of the European political landscape in recent years. Critical to the survival of any country but also deeply exposed to rising tides of government carbon taxes and green legislation, industries like agriculture and distribution are also uniquely well placed to make their voices heard by the government, given the disproportionate power and presence of a tractor. Cities across the continent have been repeatedly shut down by farmers, and manure sometimes makes an appearance.