Left Archive: Fingal Fund Raising Poster and other documents from Right2Water, 2010s

To download the above please click on the following link. r2w-fundraiser-poster.pdf

Please click here to go the Left Archive.

Many thanks to the person who forwarded this to the Archive.

Given the release of the Irish Left Archive Podcast interview with activist Rhona McCord today it seems appropriate to include materials from the Right2Water campaign which she, and many other leftists, were involved in during the mid-2010s.

As noted here on the Right2Water site which as of late 2020 is still operational the campaign set out its objectives:

Who are we? If you believe that water is a human right then we are you!

The provision of sufficient water and sanitation is an essential public service and a human right recognised by the United Nations. It should be freely available to all regardless of wealth or income.

All citizens need clean drinking water and quality sanitation. Right2Water.ie is a public campaign by activists, citizens, community groups, political parties/individuals and trade unionists who are calling for the Government to recognise and legislate for access to water as a human right. We are demanding the Government abolish the planned introduction of water charges.

Why we’re against water charges

Water charges will discriminate against working people and the unemployed in favour of the wealthy and are another regressive tax taking vital money out of the pockets of people and out of our economy. Our public water system is already paid for through general taxation which is progressive and we wish it to remain that way.

Your campaign

The Right2Water campaign has started with a petition and we aim to collect 50,000 signatures before the forthcoming budget. However, that’s not the end of it. Our intention is to raise awareness of this vital issue and to ensure that water charges remain in the public consciousness ahead of Ireland’s next General Election and in the upcoming bye-elections. We will be contacting all political parties and Independent TD’s in the coming months seeking a commitment that they will legislate for the removal of water charges should they be elected into any future government.

As wiki notes the first R2W first march in Dublin was in October 2014. Subsequent to that there were protests, including a second march in November and “These demonstrations forced major concessions from the government”. National demonstrations continued in 2015 and 2016. As late as the week before the 2016 General Election 80,000 people attended a march in Dublin.

A broad range of groups, parties and formations supported the campaign:

Right2Water Ireland is supported by trade unions Unite the Union, the Communication Workers Union, the Civil and Public Services Union, MANDATE and Operative Plasterers and Allied Trades Society of Ireland (OPATSI), as well as political parties and politicians including Clare Daly and Mick Wallace, the Anti-Austerity Alliance, the People Before Profit Alliance, the Workers’ Party of Ireland, éirígí and Sinn Féin.[1][2]

The following documents were issued by elected representatives referencing or focused on the campaign.

Sinn Féin, Gerry Adams TD

People Before Profit, Richard Boyd Barrett TD

United Left Alliance, Joan Collins TD

For a selection of documents here is a sampling from Irish Election Literature.