At a meeting with senior Ennis gardaí in Portlaoise this afternoon, "Stop Bush" protest organisers were told they would be held back half-a-mile and would be banned from the main road to Shannon Airport, where they will be kept outside the secure perimeter fence.
They have vowed to assemble as close as possible to the EU/US Summit meeting in Dromoland Castle on Saturday. "Stop Bush" protest spokesman Mr Richard Boyd Barrett expressed disappointment the protest would not be as visible as expected, but he said the number of people taking part was the key.
He said that Friday night's protest in Dublin at the visit of US President George W Bush "could even be on a par" with the anti-war march in February 2003 when 100,000 protesters took to the streets. He said up to 10,000 could attend Saturday's protests in Clare.
Dublin's new Lord Mayor, Cllr Michael Conaghan, has said that he will be attending the protest in the city on Friday night in his official capacity. Speaking on Newstalk 106radio this morning the Labour Party councillor said he is very supportive of the anti-war movement and has attended many previous protests.
Newly elected Lord Mayor of Dublin Cllr Michael Conaghan
"I know the main protest is in Limerick and I know my colleagues in the Labour Party have been discussing with me the protest in Dublin on Friday. I certainly intend to go to that and to support that," he said.
Almost 6,000 troops and gardaí are being deployed to provide security for Mr Bush at an estimated cost of €3 million to the State. Today, security forces are continuing to seal manholes, dig trenches and provide security passes to locals.
Protesters began arriving in the area today ahead of an organised protest in Clare. This protest is assembling in Clarecastle at 10 a.m. on Saturday morning and will march as close as possible to Dromoland Castle and then on to Shannon Airport.
The Labour Party Spokesperson on Justice, Mr Joe Costello TD, said that some of the security precautions appeared to be excessive and heavy-handed and he urged the Garda to ensure the public were not subjected to unreasonable inconvenience or cost.
"Little of substance is expected to emerge from the very brief visit of President Bush, which appears to be designed to allow him a 'sleep-over' on his way to Turkey for a NATO summit and provide a congenial photo-opportunity for him in advance of the US presidential elections."
There is expected to be significant traffic disruption in the area at the weekend. An 11-mile stretch of the N18 Galway-to-Limerick road will be closed between Shannon and Clarecastle for 24 hours from 3 p.m. on Friday. The R458 will be closed from the Clare Inn roundabout to Newmarket on Fergus from 10 p.m. on Thursday to 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Shannon Airport will operate as normal on Friday and Saturday passengers are advised to allow at least an additional hour to travel to the airport.