Up to 100 protesters demonstrated outside the Irish Consulate in Edinburgh this morning over the jailing last week of five north Mayo residents for contempt of court.
The men - James Brendan Philbin, Phillip and Vincent McGrath, Willie Corduff and Micheal O Seighin - imprisoned indefinitely after they refused to undertake not to obstruct construction of a high pressure pipeline linked to the offshore Corrib gas field development by Shell.
The protesters gathered at the consulate at around 9.30 this morning, and their protest lasted some two hours.
A demonstration is planned for tomorrow evening in Dublin to support calls for the men’s release. It will start at 7.30pm in Parnell Square.
Speakers at the demonstration will include Gerry Cowley, Independent TD for Mayo; Sister Majella McCarron, a campaigner against Shell in Nigeria; Ola Badogun, a Nigerian journalist and Maura Harrington of the Shell to Sea group.
Ms Harrington from Shell to Sea said: "It is a disgrace that five Irish citizens should be sent to prison at the behest of a giant multinational."
She called for the release of the men and said "the Irish public should demand that their government reverses its policy of giving away our natural resources."
Shell E&P Ireland said last week it had no intention of stopping its operations on the €900 million Corrib gas project or withdrawing from Mayo, but the company said it was available for "constructive dialogue."