Madam, - Further to Mary Raftery's claim (Opinion, May 13th) that "gardaí announced through their representative organisation they wanted guns to deal with the anticipated May Day protest", the Garda Representative Association would like to ask Ms Raftery to point to the time or the place that any member of any Garda representative body has at any time, including the lead-up to the May 1st events, ever called for gardaí to be armed.
At no time has the Garda Representative Association or any other representative body in the force ever called for police officers to be armed for May Day or any other time.
In an editorial in last month's Garda Review, which is what I believe Ms Raftery is referring to, I called for the public order unit to be placed at any interface with protesters, instead of unprotected Gardaí with only a uniform and a high-visibility jacket to protect them. I asked that they be "properly equipped" - which is where, I believe, Ms Raftery and her colleagues in the media decided to take liberties.
Let me clear this up for once and for all: by "properly equipped" I meant proper protective clothing as is available to the public order unit here and abroad. It was a request that came about because of the concerns raised by our members, whose health and safety are the prime responsibility of the GRA.
Gardaí had valid concerns that genuine protesters who have legitimate grievances about the direction their world is headed in would have their protest hijacked by those who thrive on these situations to cause mayhem.
Ms Raftery rightly mentioned the long Garda history of unarmed policing here at home, and abroad through its work with the UN. We are proud of this and will at no time now or in the future seek to change that status which allows us an easy interface with the members of the public we are charged with protecting.
Ms Raftery would be better served directing her comments at the Minister for Justice, who, I believe, made the claims Garda representative bodies are now accused of. - Yours, etc.,
P.J, STONE, General Secretary, Garda Representative Association, Phibsboro, Dublin 7.