Fuel price protests across Ireland have been described as “arguably the most serious insurrection” since the southern Irish state was created in the 1920s. The increasing number of demonstrations has drawn comparisons with the Gilet Jaunes (Yellow Vests) movement in France and the prolonged confrontation over the government’s proposed tax rise on diesel in 2018 and early 2019.Since a week past Monday in Ireland, farm contractors and hauliers, who rely on petrol or diesel vehicles, have been staging “go-slow” convoys on roads and blockading infrastructure, including ports. Ireland’s only oil refinery near Whitegate in County Cork was also hit by protests at rising fuel costs. The organisers of the protests have not been clearly identified.The Dublin government has sent in the army to remove protesters, and arrests have been made at several sites.As with the Yellow Vests protests, carbon taxes and fuel duties are the focus for demonstrators. Unlike demonstrations in France, Ireland’s have not been sparked by domestic policy, but by the fallout from Washington’s latest military campaign in the Middle East.While protests threatened to spread into Northern Ireland this week, demonstrations on the northern side of the border with the United Kingdom have so far been muted as trade unions and official farming groups have distanced themselves from any planned road blockades. Vehicles block Dublin’s O’Connell Street, as part of a protest over the high cost of fuel that clog …
