{"id":434109,"date":"2026-04-14T03:16:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T03:16:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/434109\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T03:16:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T03:16:19","slug":"renewed-calls-for-scrutiny-over-garda-pepper-spray-use","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/434109\/","title":{"rendered":"Renewed calls for scrutiny over Garda pepper spray use"},"content":{"rendered":"

Independent Ireland TD for Cork North-Central, Ken O\u2019Flynn, has voiced concern about the use of pepper-spray on fuel protesters.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Concerns have previously been raised over Garda use of pepper spray at protests in Coolock, Dublin, Newtownmountkennedy, Co Wicklow, and at Dublin Port Tunnel, with expert UN advisors warning that this represents \u201cgrave human rights risks\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Deputy O\u2019Flynn\u2019s comments came after members of the Public Order Unit (POU) used the spray on protesters at the Whitegate refinery in Co. Cork. A 14-year-old child was allegedly among those sprayed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Speaking to Gript, Deputy O\u2019Flynn said, \u201cWhat we saw in Cork raises serious questions around proportionality and judgment. People have a right to peaceful protest. That right must be protected at all times.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGarda\u00ed also have a duty to maintain public order. Nobody disputes that. But the use of pepper spray against demonstrators is a significant escalation. It should only ever be used as a last resort, where there is a clear and immediate threat to safety.\u201d<\/p>\n

Specialist UN advisers have raised concerns about the use of \u2018less-lethal\u2019 weapons on \u201cpeaceful protesters\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Last February, Gina Romero, the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, and Alice Jill Edwards, the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, voiced alarm about the purchase and use of so-called \u2018double-strength pepper spray\u2019 (SABRE Red Crossfire MK\u20113 Gel), one of the strongest irritant sprays on the market.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The advisers also expressed \u201cdismay\u201d that Garda\u00ed have rolled out the use of tasers in three areas as part of a pilot project, saying \u201cthese weapons could be used against pregnant women and the elderly\u201d.<\/p>\n

They warned that \u201csuch weapons reduce the use of de-escalation techniques, increase the use of force, and therefore should be used only as a measure of last resort, following a verbal warning, and with adequate opportunity for assembly participants to disperse\u201d.<\/p>\n

In response to the UN\u2019s concerns, An Garda S\u00edoch\u00e1na previously said that their use of incapacitant spray is based on \u201cproven effectiveness and safety with a focus on minimising harm to all involved\u201d.<\/p>\n

Minister for Justice Jim O\u2019Callaghan also defended the use of the non-lethal weapons.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Deputy O\u2019Flynn further commented, \u201cFrom what I have seen and from what has been reported to me locally, many of those present were ordinary people expressing genuine frustration at the cost of living. That context matters. It should inform how situations are managed on the ground.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny use of force must be necessary, proportionate, and accountable. If there are concerns being raised, including at an international level, then those concerns should be examined properly and transparently.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat people in Cork want is simple. They want to be heard. They want fairness. And they want to know that their right to protest will be respected without fear of excessive force,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The UN experts said that, \u201cAny use of force by security forces must comply with the fundamental principles of legality, necessity, proportionality, precaution and non-discrimination and must be strictly regulated in accordance with applicable international standards.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are concerned about the adoption of this equipment following a pattern of opacity and lack of public debate,\u201d the experts said.<\/p>\n

Gript contacted the Department of Justice, asking what operational needs are used to justify the use of double-strength pepper spray; however, we are yet to receive a response and will update this piece when one is provided.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Independent Ireland TD for Cork North-Central, Ken O\u2019Flynn, has voiced concern about the use of pepper-spray on fuel…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":434110,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[9,10,18,13,14,189695,6,19,17,54992,11,12,15,16,5,192990,192991,7,8],"class_list":{"0":"post-434109","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-breaking-news","9":"tag-breakingnews","10":"tag-eire","11":"tag-featured-news","12":"tag-featurednews","13":"tag-fuel-protests","14":"tag-headlines","15":"tag-ie","16":"tag-ireland","17":"tag-ken-oflynn","18":"tag-latest-news","19":"tag-latestnews","20":"tag-main-news","21":"tag-mainnews","22":"tag-news","23":"tag-pepper-spray","24":"tag-public-order-unit","25":"tag-top-stories","26":"tag-topstories"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116400894573739761","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/434109","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=434109"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/434109\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/434110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=434109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=434109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=434109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}