78-year-old grandmother on hunger strike outside Dáil
A 78-year-old grandmother has gone on hunger strike outside the Dáil as part of an Extinction Rebellion protest.
Patricia Devlin, from Kildare, is protesting outside the Dáil today calling on the Government to respond to the climate action group.
Ms Devlin and her husband Emmet have joined students in previous protests outside Government Buildings and says the hunger strike is a last resort.
"My main motivation to go on hunger strike is my anxiety for the future of our planet and in particularly the legacy I am leaving for my grandchildren," said Ms Devlin via a statement.
Ms Devlin is calling on Climate Action Minister Richard Bruton to meet with Extinction Rebellion Ireland to discuss how the Government can implement the demands of the movement.
They include having the government "adequately inform the public of the severity" of the climate emergency and reducing " greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2030".
Today, XR rebel and grandmother of two, Patricia from Monasterevin, Co Kildare, will begin a hunger strike outside the Dail.
— Extinction Rebellion Ireland (@ExtinctRebelsIE) November 20, 2019
"My motivation is my anxiety for the future of our planet and in particularly the legacy I am leaving for my grandchildren" Patricia says.
RT&❤️ pic.twitter.com/iPRWjmYzFZ
A statement from Extinction Rebellion revealed:
"Patricia has been offered accommodation by the nuns of the Dominican Convent in Donnybrook for the duration of her climate hunger strike with Extinction Rebellion.
"She has not taken the decision to go on hunger strike lightly, and has had a health check by her GP beforehand.
"However, she says she has no other option given what she describes as insufficient action on the part of Irish political leaders."
The strike is part of a week-long global action by Extinction Rebellion.
They stated that "activists are employing this tactic after more than three decades of petitions, protests and campaigns have failed to secure the urgently needed responses to mitigate ecological and climate breakdown."
