CORK PROTEST: The Cork city centre constituency office of the Minister for Health, Mr Martin, was occupied by a small group of anti-war protesters on Saturday morning.
Prior to an anti-war march which saw some 2,000 people take to the streets of Cork, a group of 12 anti-war campaign activists, headed by Mr Fintan Lane, a former University of Limerick historian, entered the Minister's clinic at Grand Parade shortly before noon.
The protesters later described the move as a "peaceful act of civil disobedience".
Their action ended after gardaí were called to the scene at 12.20 p.m.
Mr Martin said: "I respect the right to protest, but this escalated into a one-way shouting match."
A spokesman for the Minister added: "We have no problem with these people's right to peaceful protest, but this aggressive act has disrupted the Minister's weekly constituency work and spoiled things for people who have come to see the Minister with personal concernsand problems."
Mr Lane said he did not accept that the act was an aggressive infringement on citizens' rights to access their local representative.
"There may have been a heated exchange between members of the group and the Minister, but he is part of a Cabinet that took a decision to let US war planes refuel at Shannon, and that to us is not acceptable. This Government has dragged Ireland into complicity in the slaughter of Iraqi people."
The Cork march began at 1 pm at Daunt Square, and proceeded down Grand Parade, around to South Mall. It returned to Patrick Street, where protesters staged a 20-minute sit-down, effectively blocking traffic on the operational side of the city's main thoroughfare. A Garda spokesman said: "It was a very ordered protest. We estimate over 2,000 people turned out. There were no arrests and the whole thing was very peaceful."