Irish MakePovertyHistory campaigners staged a "sit-out" last night in Dublin to highlight what they said was the inadequate response of the Government to tackling poverty and injustice in the developing world.
The protest took place outside Government Buildings, and coincided with events around the world, ahead of a UN summit in New York next week. The theme of the sit-out was Counting the Cost of Global Poverty.
The sit-out, said the Irish campaigners, was in protest at the unnecessary death of one child every three seconds from extreme poverty in the developing world. They also want the Government to deliver on its overseas aid promise.
The event started at 6pm, and continued through the night for 12 hours.
An illuminated counter on Merrion Street recorded the number of deaths in the developing world which would occur over the 12 hours. The campaigners said by 6am it would reach almost 15,000 children's lives lost.
The sit-out coincides with Global White Band Day today, when campaigners from all around the world will take action in solidarity with the world's poor. The white band is the symbol of the global MakePovertyHistory campaign.
A statement on the Irish campaign website said: "The event is planned to put pressure on the Government to take urgent action on the three themes of the MakePovertyHistory campaign - to deliver more and better aid, debt cancellation, and trade justice to the world's poorest countries."