By Conor Humphries
DUBLIN, May 21 (Reuters) – Hundreds of people protested outside Ireland’s parliament on Thursday to express outrage at the death of a Congolese-born man after he was restrained outside a Dublin department store last week in an incident that has shocked the nation.
Yves Sakila was detained by security guards on one of the capital’s busiest shopping streets last Friday in connection with an alleged shoplifting incident, police said. He became unresponsive at the scene and was later pronounced dead.
A video of the incident widely shared days later on social media showed Sakila being pinned to the ground by five men for almost five minutes as bystanders watched. Two of the men held his face to the ground and at one point one of them appeared to kneel on his head or neck for a few seconds.
The protesters outside parliament chanted “no cover up, no delay” and “justice for Yves, dignity for all”. Some held signs saying ‘Justice’ and ‘cead mile failte’ (the Irish phrase for welcome) is for everyone.’
Another hand-written sign said ‘Yves, your life mattered, black lives matter.’ The incident has revived memories of George Floyd, a Black Minneapolis man killed by a police officer who kneeled on his neck for several minutes during an arrest in May 2020. Floyd’s death triggered the Black Lives Matter movement in the United States and sparked protests across the country against police brutality and racism.
Sakila, who police said was in his 30s, moved to Ireland when he was very young, according to Laure Zoya, vice president of the Congolese Community in Ireland group. She said Ireland’s small Congolese community no longer felt safe.
The video of the incident has been described by lawmakers in parliament as “distressing” and “disturbing”. Prime Minister Micheal Martin has called for a thorough investigation and said the manner in which Sakila died has caused huge concern across society.
Police said on Thursday that they had recovered footage from CCTV and social media, and were looking to speak with anyone who was close to Arnotts, one of the country’s best known department stores, when the incident occurred at rush hour on Friday.
A post-mortem examination has been completed and the results are not being released for operational reasons, they added.
(Reporting by Conor Humphries, writing by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Chiara Rodriquez)
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