The issue of water charge protesters arrests has gone international.
The Department of Foreign Affairs show has confirmed that four Irish embassies abroad have received letters of complaint about Garda action in relation to the arrests, or indeed been the target of protests themselves ever since the spate of arrests over the Jobstown incident began earlier this month.
Details obtained from the Department after a specific request forwarded by Paul Murphy show that, between February 9 and 16, the embassies in London, Stockholm, Vienna and Edinburgh received correspondence in relation to the matter or were the subject of demonstration. Displays of support and solidarity have been reported as further afield as Hong Kong.
The controversial intervention of the Gardai, and the manner in which the arrests were conducted, were the catalyst for the correspondence abroad.
Thus far, over two dozen protesters have been detained and questioned for several hours. All detainees were released without charge, and files were prepared for the DPP.
The issue has only gained traction in the last few days with the jailing of five protesters over a court injunction breach, and the fallout from the Irish Water/water charges debacle is far from over.