Belfast hotel sued over All-Ireland coverage

[T Fearon]

His holiness and Dublin Fella you fail to understand the sensitivities and way the law works up here. Quite simply the law demands everyone be treated equally to the nth degree. For example I know of one case up here where a guy successfully took his employers to the tribunal and won the case on the basis that his work colleagues discussed the weekend's GAA events every Monday morning in his presence, at work,  and he "felt" intimidated as a result. I repeat he won the case!

Now I know this all seems trivial but I have no doubt that a tribunal up here will conclude that a patron asked a hotel to show the All Ireland Final which was freely available on terrestrial tv, and by so refusing, the hotel faled to treat patron equally as a real or imagined unionist patron was treated, as soccer, the preferred choice of unionists, was made available.

Now if they hadn't been showing soccer it could be that he had no case.

[dublinfella]

His holiness and Dublin Fella you fail to understand the sensitivities and way the law works up here. Quite simply the law demands everyone be treated equally to the nth degree. For example I know of one case up here where a guy successfully took his employers to the tribunal and won the case on the basis that his work colleagues discussed the weekend's GAA events every Monday morning in his presence, at work,  and he "felt" intimidated as a result. I repeat he won the case!

Now I know this all seems trivial but I have no doubt that a tribunal up here will conclude that a patron asked a hotel to show the All Ireland Final which was freely available on terrestrial tv, and by so refusing, the hotel faled to treat patron equally as a real or imagined unionist patron was treated, as soccer, the preferred choice of unionists, was made available.
Now if they hadn't been showing soccer it could be that he had no case.

Thats were I can't agree with your assessment of the case.

He asked for an event to be put on, they said they were already showing something else. Thats their call, not a sectarian assault on his fundamental rights.

Its a nusiance suit.

[ziggysego]

Damn you Tony, you're making the Dubs the voice of reason in here!

[T Fearon]

Yes, all perfectly logical. But Tribunals up here look at the practical measures that could have been taken to avoid this, such as the provision of a second television set, which I have no doubt was available in such a big hotel. In otherwords, they look also and not only what they did and didn't do but what they could and should have done.

[T Fearon]

Ziggy, I have had experience of tribunals up here as a defendant. You simply couldn't make up what they will do for complainants, and as I said its all about what you could and should have done not what you did and didn't do

A good barrister in this instance will quite easily argue that the guy was treated less favourably than a unionist (who had instant access to soccer) and he will win his case.

[dublinfella]

A good barrister in this instance will quite easily argue that the guy was treated less favourably than a unionist (who had instant access to soccer) and he will win his case.

So they are going to set the legal precendent that soccer is a unionist game? 

No chance Fearon, despite what your mate tells you.

[cornafean]

My brother had his Cavan jersey on at around 3pm and walked into a shoe shop in  the city center. The shop keeper threw him out for having a Cavan jersey (I assume it was any GAA jersey she took offense to).

Are you sure it wasn't a Leaguers jersey? 

[T Fearon]

Wait and see.

Soccer is a British Sport, GAA is an Irish Sport. Quite simply the tribunal will conclude (at teh behest of a good barrister)that the Irish sport was not made available, it would have been easy to make it available, the British sport was made available, hence the patronwho requested the Irish sport,was treated less favourably. Its a no brainer

[cornafean]

So if some guy rambles in to Silverbridge/Galbally/Swatragh GAA centre on the night of next year's Ulster Scór finals and demands to see loyalist marching bands instead of the set dancers and ballad groups, it will be an oppression of his yooman rights if he is told to get lost?   

[dublinfella]

Wait and see.

Soccer is a British Sport, GAA is an Irish Sport. Quite simply the tribunal will conclude (at teh behest of a good barrister)that the Irish sport was not made available, it would have been easy to make it available, the British sport was made available, hence the patronwho requested the Irish sport,was treated less favourably. Its a no brainer

soccer is a Chinese sport, but anyway.

thats not what you said, or what he is claiming. to suggest that soccer is the exclusive preserve of the unionist community and that a hotel bar showing a soccer game is oppressive to nationalists is laughable.

thats before you get into the 'their house their rules' argument.

[dublinfella]

So if some guy rambles in to Silverbridge/Galbally/Swatragh GAA centre on the night of next year's Ulster Scór finals and demands to see loyalist marching bands instead of the set dancers and ballad groups, it will be an oppression of his yooman rights if he is told to get lost?   

or even more bizarre, what Fearon is arguing is that if a GAA fan walked into the Cliftonville Social Club and asked for the AIF but was turned down because there was soccer on, he would have been oppressed as a nationalist by other nationalists.

[Gnevin]

Yes, all perfectly logical. But Tribunals up here look at the practical measures that could have been taken to avoid this, such as the provision of a second television set, which I have no doubt was available in such a big hotel. In otherwords, they look also and not only what they did and didn't do but what they could and should have done.

So now every hotel must have 2 tv's in every public place ?  But what about the Polish , better make that 3 but the chinese better make that 4 but ......

[Maguire01]

The idea that the soccer was on for Unionists is laughable coming from someone who spends as much time on this board talking about soccer as he does GAA. Do you even know that those watching the soccer were Protestants/Unionists?

These laws were brought in to protect people from genuine discrimination. This just makes a mockery of the system and those people who need genuine protection.

[T Fearon]

Does anyone here have

1) A brain
2) Any experience of tribunals

The simple fact is that on this occasion (which will be the only "occasion" the tribunal will deal with in this case) an international hotel chain treated "a nationalist patron" less favourably than "a unionist patron", in this instance, by having soccer (which the tribunal will conclude was likely to be the preferred choice of "a unionist patron") accessible and not GAA, which the patron specifically requested, and which the hotel could easily have made available as well on this occasion. Nothing to do with what may or may not be broadcast in Silverbridge Harps club or anywhere else.As I said before, its a no brainer, I cant see how the guy can lose.

[Maximus Marillius]

Does anyone here have

1) A brain
2) Any experience of tribunals

The simple fact is that on this occasion (which will be the only "occasion" the tribunal will deal with in this case) an international hotel chain treated "a nationalist patron" less favourably than "a unionist patron", in this instance, by having soccer (which the tribunal will conclude was likely to be the preferred choice of "a unionist patron") accessible and not GAA, which the patron specifically requested, and which the hotel could easily have made available as well on this occasion. Nothing to do with what may or may not be broadcast in Silverbridge Harps club or anywhere else.As I said before, its a no brainer, I cant see how the guy can lose.

Tony in my experience of tribunals this is also a no brainer