Nine out of ten people in Ireland believe that those who come here seeking refuge should be treated equally.

That's according to a new poll by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission.

The Amárach annual poll also shows that nearly three quarters of people agree Ireland benefits as a whole from being a more inclusive and diverse society.

Sinéad Gibney, Chief Commissioner of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, said that the statistics are reassuring but "not good enough".

"What we're seeing in terms of those positive attitudinal statistics, they are kind of steady over the last number of years", she said.

This is despite a series of protests recently, opposing the housing of asylum seekers in Dublin and Cork.

Direct Provision

"It really does display that Irish people are positive towards interculturalism, towards diversity", the Chief Commissioner said.

"I think that rings very true in terms of the response we've seen to people from Ukraine who've arrived here in Ireland."

However, she said, there must be an end to the Direct Provision system.

"We need to see an end to the implementation of the white paper, better facilities for people arriving both from Ukraine and from the broader international protection system."

Misinformation

Those opposed to the arrival of asylum seekers and refugees are not offering any solutions, according to activist group Fermoy and Mallow Against Racism.

Spokesperson Kate O'Connell told Newstalk that most people in the town are welcoming, but that others are taking advantage of the situation.

"We have had people coming in from the outside who have been trying to create a lot of confusion in the town and have been engaging in a campaign of misinformation", she said.

"Unfortunately, I suppose, where there have been information gaps in the town, those gaps have been filled by misrepresentations and misinformation."

"But the people who are coming into our town aren't offering any solutions, they're only asking us to target the most vulnerable."

'Diversity is a strength'

The Fermoy and Mallow Against Racism Group organised rallies to show its opposition to a local anti-immigration demonstration, when the asylum seekers arrived in Fermoy.

"I think there is a majority of people in Fermoy who stand for the idea that Fermoy is a welcoming town so", Ms O'Connell.

"Fermoy is actually very ethnically diverse."

"About one in four people in Fermoy are born overseas, so we've got a very successful town and it's very vibrant."

According to the activist group, diversity is a strength and not a weakness of the community.

"That's something that we have always been very proud of and it's something that we want to continue to kind of portray", she said.

Main image shows Ukrainian refugees in the Aviva. Picture by: Donal McNamee/Business Post