Sinn Fein have launched a Private Members Motion calling for more rights for travellers.

The motion will be discussed in the Dáil next week - several weeks after the fire that killed 10 travellers in Carrickmines.

The Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams spoke today at the launch of the motion and spoke of the treatment of the families of the victims of the Carrickmines fire, in which 10 people died.

“The day after the funeral the family are put into a car park and that’s it, sin é. It’s just not good enough.”

Sinn Fein say there is a re-appraisal needed in the way we treat travellers in Irish society. They also want to see ethnic status given to travellers – something that action group Pavee Point agree is key, and that it has already done in Northern Ireland.

Pavee Point co-director Martin Collins says there is an edge of racism to how travellers are treated.

“The subtext to the narrative is viewing our people as being dysfunctional, primitive and uncivilised – a group of people who need to be assimilated and rehabilitated, and I find that quite racist.

He also believes local politicians aren’t much help either.

“You have public reps tripping over each to see which can be the more anti-traveller, in the hope of winning votes,” he said.

Gerry Adams said ethnic status is among a number of things that need to be changed.

“A third of travellers are living without sanitation, without running water. The cuts in funding have been astronomical over a number of years”, he said.

“And also in a thoughtful way that we try to look at our own prejudices,” he added.

- Seán Defoe