The decision to house refugees in converted industrial premises is “a firefighting situation” for the Government, according to a Sinn Féin TD.
Last night, it was announced that the Government would be housing asylum seekers in three centres in Santry, Dún Laoghaire and Clondalkin.
In order to move some asylum seekers from outside the International Protection Office (IPO) on Mount Street, they will be housed in industrial premises, a former college and a converted office building.
Speaking to Newstalk Breakfast, Sinn Féin's Deputy Dessie Ellis said: “No industrial estates are built for accommodation reasons.”
“They're not the ideal place but that's what the Government is doing,” he said.
“Unfortunately, we're in what I see as a firefighting situation when it comes to refugees.
“There is no real plan rolled out properly for accommodation.”
Consultation
Deputy Ellis said there was “some” consultation with locals in Santry when it was made known that there were 300 asylum seekers moving into a local factory.
“There has been consultation with some residents [and] the representatives – [there were] several online a couple of weeks ago,” he said.
“That should have been done from the start, maybe we wouldn't have had so much protest.”
Tensions
Deputy Ellis said there is a “mixture of people” attending the protests against asylum seekers.
“There are people there that have genuine fears and then there are people that are from the far-right trying to influence a reaction from people,” he said.
“I'm certainly worried that the tensions are being stoked.
“We shouldn't underestimate that some people have fears and going out and talking to people and not just coming along and putting people in and expecting that you won't get a reaction.”
17/05/2023 Clare, Ireland. Pictured are locals opposing the placement on duty manning a roadblock on Wednesday evening at the entrance to the road to the Magowna House Hotel and guest homes in Co. Clare. Locals have protested after refugees were housed here. Photograph: Eamonn Farrell / ©RollingNews.ie‘Degrading practice’
Co-founder of the Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland, Lucky Khambule said the violence on Sandwith St and Clare protests are “putting fear on people and it should not be accepted.”
“The [asylum seekers] who are involved are people who already have these fears – they have been sleeping on the road, sleeping in the tents, and they've got the hope that something has happened to accommodate them,” he said.
Reports from the protests in Clare said that locals had boarded a bus carrying asylum seekers to conduct a headcount and record the men on video.
Mr Khambule said: “We can't accept and normalise that situation – it is an abnormal situation.”
“They are faced with this degrading kind of practice, which violates the people's rights to have a private bus that is meant to take them to a safe place.
“There is no evident intervention in terms of people being seen to be locked up for violating the rights of these people because they can get away with it.
“We don't see the actual arresting of the people that have been continuously doing this for a number of years.”
You can listen back here:
Main image shows asylum seekers queueing outside the Refugee Application Centre on Mount Street in Dublin, 30-01-2023. Image: Sasko Lazarov/RollingNews
