Roderic O’Gorman has no plans to visit scene of Roscrea protest over asylum seeker accommodation

Minister for Integration Roderic O’Gorman has said he has no plans to visit Roscrea in Co Tipperary where a protest is ongoing over plans to accommodate asylum seekers in a former hotel.

There were scuffles at Racket Hall on the outskirts of the town on Monday between gardaí and protesters, which saw one person arrested, as a number of female and minors were moved into the premises. Gardaí are examining a warning that the hotel at the centre of a standoff could be burned.

During radio interviews on Tuesday, Mr O’Gorman said he would not be visiting Roscrea but would be meeting with councillors and TDs to discuss concerns about pressures on services in the town, which he acknowledged was an issue.

The Minister told RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland that people had a right to protest but it was not acceptable for those involved to block vulnerable people seeking to access their accommodation as had been the case in Roscrea.

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While he believed that some of those protesting were motivated by local concerns, Mr O’Gorman suggested that others involved were from “far-right” groups. He said it was obvious from online commentary that some people were travelling around Ireland trying to “stir up sentiment” against asylum applicants.

The people who had arrived in Racket Hall on Monday were families and female asylum applicants and it had been a difficult experience for them, the Minister said, adding that department officials noted some of the children there were upset after “seeing the scuffles”.

The Government needed to do better in terms of getting accurate information to the public as there was a lot of misinformation on social media, he added, including about the rights of international protection applicants.

Independent councillor Shane Lee accused the Garda public order unit involved in skirmishes at Racket Hall on Monday of being “very heavy handed”. He told Morning Ireland that local gardaí had been interacting with those demonstrating, most of whom “had never protested a day in their lives”, since last Thursday.

According to the Garda Press Office, uniformed members of the force supported by “soft cap” public order personnel provided a cordon at the entrance to Racket Hall to facilitate access for transport carrying international protection applicants.

“During the course of the operation, one male was arrested under the public order act. He has subsequently been released and a file will be prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions,” it said in a statement.

When asked if he agreed with signs in the town stating ‘Roscrea is Full’, Mr Lee said that between 320 and 400 Ukrainian people were being accommodated at Convent Hill and international protection applicants were housed at Séan Ross Abbey.

“So it’s not as if this is the first rodeo in town. In fairness, the town is playing its part,” he said, adding that locals were caring and had been very welcoming to those who had already arrived.

Mr Lee said many decisions around housing asylum seekers were coming down to money, with a price being being put on the heads of those entering the State and businesspeople seeking to profit.

He said Roscrea was losing a hotel, an amenity and a service for the community, which he blamed the Government for as he called on Mr O’Gorman to visit the town. “And that’s what’s creating the anger, and that’s what’s at the heart of this. That’s absolutely shameful.”

Community activist Derek Russell said there had been a lack of consultation with the local community about the plans for Racket Hall. He said he could “see how people can get angered when they just get pushed to one side rather than a small bit of cooperation between both sides”.

“The way the Government are managing this particular situation is if you are a manager in a company, you’d be fired for the way the business has been done,” he said of the international protection system in the State.

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