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‘Things should have been handled differently’: Information vacuum allows far right to stoke fears in Coolock

Will Coolock continue to say no to anti-immigration parties in the next elections?

Gardaí watch as a wheelie bin burns on the Malahide Road in Dublin on Monday at a protest at the former Crown Paint factory. Photograph: Colin Keegan/Collins
Olivia Kelly's picture
Olivia Kelly
Wed Jul 17 2024 - 06:00

Several newly elected Dublin city and county councillors who ran on anti-immigration or “Ireland is Full” platforms turned up at the former Crown Paints yard on the Malahide Road on Monday, following an arson attack on the site.

All opposed the Government decision to house international protection applicants at the site. Some were confrontational with gardaí. None represented the people of Coolock.

Far-right and anti-immigration candidates did run in this part of the city in the recent elections, but were rejected by the electorate.

All local councillors who were elected have been unequivocal in their condemnation of the actions of those blocking the site since March, calling themselves Coolock Says No; of those who set fire to a JCB, mattresses and bins stolen from local gardens; and those who hurled missiles at gardaí.

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That doesn’t, however, mean they support manner in which the Department of Integration has approached the use of the old factory site since it emerged last March it was intended for an accommodation centre, nor the department’s decision to send workers to start clearing the site in the middle of the night.

“I do query why they went in so early in the morning. It seemed as if they were trying to hide what they were doing rather than being open and transparent, which if they had been three months ago might have avoided the situation yesterday,” Independent councillor John Lyons said on Tuesday.

In late March an email was circulated to councillors from the department informing them of the intention to provide accommodation to international protection applicants at the Crown Paints site.

“Many of us looked for a meeting with their community engagement team and we stressed that it shouldn’t just be public representatives, it should include community representatives, people living, working, volunteering in the area,” Lyons said.

A meeting was set up for early April, but Lyons said it was “invite only” with just one or two community-based organisations asked. Councillors sought details of what services would be provided and made suggestions to the department’s representatives on how progress might be made locally.

“We had lots of questions around what kind of services and support there would be for the people moving in, and for the existing community, to help in the efforts to integrate the new arrivals. They said they would make a note of all these issues we were raising and they would feed them back to the Department of Integration, but they didn’t have the remit to do anything else.”

[ Gardaí and Minister in dispute over deployment of public order unit during Coolock unrest ]

Councillors insisted there should be a follow-up meeting to include the wider community. While the engagement team agreed, Lyons said, this never happened. “Diary pressures was what they said.”

Lyons was formerly a People Before Profit councillor, and while it might seem obvious he would be critical of the department’s approach, all local councillors, including Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, were infuriated by the lack of communication and how the Coolock Says No encampment and associated disinformation were allowed to fester.

“We have a community unhinged here and we need to get around the table and start talking,” Fianna Fáil’s Daryl Barron said. “It could have been different if meetings had been arranged with them.”

Barron said he submitted details of community and sports organisations after the April meeting. “No one was contacted,” he said. “I feel disenfranchised. It leaves me with a sense of frustration as a public rep – what is my role here?

“The lack of clarity, the lack of communication has cost us the situation we had yesterday. It’s up to the Minister now and it’s up to the department to get a handle on this situation. That’s where the energy has to be now.”

Efforts to foster integration have worked in other communities, said Sinn Féin councillor Mícheál Mac Donncha. He is not convinced, however, this would have prevented Monday’s violence.

“Things should have been handled differently in terms of the information given to people involved with community outreach,” he said. “Now would that have prevented the group from setting up camp and blockading the site? That might be doubtful, and what happened [on Monday] followed on from that blockade.”

Community engagement “certainly wouldn’t have prevented far-right elements from stirring up and trying to provoke people,” Mac Donncha said.

However, what it could have done was stifle the effect of their disinformation, he said.

“The absence of information makes it easier for those type of people to work on the wider community to sow doubts and fears. Really it’s about narrowing the grounds they can operate on.”

Three far-right parties – Ireland First, the Irish People and the National Party – used the forum of the Coolock incident to announce their intention to form an alliance in advance of the next general election.

Coolock said no to the far right at the location elections. How the community is treated in the wake of Monday’s scenes could determine if it continues to say no.

A spokesperson for the Department of Integration said that there has been “comprehensive and consistent engagement” with local representatives and gardaí since March in relation to the Crown Paints site.

“It is inaccurate and unfair to link criminal acts that include intimidation, harm to staff working on the site, damage to property and deliberate misinformation, to any failure to work with our local communities,” they added.

“The Community Engagement Team provides reliable information for public representatives on properties which are subject to queries locally, providing a trusted source of information and updates.”

“On 20 March, the Community Engagement Team advised local elected representatives, the Local Authority, the Local Development Company that the Department is considering an offer for the use of former Crown Paints Factory, Coolock to provide accommodation for people seeking international protection.

“The Community Engagement Team held a meeting with local elected representatives and community leaders on 08 April.

“A preliminary briefing document was issued to local elected representatives on 16 April that included information about the estimated capacity at the proposed accommodation centre, the proposed type of accommodation and the estimated timeline.

“The Community Engagement Team has ongoing engagement with local representatives, including this week (15 and 16 July) and has also previously met with the Northside Community Forum and the Northside Community Partnership. We will remain in contact with local representatives and groups as we work together to find suitable accommodation for people seeking international protection in Ireland.”