GARDAÍ HAVE extended a hand to non-nationals on issues of safety and on ways to break down barriers between the Irish and those of different cultural backgrounds.
“We can’t provide the service that you require on our own,” said Chief Supt John Twomey. “This is the start of the journey; we’re all going to work together to improve community safety.”
His comments came late last week at the South Inner City Intercultural Policing Forum, where for the first time gardaí met immigrants on a strategic level. More than 100 people gathered to hear gardaí describe efforts made in the community to preserve public safety, and to voice concerns about discrimination and ignorance.
Gardaí handed out a booklet, printed in 12 languages, stating their mission, the services they provide to immigrants and immigrant rights. These efforts included hosting workshops with the Filipino and Polish communities, holding talks with international students about safety and their rights in Ireland, having an increased presence at hostels for unaccompanied minors, and encouraging voting.
Sgt Dave McInerney, of the Garda Racial and Intercultural Office, spoke about the importance of the 400 nationwide trained ethnic liaison officers, and suggested that non-nationals ask for one when dealing with gardaí.
He said everyone, regardless of their legal status, could safely go to a Garda station for help.
Community members from regions such as Poland, Romania, India, the Middle East and Africa raised concerns about tolerance and safety, sometimes with regard to the way they were treated by gardaí. “Up until now we haven’t really engaged with people of different backgrounds to see what their problems are. Up until now I’ve been deciding what your problems are,” said Sgt Andrew Keegan, suggesting that it was time to come together in order to identify and find solutions to the problems non-nationals face.
One man said he had been stopped by a garda due to a registration issue with his rental car, and felt discriminated against when several more gardaí stopped to question him and didn’t believe it was his car. Another, who said he didn’t drink, had been stopped by police and made to do a breathalyser test. He failed twice because he couldn’t take a deep enough breath, and was told he would be charged if he failed a third time.
“We will assign somebody here tonight to help you,” Mr Twomey said, at times explaining the reasons such incidents might have occurred, such as the need for a crackdown on drink driving. He described incidents such as the man being stopped by several gardaí regarding his car registration as “totally unacceptable”.
Ismail Kotwal (37) invited everyone to attend services at his mosque to better understand Islam. An Irish man asked why there were two different Muslim communities in Dublin, and whether one was more militant. “There is a lot of fear. I am an Englishman, but because I have a long beard and a long robe, there is a lot of fear. How are we going to break this?” Mr Kotwal asked.
The forum will meet again in September, and community members in the meantime plan to create a task force, representative of different cultures, to help gardaí to address their concerns and to organise intercultural activities themselves.