Irish Refugee Council praises offers of support from the public

The Irish Refugee Council says the public’s response to refugees has been quite positive, with various offers of support.

The support came after it was announced that Ballaghaderreen, Co Roscommon will welcome 82 Syrian refugees in early March.

The group is comprised of families, which includes 37 children.

“I think overall the response has been quite positive,” said Caroline Reid, communications officer with the council.

She said generally the welcome refugees have received from communities around Ireland has been “warm” and “fantastic.”

“I spoke at an event late last year and it was a full house. The local teacher was full of praise for the young people who arrived and she said the welcome from the school body was fantastic and the students were working on developing a programme of events aimed at integration for the parents.

“I know the families who settled in Portlaoise also seem to have had a very warm welcome,” she said.

CEO of the council Nick Henderson told the Irish Examiner it received various offers of support this week from the general public.

“We’ve received offers of support and assistance. They vary from accommodation to general support and a willingness to use their own speciality or experience,” he said.

In the last number of days, the council has received several offers of assistance from members of the public with a medical background.

Mr Henderson said it was “heartening” to see the “overwhelmingly positive reception” from the community in Ballaghaderreen.

However, he said that the lack of prior engagement with the people there was a cause for concern.

“A consistent theme in comments from people living in the community has been the lack of notice or consultation that was given.

“It is crucial that in circumstances, such as these, local communities are properly informed so that questions can be answered, a welcome prepared and services organised. Unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to have happened in this case,” the IRC chief said.

News broke last week that the former Abbeyfield Hotel would not be re-opening as a hotel but would instead be turned into an emergency reception and orientation centre for Syrian refugees.

Then, according to a report in The Western People , a group of four or five individuals, who are believed not to be from the north-west Co Roscommon town, handed out anti-Islamic leaflets in the town centre on Saturday, ahead of the refugees’ arrival.

However, there was widespread shock at the dissemination of such literature with the locals rallying together to hold a ‘Ballaghaderreen Welcomes Refugees’ meeting.

Organisers said they were inundated with offers of assistance from the people in the area.

Mr Henderson said that locals will play a crucial role in the resettlement of the refugees to be relocated here.

“Around 3,200 refugees are due to be resettled and relocated to Ireland by the end of 2017.

“This is a significant humanitarian undertaking that we strongly commend but one that cannot be underestimated.

“It will only work if transparency and information are embedded in the process and resources given to all stakeholders,” he said.