All we want for Christmas is our dad
Language school director Gerard Deasy has been detained in China for the past eight weeks arising from a dispute over the eligibility of a number of students who were planning to come to Ireland to study.
His wife, Teresa, and daughters, Tara, six, Sinéad, four, are anxiously waiting at their home in Tralee, while the Department of Foreign Affairs tries to get the Chinese authorities to release him.
“We were hoping that he’d be back home for Christmas, but are not so hopeful now,” a worried Teresa Deasy said yesterday.
“I was speaking to him on Sunday and he’s very lonely and upset. I’m more pessimistic than he is about his prospects of coming home this week.
“The girls also miss him very much. They’re just waiting and think Santa will come with daddy,’ she said.
She said she hoped the Department of Foreign Affairs would remain in contact with the Chinese authorities, in Beijing, during the holiday period. Her husband had not been told why his passport had been taken from him.
Mr Deasy was interviewed by police in China eight weeks ago and his passport confiscated.
While the background to his detention is not fully clear, it is understood that Mr Deasy was concerned that 63 of the students due to come here did not meet with departmental guidelines.
This led to difficulties with people in China and it is believed that Mr Deasy has been ordered to return a number of deposits, involving the return of several thousand euro, that had been paid by the Chinese students.
Since then, Mr Deasy’s money has run out and he is living in a hotel.
Kerry TD Jackie Healy-Rae yesterday said he had been assured by the Taoiseach’s office that anything that can be done to reunite Mr Deasy with his family was being done at the highest level.
Teresa Deasy said the whole situation was “crazy” and that the Chinese authorities were very difficult to deal with.
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