Prison report uncovers Traveller discrimination

Offensive name-calling can be a "common experience" for Travellers in prison — both from other inmates and from some prison officers, according to a new report.

A small number of Travellers said they had also been subjected to “systematic discrimination”, including the dispersal of Travellers to other jails following a conflict between them and settled inmates in one jail.

The report, Travellers in the Irish Prison System: A qualitative study, said previously published figures showed Travellers were disproportionately locked up — between five and 11 times more likely than other males.