'All we see is racism and discrimination': Homeless asylum seekers take protest to the Dáil 

Up to 50 tents are now pitched outside the offices of International Protection Accommodation Services on Mount Street in Dublin City centre. Pictures: Gareth Chaney

As their number surges towards 1,000, homeless asylum seekers have begun protesting at the Dáil over what they say is “discrimination and racism” against them.

Up to 50 tents are now pitched outside the offices of International Protection Accommodation Services (IPAS) on Mount Street in Dublin City centre.

Over the past number of nights, asylum seekers have held a number of small protests on site over their living conditions.

The demonstrations come as new figures on Tuesday show there are 975 people in the IPAS system who are without accommodation as the housing crisis here continues.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner, Sami Kupiszewski from Turkey said he had been in Ireland for three years and had “yet to receive accommodation”.

“Nobody cares about us. We are tired of it. People are angry. This is no way to live”, he said.

Pointing to the line of tents on the street, he said: “This is just the tip of the iceberg. It is an injustice. Nobody wants to come and talk to us about this.

Look at us, we live in tents on the street. There has already been a fire near here by far right and what did the Government do? Nothing. With the racism against us there is silence, with the discrimination towards us, there is silence.

“They said there will be an investigation into the fire, well nothing has happened. We live like this, people are filming us and sharing all over the internet and creating more problems for us.

“Before the Ukraine war there was a homeless problem. Before any of us come here you had a homeless problem and that’s the government’s fault not ours. This is not dignified and we are being targeted and attacked."

Sami Kupiszewski from Turkey said he had been in Ireland for three years and had 'yet to receive accommodation'.

All along Mount Street and Grattan Court East, tents are lined up along the walls of the surrounding buildings.

The asylum seekers have also erected banners saying: “Stop normalising institutional racism.”

While another says “We are human”.

There has been growing unrest among the homeless asylum seekers in Dublin in particular in response to potential centres for asylum seekers being set on fire before they can be moved in.

On Tuesday, some of the asylum seekers have decided to take their plight to the Dáil.

Mr Kupiszewski said: “How can anyone live like this?

“People are angry but all we see is racism and discrimination and people looking to attack us instead of their own Government, who caused the homeless problem.”