We must invest in the Traveller communities

The fire at a halting site in which 10 people died serves as a stark reminder of State neglect of Travellers, says Ronnie Fay, co-director Pavee Point Traveller and Roma Centre

IN THE wake of the appalling fire tragedy that cost 10 lives on a Traveller halting site in Carrickmines, Co Dublin, last weekend, there have been unprecedented expressions of solidarity with the families affected and the Traveller community as a whole.

The settled community has, tragically, been given an insight into the vulnerability of Travellers particularly in relation to Traveller accommodation.

Irish people have responded on a human level. We, in Pavee Point, would hope that this will translate into a better understanding of Traveller issues on a human rights level.

Traveller living conditions are under the spotlight as the public demands action to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. And although the cause of the fire has yet to be confirmed, this tragedy has highlighted the unacceptable accommodation situation that many Traveller families find themselves in.

National and local Traveller organisations have long highlighted the poor living conditions of Travellers which have worsened in parallel with the national housing crisis. The difference between the national housing crisis and the Traveller accommodation crisis is that, sadly — up until now — the Traveller accommodation crisis has been largely ignored.

Austerity cuts for Travellers have been brutal and pervasive across a variety of sectors — education, community development — and accommodation.

Funding for Traveller accommodation was cut from €40m in 2008 to €4m in 2013. The impact of these drastic measures now sees the majority of local authorities operating on a budget of near 0% for new build provision. The result: Traveller families move on to halting sites that are already full to capacity. The mentality seems to be out of “site”, out of mind.

Overcrowding on existing Traveller halting sites and group housing schemes is a direct result of Government policy over the last 20 years.

Currently, local authorities produce a Traveller accommodation programme (TAP) which runs for five years. The majority of local authorities have consistently, year after year, failed to meet their Traveller accommodation targets.

Often, Traveller-specific accommodation has faced objections at a local level which have, in some cases, prevented local authorities from developing Traveller accommodation. Discrimination and racism against Travellers is rife.

Politicians have utilised anti-Traveller rhetoric in their campaigning. Some have given commitments to the electorate to prevent Traveller accommodation being built in their constituency. Often negative media coverage of Travellers adds to an attitude of hate towards Travellers.

A 2010 study by Michael MacGreil of Maynooth University revealed negative attitudes towards Travellers.

He found that 63.7% of the majority population reject Travellers on the basis of their “way of life”. More than 18% would deny Irish citizenship to Travellers and 60% would not welcome a Traveller as a member of the family. Society, as a whole, must reflect on the impact that our attitudes can have on the day to day lives and living conditions of one in every 1,000 of our population — Travellers.

Failure to meet Traveller accommodation targets at local level goes unsanctioned at the moment.

Access to the private rental sector is nigh on impossible for Travellers — due to the housing crisis, the inadequacy of the rental supplement and the added dimension of racism and discrimination against Travellers.

When, in the past, the rental sector was at a low — the numbers of Travellers renting increased by 30%. But the situation resulted in isolation for many Travellers; a breakdown in the Traveller family structure; and ensuing mental health issues. Young Traveller mothers reported feeling particularly isolated. It is our belief that the appropriate response to the Traveller accommodation crisis is the provision of Traveller-specific accommodation across the country.

The only national Traveller accommodation mechanism is the National Traveller Advisory Consultative Committee (NTACC) at the Department of the Environment. Unfortunately, it is just that — an advisory committee. It has little power or influence in addressing Traveller accommodation provision.

This committee needs more power and should be used as a mechanism to hold local authorities accountable to meeting the needs of the Traveller community. In order to fully address the issue of Traveller accommodation there must be, in general, more accountability and governance in relation to Traveller accommodation.

In the last 30 years there has been a steady development of a network of Traveller community development organisations. These organisations are there to give a voice to Travellers, to lobby for Traveller rights and to work in conjunction with service providers — which they do on a variety of levels.

Last weekend we saw the importance of local Traveller groups with the involvement of the Southside Travellers Action Group in supporting Travellers in crisis in Carrickmines and in liaising with service providers.

Traveller organisations are also involved in liaising on Traveller accommodation issues and they need to be listened to.

The Government must listen to recommendations made time and again by Traveller organisations and human rights organisations both here and internationally. Only this month the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission highlighted to the United Nations the lack of culturally appropriate housing for Travellers as a human rights issue.

In June this year the UN committee on economic, social and cultural rights also stated their concern about the lack of culturally appropriate accommodation for Travellers and Roma.

Traveller accommodation can no longer be viewed as a “problem” or contentious political issue. As we have always said — a Traveller’s right to appropriate accommodation is a human right. No one should be asked to turn their back on their culture, traditions, history and way of life — just to have a place to live.

As a society, we need to build on the solidarity between Travellers and the settled community that has been expressed in the last few days. We need to build on it in a way that continues to highlight the rights of Travellers to accommodation, to culturally appropriate and inclusive education, to health services that take account of the particular needs of Travellers. In short, we need to acknowledge the right of Travellers to their ethnic identity.