Refugees are people, not pawns

While we wait for a kinder period of human history, we should support refugees rather than see them as beggars or terrorists, writes Enda O’Neill

THINK of the refugee crisis and you’ll probably think of Greece and Italy. The dramatic increase in numbers of people crossing the Mediterranean in 2015 brought the reality of war to our doorsteps, as we saw images of people fleeing to countries and places we all know. With a fourfold increase in the numbers landing by sea last year, understandably many of us have asked, “how will we cope?”. At times, it has seemed as if everyone is coming to the EU.

However, the reality could not be more different. Yes, there is a refugee crisis; it is just not here.