Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

As a country that has such a long history of emigration, our response to the refugee crisis - I use that term for want of better words, as I am not am a fan of it - has been nothing short of disgraceful. For generations, Irish people have moved abroad to live and work. I am sure that nearly every Deputy in this House has an experience to relate of emigration through family or friends. My own family has a long history of emigration, yet we have difficulty in welcoming people to our shores at a time when they need our help the most. Let us not forget that over 1 million Irish people were forced to leave this island owing to famine and that many died on the sea journey. Our ancestors were refugees in situations similar to those of current refugees. One of the founding principles of the European Union was to combat social exclusion and discrimination. When one considers that 1,232 people died while attempting sea crossings between January and April this year alone, it is clear that the European Union is not living up to this principle. Unfortunately, we must include Ireland in this. The problem is only set to get worse, given the deal done between the European Union and Turkey. This will see vulnerable men, women and children deported to Turkey, a country that we know has a deplorable human rights record and a history of discriminating against minorities.

When we imagine what it must be like to be in the situation in which a lot of people find themselves, forced to flee from their homes, we should think of it in the context of our own children. As a mother, I know that there is nothing I would not do to protect my two sons. That is the situation with which people throughout the world are faced. They are faced with losing their job and home and possibly their family. I believe any parent would do everything in his or her power to keep his or her family safe in these circumstances. After all, when people set out to make these crossings, they know that there is a good chance they will not make it. They are making these crossings in very difficult circumstances which I do not think we should underestimate.

What has our response been to families and those who find themselves in this situation? With the exception of the very good work being done by the NGO sector, charitable organisations, various groups and individuals, we have turned our backs on those who have been forced through no fault of their own to make a terrifying journey to try to secure their safety. Of the 4,000 refugees Ireland was to take in, so far only one family of ten Syrians have been relocated here. The response is far too slow and, frankly, disgraceful. While many Irish families and individuals have pledged to house incoming refugees, there is silence from the Government on the matter. I commend the Naval Service for all the work it has been doing in the past few years in this regard, but we need to see much faster action.

I agree with many of the Deputies who have spoken about the direct provision system, but that is not the solution or the answer. We must move away from it towards a model of social integration and be far faster in our response. It is, after all, a crisis. Similar to the housing crisis, we need to come up with solutions immediately. We must be far more welcoming. All we have taken in are ten Syrians when we pledged to take in at least 4,000. I urge Ministers to do everything in their powers to speed up our response and move away from the direct provision model.

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