Michael McNamara (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I very much endorse what Deputy Connolly has just said with regard to An Garda Síochána, both the good and the bad. One of the things all of these tribunals have taught us is that nobody is above reproach and accountability. A historical incident in Bunratty, County Clare, involves the Nugent family who deserve justice and to know what happened to their brother. Their father went to his grave looking for justice and did not get it. Until they get justice, there will always be a cloud over An Garda Síochána and the role it played on that night.

Another incident took place in Miltown Malbay. It pains me, to an extent, to hear about what is going on there. I recall when the direct provision centre was set up there.

The Minister and the Minister of State, Deputy Stanton, were looking for venues to host direct provision centres. While it might come as a surprise to the Minister and others in the House, the welcome that was rolled out by people in Miltown Malbay did not come as a surprise to me because that is part of the traditional welcome we afford to a stranger in Ireland.

Snámhaí Sásta in particular was highlighted. It is a great initiative where a community comes together to go swimming come hail, rain or snow - literally. People from outside were brought into that and were part of it. It is very much part of mental health. We need to bear in mind, as Deputy Connolly pointed out earlier, many people who come here and claim asylum are fleeing persecution and have various sufferings. They have been subjected to treatment that Irish people were once treated to in this country. We celebrate our independence, but we must remember the cost of it and what provoked the War of Independence and what we were subjected to as a people when we decide how we will treat other people.

The welcome that the people of Miltown Malbay rolled out is something I have experienced as a person in other countries, particularly in Muslim countries where the treatment of the stranger is part of the honour of a society. We talk a lot about racism and that black lives matter, and of course they do. We need to be ever-vigilant for racism in Ireland. We also need to look at xenophobia and vilifying Islam. We need to be very cautious in that regard.

Going back to the welcome the people of Miltown Malbay rolled out, unfortunately, that is not mirrored in our direct provision centres which are about ensuring that people are not welcome. There is an unwritten rule that single males, in particular, get moved out of Dublin and other cities to places like Oranmore, Miltown Malbay, etc. The last thing the Department of Justice and Equality wants is for these people to integrate, get a job and, heaven forbid, get involved with somebody, form a family and have a child because, of course, it makes it more difficult to deport them if they are part of a family unit. Family inheres in us as human beings. Everybody in this House is part of a family. That is the nature of humanity the world over; from Miltown Malbay to Ulaanbaatar we organise ourselves as families. The reason these single males are being sent out to these areas is so that they cannot and will not do that while the system plods along.

I acknowledge that there have been advances, particularly with regard to determining whether refugee status, subsidiary protection status or humanitarian leave to remain is warranted and the process has speeded up. The quality of decision-making, as evidenced by the number of successful judicial reviews taken against the various tribunals, has improved considerably. However, we have more to do. I do not think that our system of direct provision reflects the Irish spirit. It does not welcome people. It tries to keep them apart and that is not who we are as a people.

I ask the Minister to act quickly in respect of Miltown Malbay. I do not know what the truth is of the allegations that have been made and I do not want to prejudge anything. I ask him to act quickly because the local people have given a great welcome to these people. There have been all sorts of allegations made, including about running water. Nobody in Miltown Malbay has running water today. Every second week the water system breaks down. That is not unique to the hostel in Miltown Malbay.

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