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direct provision protest
'The frustration has been building up over years'
Residents behind the protest at a Direct Provision Centre in Cork have spoken out.
RESIDENTS AT A Direct Provision Centre in Cork have spoken out about why they staged a ten-day protest.
In a video released by the Irish branch of Union Solidarity International, residents of the Kinsale Road Asylum Centre discuss what led to the protest, which ended yesterday.
Lucky Khambule said that residents did not allow staff members to enter the facility for a week-and-a-half due to “the frustration that has been building up over years and years”.
A woman who lives at the centre, Theresa, said this may have been a local incident but noted that there are national issues, such as ending direct provision entirely, that need to be addressed.
We decided it’s time that we spoke out … from our experience of meeting people outside, the Irish community … they don’t actually know that such things exists.
“We want the right to work and the right to study,” she said.
Between 250-300 people live in the centre, 60-70 of them children.
The protest ended when residents reached an agreement with management company Aramark on a number of issues such as living conditions and food.
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