INDUSTRIAL TYPE BUILDINGS should be utilised for the short-term good to prevent refugees from becoming homeless, according to advocacy groups.
Liam O’Dwyer, who is an advisor to the Red Cross, made the call in the wake of a warning from Minister Roderic O’Gorman that the refugee centre at Dublin’s CityWest Hotel will reach capacity and be unable to accept new arrivals in the coming days.
Minister for Children, Equality and Disability, Roderic O’Gorman said yesterday that “this closure will be a longer one” and could potentially last for a “number of weeks”.
And while O’Gorman said the government had “a line of sight” to creating additional accommodation from hotels and buildings being converted, he added that these won’t be available until mid-February.
It is understood that options as to where to house incoming refugees are under consideration, with sources stating that locations in Kildare and off the M50 are being assessed.
In May of last year, the government signed off on plans to use the CityWest Hotel to accommodate Ukrainian refugees.
Citywest is also designed as a reception centre for those fleeing the war, with arrivals into the country transported to the complex for processing.
It will be the third time that the refugee centre at the CityWest has reached capacity and some Ukrainian refugees were forced to sleep in Dublin Airport when the issue last arose in October.
With the hotel set to reach capacity shortly, O’Dwyer told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland today that “homeless services will be the next to step in”.
However, he called on the government “to stop that from happening and to enable people to move into more appropriate accommodation in larger industrial estates in the short term”.
He added: “Given this is an emergency and a really unusual situation, [the government should] utilise larger buildings and larger industrial type buildings to ensure that people are not out in the streets and become homeless.”
O’Dwyer also told RTÉ that this type of accommodation is available and that the Irish Red Cross has “indicated to government where some of them are and I know the government are currently looking at those larger facilities”.
While O’Dwyer said this type of accommodation is “not acceptable longer term”, he added that is appropriate in emergency while more sustainable accommodation is being prepared”.
“People are coming from war scenarios, and they need accommodation. They need to be kept safe and warm in the short term until something more sustainable appears.”
O’Dwyer also acknowledged the work being done by the Department but warned that “something much bigger” is needed.
“It’s time for the government to move into the larger industrial estates and also there are very significant numbers of office buildings,” said O’Dwyer.
“Already some have been used, but more now need to be accessed.”
The advisor to the Irish Red Cross also noted the protests that have taken place recently against the accommodation of asylum seekers and cautioned that “consultation should always happen”.
“That is part of the way you bring people into a community, you consult with the community that’s there,” said O’Dwyer.
Refugee and migrant rights organisation Doras has also called for urgent action to prevent refugees from facing homelessness.
While Doras CEO John Lannon acknowledged the “huge pressure” on the Department, he added that this is a “worrying new low for the international protection system in Ireland”.
Lannon added: “We simply can’t throw the towel in and ignore our moral and legal obligation to offer refuge.
“We’re talking about people who have faced great hardships to flee war, oppression and human rights abuses.
Ireland has very real challenges but as a country, we have access to resources and the solutions are there if the will is there.
Lannon also noted that single men are “likely to be worst affected by the current situation.”
Irish Refugee Council CEO Nick Henderson yesterday warned that the closure of the CityWest Hotel would result in “large-scale homelessness of male protection applicants.”
“We cannot sit by and allow these people to end up on the streets,” said Lannon, “and it’s simply not acceptable to refer them to places like the Capuchin centre, which is already doing so much.
“Nor can we rely on damp, cold and crowded tents such as those in Knockalisheen, Co Clare, which are no place for human beings in the height of winter.”
“It is essential that the government combines the delivery of short-term accommodation options with immediate effective planning of longer term sustainable solutions.”
Lannon also expressed concern that the situation is being “exploited by far-right extremists who seek to sow division to gain political ground”.
Like O’Dwyer, the advisor to the Irish Red Cross, Lannon said the Government needs to ensure there are better “communications are in place at the community level”.
“We need politicians and policymakers to proactively engage with communities in advance of accommodation centres being opened,” said Lannon.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said last week the Irish government is considering stronger border controls may be introduced to prevent people arriving into the country illegally.
Varadkar said that the Government had discussed how they could introduce “more appropriate and more robust” border controls to prevent illegal immigration into Ireland.
He said that the number of refugees arriving into Ireland, both from Ukraine and other countries, was putting the “system under pressure”, particularly around sourcing accommodation.
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