Is Ireland on a knife edge?

Is Ireland a powder keg of racist, anti-immigrant sentiment, ready to explode at any moment? That was certainly the dominant storyline after a night of rioting in Dublin city center in November 2023 that left a trail of destruction along O’Connell Street.

On that occasion, politicians and elements of the Irish media were quick to blame far-right provocateurs for stoking tension and this was used as a convenient pretext to stress the importance of introducing the strongest hate speech legislation in the EU. Yet when it emerged that many of the Dublin rioters may themselves have been from an immigrant background, the politicians swiftly moved on to other matters.

But while Teachta Dálas (also known as TDs, the members of the lower house) and ministers can afford to decide which issue is going to concern them on a day-to-day basis, the ordinary people of Ireland don’t have that luxury and with the number of people applying for entry into Ireland increasing by 300 percent in the last five years, tensions are inevitable. 

When Helen McEntee, then justice minister, told people in November that there was absolutely no evidence that asylum seekers or migrants were responsible for an increase in crime, she was sharply reminded that the reason why there is no evidence is because the government refuses to keep official statistics.

Tensions are running particularly high in Dublin, with many locals complaining of feeling increasingly unsafe. That sense of unease was heightened when, on February 15, a Nigerian asylum seeker, Quham Babatunde, was stabbed to death during a mass brawl outside a nightclub popular with African immigrants on the normally sedate South Anne Street, which is situated just off Grafton Street and is only a stone’s throw from the Dail.

This followed an incident in Stoneybatter when a Brazilian immigrant, who has been living in Ireland for the last two years was charged with going on a stabbing spree on an otherwise quiet Sunday afternoon, which further inflamed community tensions. The case is ongoing.

While parts of Dublin remain on a knife edge, the picture isn’t much rosier in rural Ireland where tensions have been stoked by the number of hotels which have been converted into migrant accommodation centers.

In December 2023, the Ross Lake House hotel in Galway was burned down when it emerged that it was being turned into accommodation for asylum seekers. Protests have been ongoing in Newtown Mount Kennedy in Wicklow against plans to turn a former convent into a shelter, and virtually every county in the republic has seen locals rally against local hotels and amenities being converted.

In many areas, the local hotel is at the center of rural life, with weddings and parties held there. One of the main causes for anger has been the perceived lack of transparency about which venues have been chosen for conversion by the department of integration.

The Tipperary TD, Mattie McGrath, recently condemned the department for what he called their “deception” over plans to turn his local hotel, the Kilcoran House, into an International Protection Center. Speaking this week, he said: “It’s such a shame. What really is so upsetting is the denial which took place around this — and now we find out it’s true. It seems that local people were deliberately deceived… It’s a shame and nearly criminal that it would be used now by the present owners for greed, just for greed, not for humanitarian issues, just to make huge money and a quick buck.”

According to the department’s own estimates, there are now around 33,000 asylum seekers receiving shelter in 320 sites around the country. So, with growing concerns about an increase in violence and the decimation of once loved local amenities in favor of providing asylum accommodation, how has the government responded?

Well, to the absolute fury of many, this week saw a “refugee job fair” take place in Croke Park, the home of Irish GAA. It was a co-initiative sponsored by hiring platform Indeed Ireland and the UNHCR. The job fair offered employment opportunities to refugees in traditionally low paid sectors such as hospitality, retail, healthcare and transport. During the event, translation services were provided for refugees who don’t speak English, with the languages on offer ranging from Ukrainian and Russian to Arabic and Farsi.

The head of the UNHCR Irish office, Enda O’Neill, said the initiative was a “game changer” and added: “Refugees and asylum seekers bring the skills, talents, and qualifications that Irish employers need and they’re ready and eager to work.”

The fact that such labor tends to drive wages down and make it simply impossible for many Irish people to earn a living when competing with refugees was conveniently overlooked.

As a pre-condition to taking part in the event, potential employers were required to sign a five-point pledge on their commitment to provide opportunities for refugees and, in return, would receive grants for each one they hired.

With public anger now growing to genuine crisis levels the job fair seems, at best, remarkably tone deaf.

Far from assuaging anger, it would appear that this new government is intent on making the same mistakes as the previous administration.  Never has the phrase “there may be trouble ahead” seemed so appropriate.