Protestors in Arklow march for transparency as centre for Ukrainians confirmed

Hundreds of concerned Arklow residents took to the streets on Saturday afternoon to demand answers on plans for a disused property which is reported to have been earmarked as refugee centre for Ukrainians.

Organised by the ‘Arklow Says No’ group, the peaceful protest began outside the old Eir depot building at the Croghan Industrial Estate – where an offer was recently confirmed by the government to house Ukrainian Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection – before the march proceeded through the seaside town to the bandstand.

There, speakers demanded more transparency, highlighting the lack of housing in Arklow and its surrounds, and the possibility of undocumented, single males being housed at the site – echoing sentiments displayed on banners carried by protestors, which read ‘House the Irish’ and ‘No unvetted males near our schools or homes’.

Ahead of the protest, a post on the ‘Arklow Says No’ social media page stated: “Today is the day we stand for our right to information about our own land.

“This land is of the people of Arklow, and with only peace and respect that we want to know what plans for our buildings are.

“We hope to see all who are concerned and all who actually don’t know what to think and hope you get some peace. We encourage you to talk to one another and hear each other stories – we all have struggles and concerns.

“No one has a problem with immigration – we live with, go to schools with, drink with, shop with all foreign nationals – but we are concerned for mass immigration into our small town of unvetted men,” the post continued.

“We have no hate or anger in our hearts, only love and concern for our loved ones.”

Posting after the Saturday march, an ‘Arklow Says No’ organiser praised those in attendance for their display of solidarity, writing: “Great day, great turnout, very emotional hearing how everyone is struggling.

“Very proud to see so many people coming together.”

The march on Saturday marked a week of action by Arklow residents that has seen protestors stationed outside the old Eir building on a daily basis.

A GoFundMe page has been established in support of protestors to purchase tea flasks, coffees and posters, which has raised €1,100 so far.

Reacting to the Arklow protests, Wicklow Sinn Féin TD John Brady expressed his frustration at the failure of the government to put in place a “fair, efficient, and enforced emigration system”, noting that the current approach is not working, failing both refugees and local communities.

“For decades, here in Wicklow and across the state, we have been forced to witness the erosion of the very fabric of our communities, as the government has overseen continual cutbacks to services within local communities as they have prioritised tax breaks for the property developer friends,” Mr Brady said.

“I want to be clear; this state has both legal and moral obligations to provide to provide sanctuary for people fleeing war, fleeing murder, torture and rape, and grave repression. These obligations are laid out very clearly under international law.

“Yet, we have a government who have approached the whole situation in an ad-hoc, willy-nilly fashion. With the assumption that they foist their failures on local communities – and that would be that.

“This has led to an ill-thought-out dispersal of refugees across the state, leading to many areas reaching a saturation point in terms of the numbers of people in a given community who are attempting to cope with run down and, in many instances, barely workable local services.

“Last weekend, hundreds of people marched in Arklow to protest at this government failure,” he added.

“The vast majority of these people are not racists. They are simply in a state of fear and frustration at what they see as their abandonment by the government.

“I believe in our local communities. I believe that our people have proven their compassion and kind-heartedness in the manner in which they have reached out and attempted to integrate refugees across Wicklow.

“We see in areas like Carnew, where there is a whole new community integrated into the area by locals. But the government, having failed to conduct an audit of the needs of refugees or the local community, effectively abandoned both the community and the refugees.

“Because of the failure of government, there is a lot of genuine anxiety within local communities as to how these issues have been handled.

“Communities are asking that they are informed if something is happening in their community, that they’re given notice and also that they get commitments to the types of resources for basic things like seeing the doctor or having a place in a school.”

Addressing the situation in Arklow, Mr Brady said that Minister Joe O’Brien had confirmed that responsibility in relation to the property in question had been given to Minister Darragh O’Brien’s Department of Housing for determination as to whether it would be suitable for accommodation for Ukrainians.

Some light was also shed on the potential plans for the disused property last week when Arklow Councillor Miriam Murphy enquired if she could see the details of a fire certificate application currently lodged in association with the building.

In the correspondence later issued to local representatives, Arklow MD staff revealed that the application is for a change of use of existing telecommunications premises into residential (guest building) for living accommodation for Ukraine refugees and that further information has been requested by the Fire Service, with no response having been received as yet.

The application describes the buildings as Building A: to provide accommodation for 99 persons in 40 bedrooms, two-storey existing building; Building B: kitchen/dining area, existing single-storey building; Building C: kitchen/dining area, existing single-storey building; Building D: kitchen/dining area, existing single storey building.

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