A male individual in his twenties has been taken into custody amidst a community assembly at a construction site entrance in Clonmel, Co Tipperary this past Tuesday. The arrest transpired at a construction location for transportable homes that are intended to provide refuge for Ukrainians fleeing the warfare in their country.
There are plans in place for constructing approximately 80 of these modular residences at this site. Over the past few months, there have been various public order occurrences at the premises, primarily due to disagreements about the anticipated plans for the site’s usage.
The implementation of modular homes as dwellings for refugees from Ukraine has been scaled back. The arrested man is currently detained at a police station within the Co Tipperary region in accordance with Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984. In another incident, the tyres of a police patrol vehicle at the same location were deliberately punctured.
The Garda – the Irish police – have verified that inquiries are in progress and they stress their respect for citizens’ constitutional rights. They have however underlined that this respect doesn’t cover infringements of the Criminal Law, interference with other citizens’ day-to-day activities or assaults on police members.
The Gardai deal with developing situations through a step-by-step policing approach, whereby they take into account relevant laws and public safety, resorting to enforcement only as a final measure.