Over the past weekend, the Phibsborough community in Dublin demonstrated a strong sense of unity in response to the arrival of a group of asylum-seeking men from Palestine, Jordan, Afghanistan and Somalia. The men had previously been residing at the Phoenix Park but were relocated to the north Dublin suburb due to the intervention of the gardaí and the Office of Public Works staff on last Friday.
Upon their arrival, local residents organised a flurry of support through community-led WhatsApp groups, coordinating to provide the men with food and supplies. They also arranged for residents to keep the men company, ensuring their safety from anti-immigrant hostilities. The altruism extended to several residents offering their homes for bathroom and shower use and cafes and businesses followed suit.
The local advocacy group, Phibsboro For All, issued a statement acknowledging that the men’s accommodation in tents in a predominantly residential area is a less than ideal circumstance. They emphasised the nation’s duty to provide suitable shelter and support to those seeking asylum. The group further expressed that the responsibility has largely been borne out by charitable organisations and volunteers. The community’s collective response to the crisis has been praised as “fantastic,” with locals extending warm welcomes, ensuring cleanliness at the site and providing meals.
The gardaí were called to the encampment last Saturday night in response to a racial and violent incident led by a group of hooded men targeting the asylum seekers. Although no arrests were made, by Monday morning, secured indoor accommodation had been organised for 10 of the men.
Last week’s events followed the relocation of the men, amongst a larger group of approximately 60 international protection applicants, from their initial encampment at Charlemont Place due to further intervention from gardaí. In response, further metal fencing was erected along the Grand Canal and Waterways Ireland has declared that such measures will remain in place until October.
As per the most recent governmental data, approximately 2,353 male asylum seekers currently lack permanent housing. Throughout the past week, approximately 61 individuals, encompassing men, women and children landed each day in Ireland in a bid for asylum. This results in a total of 429 new arrivals for the week concluding on the 7th of July. This is significantly more than the habitual daily average of 32 during the matching week in 2023.
Recent weeks have seen a prominent upsurge in the amount of refugees from Palestine arriving from Jordan in the hope of getting asylum, additionally, every week a small quantity ranging in the tens are coming from countries including Nigeria, Somalia and Afghanistan.