WOMEN WHO HAVE been living in Dundrum House in Tipperary for the past fortnight have described their dismay at the conditions facing them on the site, between hostility from local people and having their lives upended by being forced to move there.
They said the experience of the past two weeks, from being moved with little notice in the early hours, to finding the site barely prepared to shelter them, amounted to it being a “draining and emotionally horrible” experience.
The families described a “fear factor” that has spread throughout many of the new arrivals, in particular feeling that they have been “discriminated against” since arriving at Dundrum House.
When The Journal spoke to a group of women who were moved to the former hotel, they said they fear the potential for an attack on the site, as has happened multiple times across the country, saying there has been little to no security due to vetting issues for staff.
Transport, education and the “safety of children” were all described as being “neglected absurdly” by International Protection Accommodation Services (Ipas).
The news comes as a local protest group was set to meet to discuss the “next phase” of its protests. This is expected to involve an attempt at legal action over the use of the hotel and asylum seekers in the area, but the meeting was also set to discuss whether it needed to change some of the signage used following criticism by a number of groups and individuals.
Dundrum Says No has maintained a picket outside the gates of Dundrum House since May, after locals learned it would house asylum seekers alongside Ukrainians.
While some protesters want to see the hotel brought back to commercial use, others have told The Journal they believe the presence of asylum seekers would make the area “unsafe”.
Human rights group Doras said the situation at Dundrum House was a clear example of how the “basic rights of asylum seekers are not being protected” by the State.
One woman staying in the house described “trying to keep ourselves together emotionally” for their children, “to tell them it is okay, that nothing is going to happen and that we are safe here”.
“We fled from our countries for protection, we arrived in Ireland and have experienced a great warmth from most of the people we have encountered. Everything that has happened with us since leaving where we were living [in Dublin], we had to relive the fear all over again.”
Two weeks ago a group of approximately 70 people seeking international protection, comprising women and children, were housed in the hotel.
The three women who spoke to The Journal came to Ireland from Africa in the past 18 months and are the single mothers of children ranging from 7 to in their teens. They spoke on condition of anonymity.
They have sought for the Department of Integration to allow them to move elsewhere, criticising Ipas for “uprooting” them from the lives they were trying to build for their families in Dublin, where their children had been slowly getting settled into school.
The women who spoke to The Journal also shared distressing experiences suffered by some residents since moving to Dundrum. In one instance, a woman was waiting for a bus in Dundrum village when it’s alleged a passing motorist shouted racial abuse at her.
“The lady was threatened while waiting at the bus stop. She was threatened by people driving past who [swore] at her, telling her ‘we don’t want you here’. It was adults and their children putting their middle fingers up to her,” one of the women told The Journal.
“She actually said she felt better when they were there to harass her. This way, she felt she could have a clear view of what her child’s experience [would be] at school here.”
Overall, they feel there is little prospect for life for them in Dundrum – not just due to the area’s remote location in west Tipperary, but also due to the reception they have received. They are concerned about being able to find jobs in the area, particularly when they were already working in Dublin.
“Those people [the protesters] are complaining about unemployment in the area and then I expect myself to find employment in this place,” one woman said.
“But do I expect those people protesting against me to be the ones to employ me? We are just single mothers with kids. As much as they do not want us here we do not want to be here.”
“We have got people who have been working in Ireland in two years, they had to leave their jobs to come here.”
Two days after the women and children moved into Dundrum House, the Department of Integration discovered that a number of staff employed at the hotel did not have the required vetting to work with people seeking international protection.
The Department told The Journal that Ipas was working with the Garda National Vetting Bureau to “expedite appropriate vetting for all staff” working at Dundrum House.
In the meantime, the Department said that Ipas had “brought existing appropriately vetted staff onto the site” to work directly with families who had been accommodated.
However, people staying at Dundrum House described the feelings of insecurity this sudden gap in services and personnel brought about for them.
They complained of “no security” at the hotel and “no person who to report internal matters” arising for residents.
The lack of security became of particular concern as a number of people gained access to the area where the women and children were staying in apartments, “banging on doors” and trying to disturb the families.
Dundrum Says No has said these incidents were not carried out by its members and said they may have been caused by other people gaining access to the site. Its golf course remains open for locals to use, which the group said was one area that could have been used to gain entry.
One woman said her 7-year-old daughter was distraught by what was happening at the hotel since they moved there.
“My daughter couldn’t sleep, she kept asking why do we have to be here, ‘Why do we have to be here with people who are treating us like this?’.”
Another woman said: “We are trying to keep ourselves together emotionally, to tell them it is okay, that nothing is going to happen and that we are safe here.”
Issues around transport to and from the site, particularly for those who had employment in Dublin, were described as of the “utmost importance” to the families on the site.
This was also to allow people to attend the medical appointments and get necessary care when unwell.
Limerick-based human rights group Doras said that it was seriously concerned after it visited Dundrum House last week.
“Lack of preparation, insufficient trained staff, inadequate security, and poor access to services” are all contributing to the sense of “fear and isolation” for residents, Doras chief executive John Lannon said.
Between children witnessing “daily” abuse and slurs at their parents, and problems with staffing the site, Lannon said it was a clear sign that the for-profit model of provision has “failed asylum seekers in Ireland for 24 years, and is continuing to do so today.”
In a statement to The Journal, the department said Ipas will continue to engage with the management and residents of Dundrum House over the coming weeks.
The spokesperson said the safety and wellbeing of the people seeking international protection is of “paramount importance” to the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth Roderic O’Gorman and his Department.
The statement added that “security is present onsite in Dundrum House twenty four hours a day” and it was working to address a number of concerns aired by residents. This included an ‘Ipas customer service clinic’ held last week.
The department said educational welfare officers from Tusla are currently liaising with the centre’s management and parents to secure school places for all children in the centre.
It added that the Jesuit Refugee Service operates a confidential support helpline for all residents accommodated by Ipas which can handle complaints in confidence. These can be passed on to Ipas “for investigation and resolution”, the department said.
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