Hundreds of migrants live on the streets in Ireland Taiwan Trump seizes power

Because state housing is scarce, several hundred asylum seekers are living on the streets in the EU country of Ireland. More than 500 people – twice as many as in March – could not be accommodated at this time.

That reports the newspaper ‘Irish Times’ Friday. That is also because residents in Inch, West Ireland, are blocking a former hotel that should serve as accommodation. In addition, some hotels have canceled their contracts with the government.

Ireland has hardly any irregular migration as in neighboring Great Britain, where thousands of migrants cross the Channel in small boats. The country accepts asylum seekers under EU agreements. A total of 2,650 people have applied for asylum in Ireland by 2021, according to EU information.

The Irish government is under pressure from various quarters. For example, the UN refugee agency UNHCR criticized Dublin for not fulfilling its obligations. Residents and right-wing conservative circles in turn point out that there is not enough living space for the Irish themselves and that this should be considered first. There have been repeated protests against migrants across the country for months and a tent camp was set on fire a few days ago.

Prime Minister Leo Varadkar strongly criticized the blockade in Inch. At the same time, Integration Secretary Joe O’Brien announced talks with local residents. Local officials feel misinformed and angry that they have been portrayed as far right in the media, O’Brien said. As an offer, he proposed lifting the blockade for four weeks in exchange for no new migrants being accommodated in the hotel for the time being. (oee/sda/dpa)