Multicultural picnic uniting migrants and Irish in Dublin this Saturday July 22nd

by swpwatch Sun Jul 23, 2006 02:40

Anybody report on this, who conjured this up.

by jane Sun Jul 23, 2006 04:42

Hope the picnic went well and its aims of mutual understanding and solidarity between the diverse groups in Ireland were met. Just one point.

You said the purpose of the picnic was to bring 'local Irish and migrants together' - sounds like a good idea, to promote understanding between people of different cultures.

you also said the purpose was to counter myths being spread about 'asylum seekers and immigrants'. Migrants and asylum seekers are very distinct categories of people, you speak of these groups as if they are one and the same.

you say 'Asylum seekers only get €19 a week. They are fleeing war and torture'. It appears that a gross generalization is being perpetuated here, perhaps even a myth. Most asylum seekers claim to be fleeing persecution of some type, sometimes war and or torture. However, if you look at the figures you will see that after investigations, only a small minority of those claiming these things are found to be genuine.

It is generalizations such as these which discredit the otherwise worthy sentiment behind events such as the above.

by swpwatch Sun Jul 23, 2006 05:10

“We are trying to say the problems with housing and the health system are not due to migrants but decades of underfunding by successive governments.”

http://breakingnews.iol.ie/news/story.asp?j=189866698&p...674x4

Rory Hearne, one of the organisers from the People Before Profit Alliance, said the picnic would help combat demands being made by some people that it was time now, given the census statistics, to reduce the number of immigrants coming here.

Do we really want to encouage agencies to bring in low paid workers?

by Joe O'Connor Thu Aug 03, 2006 14:55

Very noble idea bringing the communities together. Integration is vital between indigeneous and immigrants. I appreciate you trying something.

Also agree with Jane that it must not be claimed that all asylum seekers are genuine.
Also I disagree completely with people like SWP who believe we shouldn't have any immigration barriers and no one should be deported.

Even Afganistan has a deportion policy (for Christians):

Afghanistan to Deport All Korean Evangelicals

Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai has ordered the “complete expulsion” of all Koreans who went there to take part in a “peace march” organized by an evangelical organization, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday. Lee Joon-kyu, the ministry’s director general in charge of consular affairs, told KBS radio that Kabul informed the Korean Embassy of the decision on Tuesday.
A group of 35 Koreans who arrived at Kabul airport on Tuesday were the first to be stopped. A source with the Institute of Asian Culture and Development, a coalition of evangelical groups sponsoring the event, claimed a few Koreans were injured when Afghan police wielded metal clubs to subdue them, but a Foreign Ministry official quoted a staffer who was present as saying no one was struck, and one individual suffered an abrasion when they resisted.

http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200608/2006....html

So not sure about it clearing up misunderstandings of the Afghans in fact one of the church occupiers has already been arrested in Britain as he had attempted to claim asylum in two juristrictions