*Cllr Bill Slattery.
ASYLUM SEEKERS convicted of crimes in Ireland should be deported, the Cathaoirleach of the West Clare Municipal District has claimed.
Following Sunday’s stabbing in Miltown Malbay, Cathaoirleach of the West Clare MD, Cllr Bill Slattery (FG) has called for asylum seekers residing in Ireland convicted of crimes to be deported.
Sunday’s scenes should not be occurring in Miltown Malbay or anywhere in the country, he argued. “My reaction was one of shock, total annoyance and concern that what happened on Sunday evening in broad daylight with one of these individuals carrying a sharp instrument and from my understanding a stabbing took place. From the videos I’ve seen there was an awful lot of blood pouring from the face of one man”.
He continued, “I am also very annoyed that three ambulances were called out and two Garda cars, I’m not sure how many Gardaí were there but if an ambulance is called for a person with a heart attack or a serious injury in West Clare sometimes an ambulance can’t be got and there was three called for this on Sunday and I’m very annoyed that Gardaí had to be pulled off duty from what they were doing to be at this scene”.
According to the Lahinch man, asylum seekers that are found to have committed crimes should be deported as the Irish justice system is already under pressure. “If these individuals are charged for this serious offence, if they are found guilty and convicted then I believe that they should be deported from this country”.
Prisons across Ireland are already full, he said when explaining why he was in favour of deporting. “Our jails are full, we’ve no room for our own prisoners, we were supposed to build a prison in Thornton Hall fifteen years ago in Dublin but that never happened”.
Slattery felt Gardaí were getting frustrated over the “judiciary not doing their job, I don’t know the legislation but there is no regard for law and order in this country from these people, they are costing us a fortune and they should be deported if they are convicted of a crime. I don’t want to label everyone as being a thug like these people in Miltown Malbay because quite a lot of them are working, I know the workforce needs the people because our own have emigrated to Canada, Australia and the United States, I’m saying the ones convicted of crimes should be deported and not kept here at a cost to the tax payer”.
Miltown Malbay’s reputation should not be tainted because of Sunday’s public order incident, he said. “Miltown Malbay is a lovely town, it is a tourist town and it is known all over the world for its traditional music. I wouldn’t like to see Miltown Malbay or the people of Miltown Malbay suffer negative publicity from these four individuals who seem to think they can do what they like in the town of Miltown Malbay. The people of Miltown Malbay are good and law-abiding citizens”.
Better planning needs to be carried out when determining suitable locations for Direct Provision centres, Cllr Slattery said. “I understand all of the men involved are asylum seekers, if you put forty single men into one building and they are there since July 2023 you can imagine there will be fights and disturbances, there has been some scuffles and arrests but nothing like what happened on the streets of Miltown Malbay on Sunday. I think it is unfair that forty residents were put into Miltown Malbay and the same in Lisdoonvarna which has been as good as closed down for tourism and its September festival. We need to be putting these people into urban areas where the facilities are better and there is more services for them to avail of”.
