Danny Healy-Rae Urges Better Refugee Care, Defends Catholic Tradition
Danny Healy-Rae spoke on concerns about refugee accommodation, community integration and the protection of the Catholic religion. He said he believes "all lives matter", including the unborn, criticised the direct provision system and pressed the minister and the incoming Dáil to act.
Black Lives Matter and 'all lives'
He referenced recent media coverage and said his family had raised the point that while "black lives matter" is said, he believes "all lives matter," including "the small unborn babies". He reiterated that people of every nationality, breed or colour "all matter" and praised Ireland for by and large not being racist.
Refugee accommodation and direct provision
He criticised the direct provision system as "wrong," describing overcrowded rooms with up to six beds and poor living conditions. He said the system should only house the number of refugees that can be properly cared for and warned it remains "very bad" despite some improvements.
Hotel in Carl Savin criticised
He called the hotel in Carl Savin inadequate, saying hallways and rooms were "too small and too narrow" and that there was no dedicated open-air space for children. He warned the arrangements had caused problems when people presented with coronavirus in the centre and asked the minister to close it down.
Local community and schools
He welcomed long-term immigrant residents, citing a Bangladeshi community in Killarney who he said have become Irish citizens and contribute to the town and county. He also described diversity in local schools, naming examples where many nationalities attend small rural schools.
Religion and equal treatment for Catholics
He said he appreciates all religions and none, but objected to what he sees as members in the chamber making little of the Catholic religion. He urged incoming Dáil members to ensure the Catholic religion receives the same treatment as other faiths and for children of Catholic origin to receive equal treatment in schools.
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Ceann Comhairle, I'm glad to get the opportunity to say a few words on this topic here today because as we all know there's been a lot in the media and the television over the last number of weeks and I suppose I'll start off by saying because my own youngsters at home pointed out to me where they were saying that black lives matter, we believe that all lives matter, Ceann Comhairle and even the small unborn babies that we fought so hard for here in this chamber, they matter too and all people all around the world, whatever nationality and whatever breed or colour they are, they all matter, Ceann Comhairle, and we all agree with that and I'm glad to say that here in Ireland, by and large, we're not racist, we welcome people from all over the world and and treat them the same as ourselves and even we'll say in Killarney, we have a Bangladeshi community and many of them now, they're there for 20 or 21 or 22 years, they're Irish citizens now and they work and they work in the community, they work around the town, they work around the county and they're proud to be part of our community and I'm glad to say that I appreciate them and I appreciate their work and their contribution that they make to life in Killarney and around Kerry. I suppose in relation to the refugees that we bring in here to direct provision, I have been saying for years, Minister, that system is wrong and when you see a whole family inside the room and I have seen that, six beds together, shoved in together inside the room, that's not a healthy atmosphere for parents or children or children or who have to, they're actually standing on each other's toes, maybe it's not exactly as bad as it was four or five years ago but it's still very bad and very wrong and very wrong and I'm saying to minister that we should only be alone the amount of refugees in here that we could care for properly and when we see what's happening down in Carl Savin and I'm asking you again Minister, I don't know if we'll be here the next day, I wish you the very best in any case, but I'm appealing to the hotel in Carl Savin is not adequate, the hallways, the rooms too small and too narrow, there's no open air space there of its own so it's not fair and children that they can't hop around and do as children would do in the open air on a fine day and we've had a lot of fine days and they were cooped up or else they had to go down the town and there was problems with that when people presented with the coronavirus in the centre. So I'm asking you for once and for all again Minister to close it down. Schools, schools, we have many schools around our county, in Killarney, Valley Kashin, maybe 40 foreign denominational children from different countries in that school alone and take a small school like Kahle, at one time there were 13 different children from 13 different nationalities in that school, that's only a couple of years ago, I don't know how many is there now. What's very important and I have to say that here today, I appreciate everyone's type of religion and none, whatever religion people have, I appreciate that, but I don't want anyone to make little of our religion, the Catholic religion, and that has been happening even here inside by members of this chamber in the last hall anyway, and I regret that because I appreciate that because I appreciate that other people have other views and other religions and that's fine with me, but we must be allowed to carry on our tradition and the religion that we were brought up in without fear or favour. And I'm asking the members of the incoming dal to ensure that our religion gets the same treatment as every other religion, the children of Catholic origin going into schools that they get the same treatment that other children are getting. It has turned full circle and we have to ensure to see after our own.
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