The vast majority of Ireland’s ethnic minorites believe the Government and the Garda are not doing enough to combat racism, according to a survey by Amnesty International.
The survey of ethnic minority attitudes to racism in Ireland,
Racism in Ireland: The Views of Black and Ethnic Minorities
, was done by FAQs research in association with Dr Steven Loyal and Dr Aogán Mulcahy of University College Dublin for Amnesty International's Irish Section in June and July 2001.
Over 600 people from a wide range of ethnic minorities living all over the country were interviewed for the survey.
The survey, published today, said one in four members of the ethnic community had been the victim of gardai racism and that over 60 per cent believe those who commit racist acts will not be brought to justice.
In what Amnesty says is the first ever large-scale survey of its kind in Ireland, the report also says the vast majority of respondents had experienced racism from the public.
"By any standards these are staggering findings," said Mr Seán Love, Director of Amnesty's Irish Section. "Ethnic minorities living in Ireland have little faith in the Government to deliver on anti-racism programmes," he said.
"This week, at the UN World Conference on Racism in South Africa, Minister John O'Donoghue said the government intends 'to ensure racism and racist tendencies do not gain a foothold'. The truth is that racism clearly already has a foothold in Ireland, and continuing complacency simply invites trouble," said Mr Love.
"Strong Government leadership has been absent in this area for too long," he said. Mr Love also called for a question on ethnicity to be included in the upcoming census.