Sir, – When the collective shock of last week’s riot has abated somewhat, it would be an appropriate response if doughty Dubliners made it a point to go into the city centre in great numbers and reclaim their streets. It would be a travesty if there were any implication that the majority of decent Dubliners were being intimidated from visiting and enjoying the centre of their capital city by a small cabal of troublemakers. In addition, a conscious effort to allocate a goodly portion of the Christmas spend to city centre traders would be a heartening display of solidarity and support for businesses that have endured waves of disruption, harassment and loss for many years. – Yours, etc,
PASCHAL HOULIHAN,
Dooradoyle,
Limerick.
Sir, – I see An Garda Síochána has borrowed two water cannon from the PSNI. How about a few of those armoured Land Rovers as well, just in case things get ugly? It’s coming to something when an establishment which makes such liberal noises arms itself against its citizens. – Yours, etc,
PAUL GRIFFIN,
St Helens,
Merseyside,
UK.
Sir, – The Garda Commissioner deserves our total support. Nothing that has happened last week gives any reason whatsoever to demand his resignation. He is doing an excellent job and calling on him to resign is playing into the hands of the right-wing lobby, and into the hands of those in his own force who do not support him and are working against him.
On the other hand, I think Minister for Justice Helen McEntee should consider her position. Repeatedly, this Minister has seemed to be totally at odds with reality, and demonstrates that she has no idea at all about what is happening. Time and again, her public utterances have more to do with trying to impress her own party than acting as a Government Minister with a responsibility to all the citizens of this country. Time to go. – Yours, etc,
T GERARD BENNETT,
Bunbrosna,
Co Westmeath.
Sir, – As a very regular visitor to Dublin from the northwest, my travel options are bus from Ballyshannon to Busáras or train from Sligo to Connolly. The train trip invariably involves menacing visits from various anti-social interlopers boarding and disembarking anywhere between Ballymote and Enfield. Arriving at Busáras or Connolly Station involves encountering reception committees of vagrants, drunks, beggars and drug users at all exits, escalators, stairwells and toilets. The next stage of my journey takes me on the Luas to the Four Courts Quarter where the carriages are controlled by individuals who strive to make eye contact and provoke conflict. The quality of attention given to a working day in the capital is challenged and compromised in anticipation of the potential hazards that may be encountered on the journey home. The town I once loved so well is, sadly, not a very pleasant or welcoming place to visit anymore. – Yours, etc,
CORMAC MEEHAN,
Bundoran,
Co Donegal.
Sir, – Minister for Justice Helen McEntee is quoted as saying, “it’s so important that people feel safe in our town and in our cities right across this country” (News, November 26th).
Is she only getting this now? – Yours, etc,
RONAN FOSTER,
Dublin 16.
Sir, – I was shocked and saddened by the terrible events taking place last Thursday but I wanted to take this opportunity to thank some wonderful people. I was stuck waiting at a bus stop and a very generous family kindly rescued me and gave me a lift home. And I would also like to thank the person who was checking that people knew of the situation unfolding and were making sure that people were safe.
People are good. I volunteer in a charity shop and I regularly see the goodness in people, through the work of the other volunteers and the generosity of those that donate and also those that make purchases.
People are good, and we will recover from these terrible events, together. – Yours, etc,
DECLAN MURPHY,
Dublin 6W.
Sir, – In the wake of the Dublin riot, it is laughable watching the liberal middle classes now scrambling for law and order, something they didn’t give one infinitesimal damn about when violence was something that only happened to rough people with broad accents from the inner city. It is much more sinister watching their atavistic, though entirely predictable, demands for censorship and increased suppression of free speech to counteract the “far right”. There is no “far right” in this country, something every journalist, commentator and politician knows perfectly well, and it is sickening hearing them repeat this mantra ad nauseam as though it were some magical formula: shout it loud enough and repeat it often enough and it will become “the truth” by osmosis. In reality, what we’re actually witnessing from our chattering classes is the utter disgust they have always held in their hearts at the very existence of the native urban poor of this country. They just think now is a good time to let it all out. The north inner city of Dublin has been devastated by drugs, poverty and unemployment for 40 years, and the Irish State and the permanent hereditary caste which crew its administrative organs have been co-conspirators in the sociological warfare that has been waged upon its inhabitants, quite simply because they hate these people with an unreasoning rage. They simply despise them with every atom of their bodies. They care absolutely nothing for their health and welfare, and every action of the State has imparted that knowledge to the people of this area across four decades. I’m staggered it took so long for something like this to happen. – Yours, etc,
DAVID SMITH,
Swords,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – At some point somebody will suggest an educational programme to counter the propaganda of the far right and promote inclusion. But nobody will ask what it must be like to educate many of those people who rioted on Thursday night. They all intersected with the education system at some point. There hasn’t been a serious debate about school discipline in 20 years, and Ireland is near the bottom for OECD education spending. Before we even think of dumping another programme on our education system, let’s have a serious talk about the matters above. The education system is simply not fit to deal with the types of students who go on to riot on our streets, and that is in no way denying them individual responsibility. Let’s not do another shiny leaflet that’s not backed up with serious investment and a look at how schools are forced to tolerate thuggery daily. – Yours, etc,
WILLIAM LYNCH,
Bray,
Co Wicklow.
Sir, – Urban street violence is not uncommon in the world’s cities. It can arise from a variety of factors – political, social, criminal and sometimes all three. By definition, it is uncertain where it will appear. Security authorities usually know who the dangerous groups are, maybe multiples of them, but who will attack where, when and how is hard to predict.
The classic example was the assault on the US Capitol building in Washington by the Trump supporters in January 2020. They caught everybody by surprise and overwhelmed the police. And this in a country and city where official security is so intense.
The strategy must be twofold – work on rapid response systems to react to changing circumstances and strengthen legal deterrents to wrongdoers. This should be the focus of future reviews. – Yours, etc,
BRIAN CALLANAN,
Limerick.
Sir, – I would like to take issue with politicians and the media. There are no far-right political parties in Ireland. There are a few small parties who don’t want more uncontrolled immigration, and a bunch of yobs. The former would never dream of committing the acts of larceny and vandalism we saw last week. The media and the Government are tarring the two with the same brush. I personally will be voting for any party with a reasonable plan to control immigration. – Yours, etc,
JOHN BYRNE,
Dublin 16.
Sir, – The support for the victims expressed by politicians across the spectrum, regardless of party affiliations, in the immediate aftermath of the attacks, was a beacon of hope amid the harrowing events. What a pity this solidarity was shattered by a rush to score political points when the thuggery and riots unfolded! The extreme right must be delighted to see how quickly and easily this solidarity could be sacrificed to gain a perceived political advantage. – Yours, etc,
MICHAEL DENNY,
Delgany,
Co Wicklow.