Comment: Extending the hand of friendship

A fractious meeting held last week in the local GAA hall where there was standing room only heard from many in the locality who had fears and reservations about an influx of international protection applicants into Moynalvey, one of the most remote parts of the county.

Most of the ire was directed at the government department tasked with the thankless job of trying to find suitable accommodation for these families and the lack of information around that process with the Moynalvey accommodation provider being the conduit for much of that flak.

And right they were too to have such concerns. After all, Dorey's Forge as it was known and more recently, Shank's Mare pub, sits on a remote junction in Moynalvey, with just a scattering of houses around it. There is no bus route, no shops, and Summerhill, the nearest village is over 3km away.

The issue of accommodating international protection applicants and asylum seekers has been highly contentious. Numerous communities across the country have had to deal with the arrival of families in need of refuge and in many cases the hand of friendship has been slow to extend.

That does not appear to be the case in Moynalvey.

Since the meeting last Tuesday, a reception committee has been established to coordinate the arrival of 29 asylum seekers at the former Dorey's Forge property, while a number of local organisations have also pledged their support.

The owner of the property, Michael Corcoran has pledged to be "hands on" managing the accommodation as a community run endeavour. The wraparound supports that concerned locals have appear to be falling into place. Shuttle buses will run to Summerhill in the mornings and afternoon while the Dept of Integration has pledged that GP and child and adult mental health services will be available.

Members of the public have already been in touch via the reception ctte asking if the new members of the parish need donations and offering their support.

Most importantly, the flow of misinformation or disinformation in the community appears to have been kept to a minimum allowing the community to ask the hard questions and get the answers they need. That process will be ongoing.

The truth of all this will be seen in the coming days and weeks as the new guests arrive and settle in. But it does show that a community working together, without the interference of dark outside forces and with the correct supports in place, can make a difficult situation work. We'll watch this space.