‘Despicable acts of violence': Ireland's dy PM meets Indians over recent attacks
In the past few weeks, a taxi driver, a data scientist and a sous chef from India were the targets of racially motivated assaults by Irish youth that left them with serious injuries. Videos have circulated on social media of another tech worker who was beaten, stabbed and partially stripped at Tallaght, while a six-year-old Irish-Indian girl was allegedly attacked while playing outside her home in County Waterford.
'Today, I met representatives of Ireland's [Indian] community. I completely condemn the despicable acts of violence and racism that we have seen against some members of the [Indian] community in recent weeks,' Harris, who is also the foreign minister, said on social media after meeting representatives of the Indian community.
'I want to thank the Indian community for their very positive contribution to [Ireland],' he added.
Ireland's foreign ministry said in a separate social media post that Harris 'committed to continuing to work with Minister for Migration [Colm Brophy], Gardaí and others to support Ireland's migrant communities'.
The Garda or Ireland's state police force is investigating some of the attacks on Indians as possible hate crimes. Harris said on social media last week that Ireland will 'never ever tolerate racism' while thanking the Indian community for 'their contributions to our country in so many ways'.
The number of Indians working in Ireland has grown significantly in recent years and official figures from the Irish government showed there were more than 78,000 Indians in the country in 2023.
A total of 13,500 Indians were granted skilled employment permits by Irish authorities in 2024, accounting for a third of all permits issued.
The Indian embassy in Dublin issued an advisory on August 1 that cautioned Indians to take 'reasonable precautions for their personal safety and avoid deserted areas, especially in odd hours' following an increase in physical attacks on Indian nationals. The Indian envoy in Dublin and the Irish ambassador to New Delhi have been coordinating to tackle the issue.
Indian ambassador Akhilesh Mishra last week thanked Harris for his 'strong message of support to [the] Indian community and against racism', while Irish envoy Kevin Kelly added: 'We will not let racism win.'
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