The Sanctuary Runners rejects the claim by Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan, as reported in today’s Irish Times, that an increase in the number of people seeking international protection in Ireland ‘will lead to a breakdown in social cohesion’.
The solidarity-through-sport initiative would like to extend an invitation to the Minister to join them at any one of their 40 groups across Ireland on any Saturday morning to see what true inclusion looks like in Irish society.
The organisation once again calls for the new long overdue community integration strategy, which the Government committed to in its own programme for Government, to help maintain and achieve greater social cohesion.
Anna Pringle, CEO of Sanctuary Runners said: “Since 2018 Sanctuary Runners has worked with communities across Ireland to bring people together in solidarity, friendship and respect. Over 40,000 people have taken part in our activities since we began, with a third of that figure made up of people who are, or were, seeking international protection. Every week we see people coming together respectfully regardless of their nationality or legal status. To suggest that asylum seekers are a threat to social cohesion is to completely overlook the fact that by bringing people together barriers can be overcome and community integration can thrive. We can build better, more respectful and cohesive societies with energy and positivity.”
She continued: “This is being done despite the fact that for five years now the state has had no community integration strategy. If the Government wants to maintain social cohesion and make communities more resilient, we believe that what’s needed is a strategy within which everyone in the country has the opportunity to play their part.”
Sanctuary Runners is also concerned with comments made by Minister O’Callaghan on the Irish Times Inside Politics Podcast that his focus is on a “national migration strategy” and not a community integration strategy.
“We are concerned that the focus is on managing migration numbers and not on developing strong, sustainable, resourced and informed integration strategies to strengthen social cohesion for the benefit of all,” said Pringle.
