Jonathan Muhwezi speaking at a protest organised by Doras Luimní and the Foynes Asylum Seekers for Change in Limerick last August
Jonathan Muhwezi, a chemist from Uganda, spent nine months in the Mount Trenchard direct provision centre in Foynes, Co Limerick.
He claims he was moved to the Limerick centre to be punished – after he complained about the conditions of the direct provision centre he had been previously been living in, in Newbridge, Co. Kildare.
Colm Ward, from the Limerick Leader, writes:
“’The food was appalling. We had no heating – the place was cold. It is an old building and some of the windows were broken so it could freeze at night. People used to have problems with coughs and flu and all that. There were cameras in the toilets, it was terrible.’”
…
“He was finally transferred from Mount Trenchard last August following a series of protests in the centre by residents over the food and living conditions. He is now living in Westbourne, a centre for single men on the Dock Road.”“Mr Muhwezi also spent time in the former Hanratty’s Hotel in Limerick city, now a direct provision centre. There, he claimed, he had to share a room with two men, one of whom was a heroin addict. ‘I was sharing a room with a fellow from West Africa, a Muslim, and another one who was a junkie – he had a heroin problem. He was shooting heroin and there were needles everywhere. The management knew about it but they couldn’t do anything about it.’”
Asylum seeker: ‘I was sent to Mount Trenchard as punishment’ (Limerick Leader)
Previously: Meanwhile, In Limerick
In fairness what did he expect?
Ireland of the Welcomes
Private ‘humanitarian’ businesses such as these aren’t doing it for the good of the unfortunate souls that are sent there by government partners – the owners need to pay for their Range Rovers somehow.
Is this protracted misery really necessary?
Only if we feel the need to keep the lizards fed on their chosen delicacy of off-season mayfly.
unfortunate souls, about 2% of them. the rest are economic refugees.
Citation needed
look around you. talk to them.
The main issue is the length of time is takes to process an asylum application. The govt could help all concerned (apart from those profiting from “housing” these people) if it passed legislation removing the ability of failed asylum seekers to seek endless appeals. The length some spend in the system creates the ridiculous situation whereby generations are growing up in these asylum seeker centres, and results in an increasing pressure to end the direct provision system. People would not have to spend so long in direct provision, in appalling conditions, if their cases were resolved more quickly, but I guess then how would legal profession and those housing the asylum seekers profit?
+1 (for common sense)
if i don’t believe him , am i racist?
No, you would just be ignorant.
Hey don’t dismiss him like that. He might be racist too.
you know I don’t know if i’m racist.
I haven’t plugged into my righteous – guardian-meter in a while.
I’ll do so now , post haste and beat myself till I reach non-bigot status!
No, you are being let down by the media (in this instance, BS) for not getting the other side of the story. I’m guessing Dept of Justice would deny an asylum seeker would be punished for making reasonable complaints.
Why don’t you contact them and get back to us.
Whatever about the heroin addict, being stuck in there with the Muslim was not on.
Was there really a camera in the toilet – that doesn’t really sound plausible.
That’s what I thought, the idea that you would be video-ed defecating sounds incredible (as in, “not true”).
There may be cameras in common parts of a group toilet, but not in the private cubicles themselves. Wouldn’t make any sense. If you want to shoot up heroin, then you could do it under a duvet cover.
You might be interested in last week’s edition of the State Gazette which recorded around 10,000 foreign born individuals being granted Irish citizenship in January 2014.
http://www.irisoifigiuil.ie/currentissues/ir030415.PDF
Ireland has a fair and decent asylum application system. Foreigners who have no right to be here and whose asylum application has been rejected by a fair and decent system, should be deported.
10,000 is alot for a nation of our size….
Ireland is tiny, what are you on about?
There are a few unsavoury types hanging out on O Connell st these days… Nothing good about them, and they’re not from Leitrim..
That’s a dreadful way to talk about youth defence
Well – some asylum seekers have made a very good life for themselves here…there is a very dodgy Nigerian all sorts shop (hair cuts, TV/computers/phone repair in Corduff, Blanchardstown…some very tasty cars coming and going…151 top of the range 5 series BMW’s etc….*shakes fist at lost opportunity :-)
What are you rambling about? If you really had any notion of criminal activity going on, you’d report them.
on a serious note, a man flees uganda, why?, and doesn’t apply for asylum in the first eu country he arrives in, why?
he then complains because a bankrupt country feeds, houses and clothes him.
He should show some gratitude or leave, maybe go to a war free safe African country such as ……uganda?