A Syria-born man (above), who does not wish to be identified, has been living in Ireland for 13 years and was recently reunited with his wife and son when they moved here under a Government reunification scheme.
The man has a business in Cork and is now an Irish citizen.
He spoke with journalist Brian O’Connell on RTÉ Radio One’s Today with Seán O’Rourke yesterday.
He said since his wife arrived, she has been subjected to harassment and abuse and that she hasn’t left her house in several weeks.
“My wife, she says, “if I’m dying in Syria better than being like this situation by racism”. It’s very, very hard for her. She miscarried last week from this. They knock on the door every time, they frighten her, they shout at her when I am not at home, they shout in [through] the door, they throw rocks.”
“Last week, she miscarried from this situation, she was pregnant, you know. She was only five weeks’ pregnant…[After living in Ireland for 13 years] I have had too many [such experiences] but now it’s getting worse… because my [Muslim] wife she has a veil. In this area, I think, they’re not used to see something like this because it’s, I don’t know, strange for them. That’s why it’s so hard, they keep staring at her.”
….Every two or three days, they throw rubbish in my garden, say very bad words to me, very, very bad words. And one neighbour he told me, “Go home to your country, you’re rats, you this, you that”. I don’t want to say it on the radio….”
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