Ireland

Longford convent to no longer be used as refugee centre after attempted arson attack

Lanesboro Convent was due to house 85 Ukrainian refugees but owner has pulled out of contract

The former Sisters of Mercy Convent on Main Street in Lanesboro, Co Longford that was attacked by arsonists. Photograph: Google Maps

Ronan McGreevy
Thu Jan 18 2024 - 11:58

A disused convent in Co Longford will no longer be used as a centre for Ukrainian refugees following an attempted arson attack this week.

Lanesboro Convent was targeted on Tuesday night by suspected anti-immigrant protesters who used accelerant to start the fire.

Longford Fire Brigade doused the flames quickly and there was little damage done to the convent, which is in the middle of the town.

The owner had a contract with the Department of Integration to house 85 Ukrainian refugees, most of them women and children, for two years.

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The arson attack was universally condemned by councillors at the Longford County Council monthly meeting on Wednesday night.

Council chairman Cllr Colm Murray said the owner had already decided to withdraw from the project before the arson attack because of local opposition and the fear that the building would be targeted as other potential refugee sites had been targeted in recent months.

[ 17,000 Ukrainians now in full-time employment in Ireland, TDs told ]

Cllr Murray said Longford has housed more than 1,000 Ukrainian refugees since the war began in February 2022. “They have been well integrated. We have a community forum that meets once a month. The services are complementary of the Ukrainian refugees and the Ukrainians are complementary of things here in Longford,” he said.

“It has worked well to date. What happened on Tuesday night was a disgraceful action altogether.

“There are people in Lanesboro who have genuine concerns about services in the town, but there is a small minority of people who would be encouraging the sort of action that went on on Tuesday night.

“What happened on Tuesday night is not going to prohibit our plans for other spots throughout the county. There is another building in other parts of the country that are scheduled for Ukrainians to move into. That will go ahead.”

Fianna Fáil TD Joe Flaherty, who is a native of Lanesboro, said the suspicion locally is that the arsonists were from outside the community.

The fire was well planned and deliberate and it could have been a “terrible disaster” for the town, he said.

He said Lanesboro has always been a welcoming place going back to the opening of the now defunct peat-burning power station in 1958 which attracting outsiders into the community to live and work.

He pointed out that a former nursing home across the bridge in Co Roscommon is housing 80 Ukrainians without any difficulties.

Mr Flaherty said insurance may now be an issue for the owners of premises that are being offered to accommodate international protection applicants.

As a Government TD, he criticised the communication strategy in relation to the housing of refugees in rural Ireland.

“Communication is very poor. I’m inside the Government and I struggle to get information. I’m struggling to get information for this site and other sites,” he said.

As a result, many locals are operating on the basis of rumours rather than hard facts as to what the plans are for their communities.

“We need to be managing the message better. We are not doing this properly. There is genuine and understandable fears about local services and local access to doctors and dentists and all of that,” he said.

“I don’t think we have become a racist society all of a sudden. As a Government we have to hold our hands up and say we are managing this particularly badly at this moment in time.

“If I’m struggling to get the information, I can only imagine how exasperated by constituents must be in getting information for themselves.”

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Ronan McGreevy

Ronan McGreevy

Ronan McGreevy is a news reporter with The Irish Times

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