Children begging on Dublin's streets are subject to increasing levels of racism, the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC), said today.
The annual report of the society's Leanbh Service, which specialises in dealing with begging children, found an increase in child begging in the past year.
While there was a 22 per cent fall in the number of children from the Traveller Community begging, the figure of 1,566 sightings in Dublin is reflective of "a significant increase" of Roma children on the streets.
The Leanbh report points out that a tradition of begging stretching back generations exists among many Roma families. "[They] need the money they receive to enable them to live from day to day," it says.
The ISPCC praised the commitment of Traveller Community families despite "great adversity". "The effort and advancements these families are making in an attempt to 'do better' for their children is immense."
Children are being kept in overcrowded and unhygienic living conditions, the report says, expressing concern over the inability of the State's child-protection services to cope with these and other problems.
"Despite the best efforts and commitment of the individual social workers and child care workers working with these children, health board structure and resources are simply not adequate to deal with these issues," it says.
The report also notes "the growing racism many of these children are subjected to on a daily basis and the exploitation of some foreign national girls through arranged marriages."
Ms Tracey Bolger, regional manager of the Leanbh Service said: "There have been instances where rocks have been thrown through windows of people from the Roma Community."
"And Traveller children have been forced to leave school because of the verbal racist abuse they have been subjected to."