Two weeks ago the Irish Independent alleged that the “shocking boasts” of a Polish woman dubbed ‘Magda’ in an interview with Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza had “ignited another debate on welfare tourism”.
It was quickly established that the Irish Independent story was based on an inaccurate translation of the woman’s original words, which completely distorted her account of her everyday life and aspirations. Not only did the Irish Independent reporters misconstrue the content of the original interview, they fabricated the very controversy they described.
The journalists didn’t claim that Magda’s alleged behaviour and attitude was typical of Polish migrants or immigrants living in Ireland generally – but they didn’t have to. The widespread perception of welfare tourism by ‘undeserving’ migrants allowed media and political players to accept the misinterpreted story as factual.
The character of Magda allowed the writers of the article to breathe life into a stereotype, and the very familiarity of that stereotype gave the story enough validation that neither the reporters nor editors felt compelled to provide any additional evidence to support the accusation of welfare tourism.
Such stories don’t just damage individuals – they have the potential to spoil the reputation of a sector of the community and to fuel social tensions. Yet communities have no recourse to the law to vindicate their reputation; generally only the very wealthy can take the legal route under the Defamation Act because of the risk of liability for the costs incurred.
For Gaia Kowalik, the real woman behind the Magda story, the inaccurate translation of her words and the framing of her story in terms of welfare tourism was a very distressing experience. Although a pseudonym was used, she was clearly identifiable to those who knew her due to the information about her circumstances, not because of the words attributed to her. Happily, Gaia has able to take up her right of reply in the media and to present her side of the story in her own words.
But it is very hard to undo the damage caused by the repetition of such falsified stories. Some commentators acknowledge that Gaia was misquoted but remain steadfast in the belief that there are plenty of actual Magdas out there.
For example, a letter published in the Irish Independent last week argued: “The original interview might have been lost in translation... but it does highlight the facts on why some others are more than happy to be unemployed”. Regardless that this particular instance of sensationalism has been exposed, the notion of widespread welfare exploitation by unscrupulous migrants will continue to circulate as urban myth.
Meanwhile, the Irish Independent has admitted only that “some parts of the original interview were inaccurately translated”. Its brief statement ignored the fact that the writers failed to adhere to reasonable standards of journalism by selectively reporting and embellishing quotes, deliberately stoking controversy by framing them in terms of welfare tourism. It also completely disregarded the impact on the woman involved, the potential ramifications for Polish residents in Ireland and the wider migrant community.
It fell to Polish Ambassador Marcin Nawrot to remind us of to the massive contribution that so many thousands of Polish women and men have made to Irish society and the Irish economy over the last decade or more. That puts into sharp relief the skewed, resentful version of modern Irish life presented in the Irish Independent.
Karen McHugh is the director of Doras Luimni, a Limerick-based NGO.
