It was welcome to see the Minister for Justice “utterly condemn” the series of hate mail sent recently to some members of the Muslim community in Ireland.
In a statement, Minister Alan Shatter said he was “appalled by the nature of these communications,” adding that “religious intolerance has no place in our society. Incitement to hatred and incitement to violence are offences under our laws.”
The minister also stated that he has brought the matter to the attention of the Garda Commissioner to deal with as a matter of urgency.
While we welcome the minister’s statement, we also believe that common sense must prevail in the fight against hate crime in Ireland.
Over the last few years, various members of the immigrant communities have been targeted in direct hate threats either sent by post or online. There have also been physical attacks. All of this is both sinister and alarming.
And while many of these cases have been reported to Gardaí, it is appalling that seemingly very little is being done to prevent them from reoccurring. Neither, it appears, is Government doing enough to educate the public on the dangers posed by racism and hate crime. That’s not to mention Ireland’s weak legislation on the matter – and no pending plans for its review.
Minister Shatter must realise that issuing such a statement without the legislative action to back it up will do nothing to solve the problem.
