A Garda analysis has found that the data in Garda systems shows there has been no significant increase in assaults on Indians living in Ireland.
The analysis was carried out to see if recent attacks which had received considerable media attention were “part of a growing trend”, the Irish Times reported.
While “Garda systems do not allow for easy recording of crime victims’ ethnicity”, having combed through the data, Gardaí “determined there had been no significant increase in Indians living in Ireland being so targeted”, crime correspondent Conor Pope said.
Multiple media reports have focused on stories of attacks on Indians living in Ireland after a man was attacked by a group of teenagers who falsely accused him of acting inappropriately around children before he was badly assaulted.
Other stories that have garnered significant attention include an attack on an Indian national, data scientist Dr Santosh Yada, who was walking home from having dinner with a friend when he was assaulted by a gang of youths in West Dublin on 27th July, leaving him with a fractured cheekbone.
An Indian tax-driver says he was hit with a bottle in Ballymun by two men who shouted at him: “Go back to your country”. A 6 year-old girl was also allegedly hit with a bicycle and punched by boys who told her: “Go back to India.”
The Indian embassy in Dublin issued a statement claiming that “there has been an increase in the instances of physical attacks reported against Indian citizens in Ireland recently”, adding that it advised Indian to “take reasonable precautions for their personal security and avoid deserted areas, especially in odd hours”.
Gardaí told the Irish Times that “there has been an increase in racially motivated attacks in recent years. These range from abuse and intimidation to serious assaults.”
However, there is little statistical evidence to show Indian nationals are being singled out, gardaí say.
Sources told the paper that while racism is a motive in at least some attacks, “Indians living in Ireland have no more reason to feel afraid than they did a few months ago”.
AGS added that they wanted to assure member of the Indian community that they urge any person who is attacked to come forward, and that their case will be met with compassion and treated seriously.
Earlier today, the HSE issued a statement condemning “all incidents of racist abuse and assaults”, and stating that the operation of Ireland’s health services would be “seriously threatened” without international workers.
Chief People Officer of the HSE, Anne Marie Hoey said that the HSE “unequivocally condemns all incidents of racist abuse and assaults of people from abroad, their families and the wider community”.
In a press release accompanying the statement, it’s stated that 15 percent of the entire HSE workforce is made up of international workers.
Healthcare professionals from India, Africa and other Asian countries account for 23 percent of HSE nurses and midwives, it reads.