Attacked Romanians flee Northern Ireland
Tuesday, 23 June 2009 12:00 AM
By politics.co.uk staff
Up to one hundred Romanians have said they will leave Northern Ireland after a recent series of racist attacks.
According to the social development minister, Margaret Ritchie, 25 people had already left and another 75 were planning to return home as soon as they could.
The Housing Executive said it will pay for the air fares out of an emergency fund so the family can return to Romania through emergency legislation.
A church which offered temporary shelter for the 100 Romanians who fled their homes after attacks, was the target of vandalism on Monday night.
City church pastor, Malcolm Morgan said the church in University Avenue, South Belfast was smashed with stones and covered in broken glass.
"I arrived this morning to find windows smashed at the front of our church and our main glass doorway smashed as well," he told the BBC.
"Stones were lying scattered on the floor inside and outside and obviously broken glass was everywhere.
"It would be easy to conclude it was carried out by someone who didn't like our response to the Romanians, but that is only guess work.
"We were just so thrilled that we were able to respond to the Romanian situation and these broken windows wouldn't have stopped us anyway."
Ms Ritchie, the minister for social development, said the attacks were regrettable.
"The action of these mindless thugs greatly contrasts with the outpouring of warmth and generosity demonstrated by the people of Belfast toward the plight of the Romanians," she told the BBC.
"This church community was the first to extend the hand of friendship and that makes it doubly disgraceful that it should be attacked."
She said: "We are not a racist society, but it's now time we took a serious look at ourselves. There is now an urgency and an imperative to build a shared society.
"We live apart. We are educated apart, and therefore it is no surprise that this is a 'them and us' attitude. We have to work to challenge that attitude. There must be total respect for political, religious and ethnic differences."
On Monday, two boys aged 15 and 16 were arrested in connection with provocative behaviour at an anti-racism rally in Belfast and the intimidation of Romanians living in the south of the city.
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