Cork-founded group says change is needed to better integrate migrants

Cork-founded movement Sanctuary Runners has issued a document to all political parties requesting that the expired ‘Migrant Integration Strategy’ be replaced by a ‘Community Integration Strategy’.

The national not-for-profit movement, which uses running and walking to achieve community integration, has said that they believe a change of approach is urgently needed to better integrate migrants into society across the country.

“The ‘Migrant Integration Strategy’ puts the onus on the migrant to integrate and failure to do so is down to them,” said Michael Darragh Macauley, CEO of Sanctuary Runners.

“This is unrealistic, unfair and places no responsibility on the wider community.

“The reality is that integration is a two-way street and a national policy on integration needs to reflect that – both in name and direction.”

Frustration

Expressing frustration over the last integration strategy, which expired at the end of 2021, Mr Maccauley said: “The targets set out in the last plan looked great on paper, but in practice, few of the objectives ever left the page.

“A national strategy needs to have teeth – otherwise, without accountability, we allow a vacuum to develop in Irish society.

“We need to find ways to bring people together in communities across Ireland, [and] initiatives such as Sanctuary Runners do this, but there needs to be a state-led strategy of community bridge-building.”

Consultation

In late 2023, a consultation process was launched by the Department of Integration to seek input from a cross section of society for a new strategy. However, Sanctuary Runners founder Graham Clifford said that based on feedback from this process, the Government needs to change its approach.

“The huge majority of community integration that happens in Ireland at the moment is achieved and championed by volunteers and civic society on the ground, but still so many people are isolated, overlooked, not heard or included because of their nationality, legal status, ethnicity, religion or culture.

“If you really want to build social cohesion and resilient communities across Ireland, you need to broaden the focus of the integration plan.”

Committing to their appeal for change, a group from Sanctuary Runners will meet with politicians on January 15 in Dublin, and gather outside Leinster House to make their call.