Waterford housing union calls for end of relocation evictions
The day of action took place on June 14 in Waterford
Just months after housing union, ‘Community Action Tenants Union’ (CATU) Waterford, helped to pause the mass eviction of families in Birchwood House direct provision centre, in Waterford City, the community rallied again on Saturday, June 14, in support of families living there who received relocation eviction notices for the coming weeks.
A spokesperson for CATU told Waterford News & Star the strategy, by International Protection Accommodation Services (IPAS) to remove the families from their community in Waterford - who are integrated locally - and to relocate them to counties as far as Donegal was "unusual".
"The children of the families are attending local schools, involved in clubs and the adults are studying and working locally," said the spokesperson.
"The families have been putting a lot of effort into finding alternative accommodation in Waterford, to no avail," she added.
One of people affected, Evelyn - a single mother facing eviction from Birchwood House in the coming weeks - commented on the situation and said: "I am affected, my children are affected. I would not have minded to have been sent to Donegal or planet Mars if it was in the first place. Then I could have planned my whole life there wherever I lived. But I was brought here to Waterford and at the time I was going through instability, mentally and psychologically. I tried hard to fit in and I’ve finally found my place here in Waterford."
"My children struggled lots in school, in playground, everywhere, trying to make a normal life," she said.
"I told them things will get better - we have come here and we’re going to make it," she added.
Evelyn went on to say: "We prayed morning and night, how we hoped and how we tried to make it work here. All I can give them is a home, where they can do their homework, work hard to build a better life for them. Not with the fear of being evicted, not of the fear of a homeless shelter."
With regard to integrating locally, Evelyn said: "People here we have come to know, we greet in peace, they have supported us, we have integrated and navigate life in Waterford. I study here, I work here, my kids go to school here. When I’m here I feel like I’m at home, when I’m in school, I feel like I’m at home, when I’m at work, I feel like I’m at home. We don't need to be displaced again after we have already gone through displacement. All I want is to be able to breathe in peace in my community in Waterford.”
Another woman, Ngozi, facing eviction alongside her husband and children expressed frustration at the situation.
"I am frustrated because I have tried so hard to get a place to rent locally but all my efforts have failed," she said.
"I have registered with all the house agents and all they keep telling me is sorry we have nothing right now," she added.
"Moving us away from here will devastate my children especially - one of my sons is playing with Villa FC and my daughter is in Vikki Caulfield Dance School."
Ngozi, who is working, said she wants to be able to provide for her family.
"I don't want to lose my job and start depending on social services," she said.
"I don’t mind even being surcharged until we can get a house or apartment to rent," she added.
According to CATU Waterford, the recent eviction notices issued to individuals living in direct provision in Ireland have sparked significant concern and distress, particularly among families with children.
On the day of the community action at Birchwood House, both mothers were separately hospitalised for unexplained health issues they were experiencing.
Michelle Byrne, a fellow CATU Waterford member, who attended the community action said: “In the last census, there were approx 163,430 vacant homes in Ireland, while there were 57,840 people on Council waiting lists. Right now there are approx 15,000 people registered as homeless and 30,000 living in direct provision centres too."
"As we can see from those numbers, there are enough homes for those who need them," said Michelle.
"In Waterford alone, there are 3,870 vacant homes - meaning all families, including Evelyn’s and Ngozi’s, could live and thrive locally if we prioritised homes for need instead of allowing people to sit on vacant potential homes.”
CATU Waterford has launched an online petition to call on IPAS to stop the relocation evictions. You can sign the petition here.
Meanwhile, CATU Ireland plans to hold a national day of protest calling for 'Housing Action Now', at 1pm on July 5, at the Garden of Remembrance, Dublin. The organisers hope the protest will build on local organising work such as the recent community action day, to build support for a mass movement of those affected by the housing crisis.
They also hope it will enhance the call on the Government to build more public homes, end homelessness, and support communities.
As Ireland's largest tenants' union, CATU Ireland members have direct experience being on the frontline of the housing crisis, and based on this, consider the continuation of this crisis to be purely a political choice. More information about CATU Ireland is available at catuireland.org/join
Read more about eviction notice issues in Waterford here
