A Statement on Racist Violence in Belfast

PPR, Anaka and families affected by violence are so grateful for all of the solidarity, support and help which ordinary people and communities are offering to families who have been displaced, threatened and hurt in the last 24 hours.

Belfast has truly shown itself to be the city of the Kind Economy in the face of senseless violence. We are co-ordinating all the offers of assistance and still trying to help families who do not feel safe in their area. Our experience of the violence last night is that houses were selected and targeted, forensically, implying a level of co-ordination and organisation and not an outpouring of uncontrolled rage. The geographical patterns of violence are very similar to those found in our analysis of racially motivated hate crime.

We are deeply disappointed by the response of the PSNI to the needs of families whose homes were attacked and property destroyed. While we do not doubt that the PSNI faced significant challenges throughout the night, the location of protests was pre-announced and would have been well known. To a family, people under threat with whom we were in contact overnight said they had great difficulty in trying to access any PSNI support.

Volunteers on the ground also reported that even where there was a PSNI presence, officers at times did not proactively step in to assist families to get to safety.

Everyone has the right to the equal protection of the law, and communities of colour need to see they are served equally by the PSNI. We call upon the Chief Constable to ensure that families in need have access to the police resources they need to ensure their safety at the time of greatest threat. We call on the Minister for Justice and the Policing Board of Northern Ireland to exercise due scrutiny ove the PSNI's actions.

We know of a dozen families whose homes have been destroyed, leaving people are homeless and without their basic needs being met.

Yet we have seen no public response or offer of assistance from the authorities with duties to assist homeless families.

The Northern Ireland Housing Executive and the Minister for Communities must proactively reach out and act swiftly to provide families with emergency accommodation and support and ensure that they are located in reach of their schools, jobs and support networks.

We must not allow the actions of organised racists to win out in their attempt to ethnically cleanse areas.  Young people in the middle of their exams have been profoundly affected by these events; numerous families have children are missing A level and GCSE exams today as they are afraid to leave the house after last night’s violence. We call upon the Minister for Education and the Education Authority to reassure these families that – in addition to the fear and stress they are currently undergoing – they do not need to worry about harm to their children’s academic standing.