JonesP85

I watched this with horror, though I wasn’t surprised by RTE’s approach. The individuals shown engaging in violence and threatening behavior should face charges, and those using vile racist language need to reflect on their own hatred. However, it's crucial to acknowledge that these individuals do not represent the majority of people who have legitimate concerns about how the government is handling the immigration crisis. Every Red C poll has consistently shown that most of the population views illegal immigration as a problem and believes the government is allowing too many people in. This was not addressed in the Prime Time special. Any amateur filmmaker can cherry-pick the worst elements of society, but for RTE, the state-funded broadcaster not to highlight why thousands of people are protesting or the widespread dissatisfaction with the government’s reckless immigration policy is unforgivable. There was no mention of the millions being made by accommodation providers and catering companies, no mention of the lack of deportations, no mention of the fact that most asylum seekers do not meet the criteria of asylum seeker, or that many arrive after destroying their identification. There was also no discussion of the fact that many have already failed asylum applications in other countries, or how Ireland, a small economy, is spending billions on this issue amid an already strained housing crisis, with 14,000 people already homeless. None of these issues were addressed in the programme, all of which are the reasons protests are happening in the first place. That said, these reasons do not justify the actions of a small number of violent, racist thugs. It would be reasonable to demand prime time follow up with a special demanding answers from Roderic O Gorman and Helen McEntee and their departments regarding their failures on immigration and how they have contributed to the civil unrest and division in society. It should also ask why billions of tax payers money is being spent with millionaires accommodating people many of whom should have been deported long ago. The fact RTE is constantly going to that same government with ‘cap in hand’ looking for millions in bail outs is a huge conflict of interest, hence a Prime Time challenging the government on their role in all this, will never happen.