Majority of ousted Roma gypsies opting to fly home
More photos:
Wednesday July 25 2007
SEVEN of the Roma gypsies facing deportation from Ireland after spending more than two months in makeshift camps here flew home voluntarily yesterday.
Another group of 63 gypsies are expected to be flown from Dublin to the Romanian capital, Bucharest, on a charter flight today.
All of the flights are being paid for by the State.
The remaining group of around 37 Romas were still in the three camps at the Ballymun exit from the M50 motorway and a deserted house at the Old Swords Road last night.
Accept
Immigration officials are hopeful more of them will decide to accept the offer of free flights and leave in the next couple of days.
They face deportation within the next couple of weeks unless they can convince Justice Minister Brian Lenihan they should be allowed to stay.
Some are being encouraged by support groups to take their case to the courts.
Many of the gypsies decided to go home after a meeting with gardai at the local station in Ballymun.
Officials believe they changed their minds after it was spelled out to them that they did not qualify for any benefits here and could not be permitted to remain under existing EU regulations.
Early yesterday members of the Garda national immigration bureau arrived at the camps and watched as the gypsies boarded buses to be taken to the State-run immigration centre near Dublin airport.
Seven were put on commercial flights during the morning and the others were told to be ready to depart on the charter today.
It emerged that the most recent group of Romas to arrive here had flown into Dublin from Budapest in Hungary.
It is understood Dublin is being targeted by Romas living in other European countries because of rumours they would receive financial allowances and benefits here. However, immigration officials stressed last night that the gypsies must leave, in accordance with EU regulations.
Intelligence received by the authorities here indicated thousands more were likely to target this country if they were given special treatment.
Lived
Meanwhile, the mayor of Tileagd, the Romanian region where most of the gypsies lived up to recently, said most had houses there and also kept horses.
Mayor Gheorghe Groza said in an interview that those living in Dublin kept in touch by mobile phone with other families in their home town and had encouraged them to emigrate.
He said they had spurned offers of jobs from locals and preferred not to work.
Special facilities had been provided for the children's education and well being but many of the children were taken away by their mothers, who wanted them to beg on the streets, according to Romania's Mayor Groza.
The Romanian Ambassador in Dublin, Silvia Davidoiu, has already dismissed claims that the Romas had been living at home in makeshift tents in a rubbish dump.
- Tom Brady
