Uncertainty still surrounds the fate of 80 Ukrainian refugees in Cahersiveen who had been told on Friday they were being moved out of their accommodation but has since been paused.
Anna Malomolkina was working at Caroline Fox Hair Studio in Cahersiveen when her father Kosta arrived with the letter from the Department.
Anya her parents and ten-year-old daughter Alina were informed they were being moved from their self-catering apartment in the Skellig Accommodation Centre to Tralee, 70 kms from their home of over 12 months.
The bus was to leave Cahersiveen at 12pm on Tuesday.
She and the 40 or so being moved to Tralee have received no formal communication since but on Sunday was told there was now “a pause” and the bus was not arriving.
Anya is now “half packed”. There are suitcases in all corners of their small apartment.
“It’s been stopped. There is a pause. But it is not 100 per cent certain where we are going,” she said.
There has been a huge media presence all day in Cahersiveen too and the media are visiting the hotel, the education centre where a lot of Ukrainians are studying and up-skilling and employers.
“Because they paused the move for the time being I sent my child to school. She doesn’t need to see this chaos,” Anya said.
“I packed half way, and I am still packing because with all the stress I don’t know, but I think we will be moved, ” she said.
Her family had fled Mariupol and arrived in Cahersiveen on St Patrick’s Day in March 2022 with the town all decked in green shamrocks.
At first, it was a shock for the family to move to such a small town. Previously they had all worked and lived in South Africa and had been back in Ukraine for just three years when all they had was taken from them and destroyed.
But life in Cahersiveen has been good for the family and Anya is particularly happy in her job with clients travelling to her to have their hair styled.
Her employer Caroline O’Sullivan has appealed directly to Ministers O’Gorman and Foley to allow Anya and her family to remain in Cahersiveen.
Ten-year-old Alina has made friends and “loves” going to school.
“She is two months away from finishing her fourth grade. The child is so comfortable in the school. Now is there going to be space in a school in Tralee for her? I think not,” said Anya.
As a hairdresser she works on her feet all day and it will not be possible to drive the three hours to Tralee and back, and it certainly will not be possible in terms of keeping Alina at school in Cahersiveen.
Alina, like Anya and her parents have made friends in Cahersiveen. Transport links have improved for them, and they are well settled.
"If they were being moved from the Skellig Accommodation Centre to make room for tourists, the family would understand. But they are being moved to make way for other asylum seekers, she said.
“They are just swapping us basically. It makes no sense. And when we move to Tralee, and I find a job all over will we be moved again?” Anya also asked.
Meanwhile, there is growing anger in Cahersiveen about the timing of the announcement and what is seen as a lack of recognition for the effort that had been put in by volunteers as well as a myriad number of agencies.
Fianna Fáil councillor Michael Cahill said there needed to be reassurance the plans were not going ahead at all. Cahersiveen with a population of just one thousand people is accommodating 400 Ukrainians under the temporary protection order.
Several agencies along with volunteers have put in tremendous work and needed this kind of reassurance, Mr Cahill said.
“The Department of Education, our schools, Kerry ETB, English classes, the Department of Social Protection, South Kerry Development Partnership, the HSE, Tusla, Acard in Cahersiveen and numerous other agencies and organisations have put thousands of hours into helping the Ukrainian community settle into a new life here in Cahersiveen.
"Bear in mind that many of these services are already stretched to the limit. “
"Is IPAS, the Department and the Minister seriously expecting all of these Agencies to start from scratch again?" he said.
The accommodation in Tralee should be used for “the newcomers”, the councillor also suggested.
Cllr Norma Moriarty, FF, said the community was remaining on “high alert” and any transportation that would arrive would not be allowed out and would be “blockaded”.
“Our ultimate goal here is that these people have absolute certainty that those who want to stay will be allowed stay; Any transportation that attempts to come, we will be blockading it,” Ms Moriarty said.
Meanwhile, in a statement the Department of Children which has responsibility for finding accommodation for refugees and asylum seekers said it was faced with a tenfold demand on accommodation in just over a year:
“Ireland is now accommodating over 83,520 people between those fleeing Ukraine (Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection, or BOTPs) and International Protection applicants. This compares with 8,300 in February 2022.
