Irish President Condemns Racist Attacks on Indians, Urges Protection of Migrant Values

Ireland’s President Michael D Higgins has strongly condemned recent racist attacks on Indians in the country, calling for renewed commitment to the values of migration, hospitality, and mutual respect.

“Ireland has long been shaped by migration, both outward and inward. Those who left our shores carried our culture and values into faraway lands, often depending on the generosity of strangers,” he said, stressing that “shared human experience” must guide how Ireland treats newcomers. “To forget that is to lose a part of ourselves.”

Warning against hate speech, Higgins said shared spaces — including social media — must never be “poisoned” with hostility. He praised the Indian community’s contributions in healthcare, culture, business, and enterprise, calling their presence “a source of enrichment and generosity to our shared life.”

His remarks follow two high-profile incidents: the assault and racial abuse of a six-year-old Indian-origin girl, and an attack on an Indian taxi driver by passengers telling him to “go back to your country.” Rising security concerns have already led to the postponement of India Day, one of Ireland’s largest cultural celebrations.

Ireland India Council co-chair Prashant Shukla blamed the climate on “extreme-right propaganda” and a false narrative that immigrants are responsible for housing shortages.

The debate comes as far-right populist and ex-fighter Conor McGregor, a declared US President Donald Trump ally, prepares to run for Irish president on an anti-immigration platform. McGregor has claimed that “rural towns are being overrun by immigrants” and warned of “losing Irishness.”

Immigration, while not yet a top voter concern, is emerging as an election issue — a shift linked to the 2023 Dublin riots. The violence, sparked by the stabbing of three children and a school staff member, was fuelled by misinformation that targeted asylum seekers and other migrants.