Intimidation over drugs ‘rampant’ in part of the capital’s inner city
DRUG-related intimidation is now so rampant in Dublin’s north-east inner city that more than 20pc of people surveyed there have experienced it directly, according to a new report.
Violence, threats of harm, vandalism and intimidation are being used not only on people with drug debts and their family members, but anyone even suspected of reporting drug dealing in their area.
The report reveals that over 80pc of respondents to an online survey aimed at those living or working in the area – which encompasses Summerhill, Ballybough, Mountjoy Square, Parnell Street and Gardiner Street, as well as areas of the Docklands – were aware of drug-related intimidation as an issue in their community.
The report, based on surveys and focus groups in the area, comes from the Drug-Related Intimidation Initiative (DRII), a project set up by the Ana Liffey Drug Project in September 2019 to look at the issue.
It found that merely reporting drug dealing could result in becoming a target for intimidation, such as having your house windows broken. People who owe money, and their families, were reported as being beaten up or threatened in public, and being intimidated enough to leave the area.
One interviewee believed a physical attack carried out on a family member was not as a result of the money owed, but the family member standing up to a person involved in organised crime.
Two separate focus group members provided accounts of a person’s family home being petrol bombed as a warning over a drug debt.
The report, published by the Ana Liffey Drug Project, was formally launched by Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe, an elected representative for Dublin Central.
“We know that drug-related intimidation impacts on many people in Irish communities and this report contributes to our understanding of the problem and how it might be addressed,” he said.
“Equally, we know that this is not something that any one agency can do alone; and most importantly it must always involve the local community – for they are the people facing intimidation, and their voices are most important in informing how we can address it.”
Tony Duffin, CEO of the Ana Liffey Drug Project, added: “The sad truth is many people do not feel safe in their communities, and this is something that we should all have an interest in addressing.”
The report makes a number of recommendations, including placing the community at the centre and making interventions as local as possible.
Empowering communities to address issues like drug-related intimidation is an important part of regeneration, noted Michael Stone, Chair of the NorthEast Inner City Programme Implementation Board.
“Regeneration must start at the core of the community, which means tackling crime, intimidation and drug abuse and creating a safe environment in which to live and work,” he said.