Biking from Dublin to help asylum seekers

THE opening of the Skellig Star Direct Provision Centre in Cahersiveen brought the plight of asylum seekers to the fore for many of those living in the community.

This centre also prompted Aidan and Colin Walsh to raise funds for the Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland (MASI) by cycling from Dublin to Kerry.

When they put the idea out to cycle from Kerry to Dublin a trip of around 400km - they were joined by a number of others friends and the group set off from Dublin for Cahersiveen for the August Bank Holiday weekend.

Aidan and Colin are both from Cahersiveen but live in Dublin and having heard about the ongoing community battle to have the centre closed they decided to do their bit and raise funds for MASI who help support asylum seekers in Ireland and who played a key role in helping asylum seekers in the Skellig Star centre.

The cycle, they hoped, would also raise awareness of the asylum seeker organisation and was also in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter campaign.

“We decided to cycle home to raise funds for MASI and then a few of the lads decided to tag along too,” Aidan told The Kerryman.

“The centre had got a lot of coverage that week because of the hunger strike and when we arrived in Cahersiveen they had heard the good news that they were to be relocated. There was a bit of celebration,” said Aidan.

Now he and Colin are calling for final donations for MASI. To date they have raised more than €6,000 but they are hoping to bolster this with more donations in the coming days.

The Go Fund Me Page remains open and can be found under Dublin to Kerry Charity Cycle MASI.

The first of the asylum seekers were moved from the Skellig Star direct provision centre this week. The remaining 36 will be moved in the coming weeks and months.

Left to right: Photo by Christy Riordan Matthew De Courcy, Colin O’Brien, Eoghan and John O’Sullivan, Colin Walsh and Aidan Walsh arriving in Cahersiveen following their fundraising cycle from Dublin to Kerry for MASI (The movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland).

Photo by Christy Riordan Aidan Walsh, Dillon and Ryan O’Sullivan, Trish Walsh, Catherine Walsh,Cian Dillon, Gretta O’Sullivan, Cara O’Sullivan and Seamus Walsh.