In July this year three men in Dublin made an unprovoked attack on an American tourist that shocked the world. Fifty-year-old New York resident Stephen Termini was leaving his guesthouse in Dublin when he was thrown to the ground, kicked, and beaten within an inch of his life. The assault, which left Termini in a coma, immediately spurred the United States Embassy to urge Americans vacationing in Ireland to “keep a low profile” and “avoid walking alone” at night.[1] The warning came just a few months after US president Joe Biden (who is of predominantly Irish-American heritage) wrapped a four-day trip to Ireland. At the time, Biden spoke of Ireland’s legacy of hope and hard work while boasting that the nation was “part of [his] soul”.[2]
In fact, Americans play an integral role in Ireland’s economy. In 2019 alone, American tourists spent a whopping $1.7 billion in the country, leading Ireland’s official office of tourism to describe the US as Ireland’s “most important source market for overseas revenue” and its “second-largest source market, after Great Britain, in terms of visitor numbers”. Termini’s assault and other similar incidents are hardly isolated events and should make Americans think twice about holidaying in Ireland. Just this August, for instance, yet another tourist in Dublin — a 65-year-old woman — was dragged along the ground in what police have called a “premeditated” and “predatory” attempted robbery.[3]
Violent crime is undeniably on the rise; in 2021 and 2022, assaults in Ireland rose by 17 per cent while theft increased by 41 per cent. Murders on the other hand, jumped 30 per cent.[4] Even politicians appear to agree on the disturbing reality of Ireland’s crime rates. “It’s catastrophic on our streets,” Mannix Flynn, a member of Dublin’s City Council, recently told the Sunday World. “There are no consequences. You can do what you like on the streets of Dublin and kick the head off who you like. Violence is rife, attacks are the norm and what’s appalling on top of that is there is no response.”[5] Similarly, Leo Varadkar, Ireland’s Taoiseach (prime minister) has talked of a post-pandemic “deterioration” of Ireland’s cities. “We have to fix [it] because it’s a basic entitlement that people should feel safe walking at night in our towns and cities.”
Another case which made headlines of late involved several men who reportedly threatened Dublin-based farmer and American citizen Diarmuid Rossa Phelan. Phelan claimed that he made over multiple complaints to the police about criminals who were intentionally trespassing on and vandalising his property. He contends that these complaints were all ignored, leaving Phelan without any support from law enforcement. Tragically, in February 2022 — after he was subjected to a “terrifying” campaign of intimidation — he shot and killed a trespasser in self-defence.[6] Phelan testified that the trespasser was part of a group of men that had chased him, ignoring his shouts to stop.
The Phelan case is strikingly similar to that of County Mayo farmer Padraig Nally. In October 2004, Nally killed a man in self-defence following a series of break-ins and other violent encounters on his property. Nally had repeatedly tried to get the police involved but their negligence led him to take the law into his own hands. Based on Phelan’s treatment by some in the Irish media however, there is a risk that this act of self-defense will not be viewed the same way by the courts. There is a risk that US citizens visiting or living in Ireland will be rendered unable to defend themselves just as violence reaches new heights.
James Joyce writes that “Ireland is the old sow that eats her farrow”, and crime stats support this point, but we don’t want this risk to extend to visitors. Ultimately, if Ireland wants to continue attracting American tourists, it will have to deal with violent crime head-on. During his visit to Ireland earlier this year, Biden said that he had never felt “more optimistic” about Ireland’s future. Yet, it’s clear that this future will require legal reforms that keep everyone in Ireland safe and allow them to protect themselves. American lives and Ireland’s public image are at stake; the problem is too grave to be ignored.
[1] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/26/us-embassy-in-dublin-warns-visitors-to-ireland-about-personal-security
[2] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-65270569
[3] https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/courts/tourist-65-dragged-along-ground-down-dublin-laneway-in-predatory-robbery-court-hears/a1259752880.html
[4] https://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/varadkar-deterioration-crime-since-pandemic-30560365
[5] https://www.sundayworld.com/crime/irish-crime/call-for-action-after-latest-dublin-attack-violence-is-rife-and-attacks-are-the-norm/a515768384.html
[6] https://www.thesun.ie/news/8611698/murder-accused-diarmuid-rossa-phelan-lawyer-court-appeal/
