After a night of chaos, violence, and destruction in Belfast, instilled by anti-immigration movements following the brutal attack of a Sudanese man, who attempted to kill a man on Monday night, the family of the victim has asked for protests to stop. "We do not want this terrible tragedy to be used to divide people or fuel hostility", the family said in a statement.
Stephen Ogilvie, a 40-year-old man who works as a a radiology technician with the National Health Service, was attacked on Monday by Hadi Alodid, a 30-year-old Sudanese man, who attempted to behead him. Nearby individuals helped him and saved his life, but Ogilvie still suffered cuts in the face, neck, back, and he lost his right eye. The attacker was arrested.
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The following night, organised groups of ultras raided homes and asylums where immigrants (or simply people from ethnic minorities) lived, burning houses, cars, buses, dumpsters and blocked roads in Belfast and other cities in Northern Ireland, and causing another political crisis as right-wing groups called for a nationwide mobilisation against immigrants. Elon Musk helped spread the movements and protests.
These events are very similar to events that happened exactly one year ago, when an alleged attempted rape by two Romanian teenagers caused riots that lasted two weeks, leaving 107 police officers injured and 56 people arrested.
Stephen Ogilvie's family statement regarding anti-immigration protests
Between the public reactions of politicians asking for calm, Ogilvie's family sent a statement on Wednesday (via Sky News) thanking the local people who helped Stephen and the emergency services, asking the media and the public to give them some space, but also talking about the "tensions and talk of protests following this incident".
"We want to make it absolutely clear that overnight unrest is not welcome, and peaceful protest is the only way forward.
"We have many migrants who make a deeply valuable contribution to our country, including in our healthcare system and hospitality sector and we depend on them to make our country work. We do not want this terrible tragedy to be used to divide people or fuel hostility."