Belfast: Mother and daughter are terrified as their home becomes the target of racist attacks

A Nigerian woman living in south Belfast said she and her daughter lived in fear because their home had been the target of hate-motivated attacks on several occasions.

Odegua said her front window was smashed, eggs were thrown at the front door and jam was put in the mail slot.

The police have received eight reports of antisocial behaviour on the property in the last 18 months.

They treat each of these incidents as “hate motivated.”

The carer, who lives with her teenage daughter, told BBC News NI they were “terrified”.

She said her daughter “doesn’t want to live here a minute longer.”

“I’ve been here for years. I don’t bother anyone. I don’t know why they’re doing this to me – it’s really awful,” she said.

Odegua, who has lived in Northern Ireland for nearly two decades, said her daughter “can’t even sit at the window because they broke the window.”

“She was born here, so she should be free,” she added.

Odegua said her daughter was subjected to many of these abuses – one time a child poured custard on her in a park.

Now she feels intimidated and doesn’t want to go there with her friends.

Teenagers also called out their daughter’s house number as they walked down the street – to tell her that they knew where she lived.

“She always tells me that the children are calling my house number. She just walks away and doesn’t tell them,” she said.

Odegua said the youths insulted her several times and told her: “You don’t belong here. Go back to where you came from. You are not allowed to come here.”

Mark Conway, Chief Inspector of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), said: “Hate crime harms the community on many levels and racially motivated hate crime is a priority for local policing in south Belfast.”

He said police had “contacted victims after each incident and continue to work with local community leaders and partner agencies to find a solution.”

He said patrols had been increased across south Belfast in recent weeks in response to increased reports of anti-social behaviour.

Appealing for information, he added: “No one should feel intimidated or threatened because of their ethnicity and officers will continue to pursue those who commit such crimes.”

Meanwhile, police say they were called to two separate incidents in south Belfast on May 31, both of which are being treated as racially motivated.

In one case, a group of people, including children, shouted racist insults. A 31-year-old man was subsequently arrested.

In the second case, a man in his twenties was reportedly verbally abused in a racist manner by a man and a group of children. The victim was tripped by the group and fell, sustaining minor injuries.