The Agenda

Intense sadness and anger were the dominant emotions at a vigil yesterday in memory of Yves Sakila (35) who died after being restrained by security guards in Dublin city centre on Friday afternoon.The Congolese man, who had lived in Ireland since 2004, had been homeless for several years.Sakila was allegedly involved in a shoplifting incident on Henry Street before attempting to flee around 5pm on Friday. He was held on the ground outside Arnotts department store by a number of men, in an incident that was filmed and shared on messaging apps over the weekend.We found more about this on The Agenda this morning.

A Louth councillor has said “Ireland is better than racism” following the death of a Congolese man in Dublin, describing the incident as one that has “deeply saddened” communities across the country.Yves Sakila, a Congolese national believed to be in his mid-30s, died after being restrained by security guards in the Arnotts department store on Henry Street. Mr Sakila was taken to the Mater Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead having not regained consciousness. He had been working in the IT sector.Reacting to the news, Drogheda-based Fine Gael councillor Ejiro O’Hare Stratton took to social media to express her condolences.Councillor O’Hare Strattan said in her post: “At a moment when public comments about migrants and Africans have caused fear, hurt and concern, we must reflect on the power of words. Language matters, leadership matters, humanity matters".Councillor O'Hare Strattan joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.

A coalition of more than 120 civil society organisations is calling on the Government to reconsider proposed changes affecting Ukrainians living in Ireland under Temporary Protection.The Ukraine Civil Society Forum has written to Taoiseach Micheál Martin expressing concern over measures including proposed cuts to the Accommodation Recognition Payment for hosts, along with plans to end state-provided accommodation for many Ukrainians.The Forum says the proposals could undermine the integration work being carried out in communities across Ireland and warns that, despite ongoing efforts to rebuild lives here, the war in Ukraine continues to have a devastating impact on families.The group is also highlighting the contribution of volunteers and local communities who have helped create what they describe as an “infrastructure of welcome” for those fleeing the conflict.National Coordinator of the Ukraine Civil Society Forum, Brian Killoran, joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.

We were joined on The Agenda this morning by Independent Councillor in Navan, Alan Lawes, who took to social media yesterday to call out Aontu leader & Meath-West TD Peadar Toibin for what he says is Deputy Toibin “chasing the anti-immigrant vote and wanting to be the Irish version of Nigel Farage's Reform Party”.Councillor Lawes was reacting to a video posted online last week by Deputy Toibin in relation to his calls for a ban on immigrants from being able to access council housing for 5 years, and he says that this really concerns him as he sees it as “an attempt from Deputy Toibin to compete in the far right gutter for votes with the likes of Malacy Steenson and Gerry Hutch”. Councillor Lawes accused Deputy Toibin of “getting into gutter politics”. Councillor Lawes joined us to talk to us some more about this, and we were also joined by Deputy Toibin, who gave us his reaction to Councillor Lawes' comments.

Aaron Connolly, who has spent over three years in jail serving a life sentence for the murder of teenager Cameron Reilly, has had his conviction quashed on appeal.The Court of Appeal found yesterday that the trial judge’s charge to the jury lacked balance and in parts may have been seen as “advocacy” for the prosecution case.Judge John Edwards said “such were the stridency and emphasis” of comments made by Judge Tony Hunt while he charged the jury, “there is a real possibility the jury could have perceived that he was personally convinced of the guilt of the accused and that implicitly he was pressing them to deliver a guilty verdict”.We were joined on The Agenda this morning by Courts Correspondent Frank Greany, who spoke to us in more detail about this.

The Justice Minister is introducing new laws to make it a criminal offence to possess or distribute extreme and violent pornography.Jim O’Callaghan told the Sunday Independent that young people are getting a “distorted” view of sexuality from viewing pornography featuring violence online.He said the violence depicted, including the use of knives, with strangulation threats to the point of causing or nearly killing someone is “crazy.”The minister said that the Government is not seeking to introduce this out of “a sense of moral prurience”, but he believes that young people need to be protected from being influenced by this.We were joined on The Agenda this morning by Educational Expert at The Sexual Exploitation Research and Policy Institute, Eoghan Cleary, who has been highlighting the dangers of this kind of porn, especially for young people, for a number number of years.

Evil killer Olesja Hertova will try and track down her teenage daughter when she’s released from prison, it’s been warned.Karen Ryan, 46, whose dad James, 69, was killed by the Czech Republic-born woman outside his home in Balbriggan on August 11, 2024, has made the claim.She’s also calling on Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan to issue a deportation order against her.Hertova, 49, was handed a 33-month sentence last July for the unlawful killing of her partner James.The grandad lost his life after Hertova — who subjected him to a campaign of domestic abuse and also assaulted her daughter Ellie, 17 — ran at him and forcibly pushed him from behind.James’ daughter Karen joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more and about her fears that Olesja will find her daughter, Karen's sister, once she is freed from prison.

Catering on deportation flights was changed after pork sausages were included as part of an Irish breakfast served on a forced return flight to Pakistan, according to a human-rights monitoring report.The first chartered deportation flight, transporting 24 men to the country, which has a majority Muslim population, took place on September 23rd, 2025. A human-rights monitor travelled on board along with gardaí, a doctor and an interpreter.A monitor is appointed by the Department of Justice for each deportation flight to report on the operation, including treatment of returnees and use of restraint, and to make recommendations or note exceptionally good practice.Social Affairs Correspondent at The Irish Times, Kitty Holland, joined us on The Agenda to tell us more about this.