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Igor, 11 anni, picchiato perché polacco

Mum of young Polish boy attacked in Warrenpoint says she now worries every time her son leaves the house

Igor Tredewicz

11-year-old Igor Tredewicz was attacked as he walked through a park with his friend in Co Down

It was the first day of the school holidays and Igor Tredewicz was looking forward to a summer of fun with his friends.

But as he was walking through the park near his Co Down home with a pal, the 11-year-old was set upon by a group of children – just because he was Polish.

Shouting racial slurs before launching a physical attack, the group left Igor battered and bloody on Saturday evening, June 27.

Igor TredewiczSpeaking to Belfast Live, his mum Gosia said she was sickened by what had happened to her son, but revealed it was not the first time something like this had happened.

“It is not the first time, my children have been called bad names before, children can be really bad,” said Gosia, who has lived in Northern Ireland for nine years with her husband and three children.

Igor, who has a twin brother Oskar, had been in Clonallon Park in Warrenpoint, on Saturday with a friend when they were confronted by another group.

“He was in the park with his Irish friend, he has a twin brother and they are usually together but that day the other one was up on the football field and Igor was in the park,” added Gosia.

“They met two other Irish boys, he was the only Polish and the other three Irish. He was with his friend and they were walking in the park and they met a group of children who started to call him very very bad words, saying, ‘You are Polish s***, you are Polish b*****d, go back to Poland’.

“When he answered to say, ‘This is racist’, they started to punch him and beat him. The first boy with him, he helped him.

“They walked away but that boy who hit him he came back. They wanted to leave the park but they met the two other children again and they were talking. Then the youngest one, who was 8 or 9, came back and he started to fight with him again and call him very, very bad names.

“The other children came and he could not even escape, they were everywhere. One girl held his hands behind his back and one punched him.

“After that his friend called me and I was there in a few minutes. I could not recognise his face, there was blood everywhere. He looked very very bad.”

Gosia, whose husband Wojtek works in England and was away at the time of the attack, said she now worries when her son goes out.

“Every time he is out I am ringing him all the time, it’s harder for me,” added 39-year-old Gosia.

Igor TredewiczBut Gosia said the saving grace for Igor was that he would be starting secondary school in September and those children would not be at his school.

“Igor is happy because after summer he will go to another school, he will never meet those children at school but the other twin is going to the same school where the children go,” she added.

“This will be a bigger problem, I think I will have to go to the school and let them know what happened. I think they have to be more careful.”

She said the Polish community had been targeted before but said it had been great to see the community rally around her family after the attack and said the support had been incredible.

“We really appreciate that people are horrified by this too,” she added.

“We have the same right to live here as anyone else. I just want to thank everyone who has supported us.”

The attack has been condemned by Sinn Fein MLA Caitriona Ruane and councillor Mickey Ruane.

Police in South Down say they perceive the attack to be a “hate incident”.

Sergeant Graham said: “Around 5.55pm on Saturday, two boys, one aged 11 years old and one aged 8 years old, became involved in a fight at a park in Clonallon Park.

“A number of other children intervened to break up the fight. The 11-year-old boy sustained an injury to his face.

“This is perceived to be a hate incident and enquiries are ongoing. The matter will also be referred to the Youth Diversion Officer.”

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René Querin

Di professione grafico e web designer, sono appassionato di trekking e innamorato dell'Irlanda e della sua storia. Insieme ad Andrea Varacalli ho creato e gestisco Les Enfants Terribles.

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