Yoga for refugees
The JRS Ireland Capacity Building Programme has just finished a five-week yoga course at Hatch Hall direct provision centre. The classes were given by Peter Duffy, yoga instructor, on Wednesday mornings and were attended by between four and ten adults. A creche was also provided for parents with young children who wanted to attend the course. As Elizabeth O’Rourke, Integration Officer with JRS Ireland, puts it: “There is a very strong institutional dimension to life in a direct provision centre. Yoga helps rebuild the confidence of asylum seekers and helps them to keep fit and active.” The yoga classes are one of a number of personal development courses which JRS runs to help alleviate the boredom and the feeling of isolation experienced in hostels.