Attacks on Roma in Belfast

To Belfast, now, where recent days have seen over 100 Roma immigrants take shelter in community centres to escape racist attacks - window smashing, rock throwing, gun shots, physical assault.

Something that's struck me is the difference in what's reported by the mainstream media and local bloggers. Not that this will come as a surprise to people who live in the north of Ireland, by any means, but for me it's still shocking that newspapers are so ready to say that there are only a handful of racists skulking about and that most people are open-minded and liberal. Reading through some of the comments on Slugger O'Toole and elsewhere, it's clear that a lot of people who do condemn the violence are not exactly thrilled about having the Roma in their backyard and are openly questioning their contribution to society. Another important discrepancy I've noticed between official and local reports is best summed up thus:

BBC Northern Ireland: "Police do not believe paramilitaries were involved in the attacks."

vs.

Slugger O'Toole: "The involvement of gun indicates an acquiesce of paramilitaries in an area in which it is almost impossible to move (or even talk to the press) without their say so."

Hmm.

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UPDATE: Read and listen to more analysis of the situation by the Guardian's Henry McDonald. Would have been good to have more detail on why these attacks are mainly a problem in loyalist areas and not republican ones, but this is still the clearest and most accurate description of events I've come across so far.