Asylum Seekers
A year of transition faced Asylum seekers in Irelandwith the deportation of Nigerian Student Olenkunle Eluhanla. Kunle had been in Ireland since he was 15, had made Ireland his home, been through the Irish education system but as soon as he had become an aged out-minor he was forcibly removed to his native country, Nigeria , eventually returning to Ireland after strong protests. Green Party Justice Spokesperson, Ciaran Cuffe TD said “It is a cruel punishment to allow someone to set up a new life and then take it away again.” However Kunle’s case is not an isolated incident. Residents in Athlone and Monaghan protested when women and children who had sought refuge there were told they were to be deported.Asylum seekers in Ireland, along only with Demark in the EU, directly prevents asylum seekers from gaining paid employment. As such the long process involved with asylum applications has lead to huge costs, not only to the state but to the applicants themselves. However Minster McDowell’s recent comments concerning the alleged “cock and bull stories” attributed to applications from various asylum seekers, could have threatened the liberal stance shown by recent polls suggesting that the Irish population are not adverse to the idea of asylum seekers gaining some form of employment within the state. Add to this the fact that some of the asylum seekers abuse the system and this tarnishes the reputation of the majority of those seeking asylum and can prejudice public opinion leading to deportations of deserving cases. It is correct that politicians should show up abuses where these exist but it should not stereotype all asylum seekers because of the behaviour of the few. The challenge is to put in place a system that treats all applicants with dignity and fairness and that each case is treated on its own merits rather than the integrity of the asylum system being interpreted as a way to ensure that deportation is the only option.
The minister is also on record as saying that he would, if not prevented by the UN Convention, prefer to turn asylum seekers back on arrival in Irelandrather than let them stay. He did not however, comment on the fact that for every five people seeking asylum in Irelandanother four are turned back or refused entry.
The UN convention provides for certain standards to be met, stating that any countries reception policy should prepare the applicant simultaneously for both outcomes, either their deportation or their integration. The integration policy must include ways by which minority and majority groups can develop a new way of living, integrating both sets of values and ideas. An integrated society means that everyone finds their place and between all the constituent elements there are no fundamental divisions. Anyone applying for asylum should face no discrimination; however there may be differentiation in the services provided by the host country.
Integration and assimilations are two different concepts that require building new bridges of understanding. Strong community liaison programmes are essential. Planning should draw on the views of the asylum seekers, refugees and the local community. When these needs are satisfied a new effective and ongoing relationship with the local community is built which in turn will facilitate interrogation.
Large-scale immigration has a permanent place in Irish society. The number of migrant workers entering Ireland since May 2004 is now higher than the total number of asylum seekers entering Ireland since the foundation of the Irish state. The number seeking asylum in Ireland in 2004 was half that of Cyprus or Slovakia and of these approximately 8 out of every 10 applications in Ireland ended in the application being refused. Ireland needs to show that it is truly a multicultural country that accepts peoples from all parts of the globe, treats each and every one the same and applies the same rights to everyone of every creed. Despite the recent rise in tension and risk of terrorist attacks, we need to have an open country. The Ministers biased comments can only inflame the debate, he needs to change stance otherwise it is fair to assume that Ireland will treat with contempt and marginalisation these new communities. The Asylum process needs to be transparent, decisions made against various asylum seekers need to be made available and a Refugee Advisory board set up to insure that all cases are given a fair hearing. Asylum seekers should be able to live in dignity both whilst their application is being processed and also once a decision on their application has been made.
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