First, I wish to indicate that, with the permission of the House, I would like to share my time with Deputy Taylor-Quinn.
Adjournment Debate. - Polish Emigrants' Plight.
Is that satisfactory? Agreed.
I plead with the Minister and the Department of Justice to show a humanitarian face in dealing with the case of four Polish refugees who because of weather conditions had to disembark at Shannon on 13 December and who have been in the care of the Irish Red Cross since. Many efforts have been made to help them reach Canada. When they started out on their journey they understood that the United States and Canada would readily accept applications from Polish and Russian emigrants. They made their applications bona fide. On learning of their mistake, the Irish immigration authorities tried to deport them but were prevented from doing so by a High Court judge who decided to give the Poles further time.
In the meantime a member of the Canadian Baptist Federation, Mr. Lloyd Jones, has indicated that he has found four people willing to sponsor these people. The four people concerned are Zbignew Iwuc, Tan Bury, Daniela Terenkiewicz and her 14 year old son Tomasz. Each of them hoped to gain entry to Canada and filled up their application forms bona fide. Since then they have gone through the usual procedures, been interviewed by Canadian embassy officials and undergone medical tests. In their applications to the Canadian embassy they indicated that they hoped that they would be joined at a later date by their families. Now the Canadian embassy are refusing to process the applications without first receiving medical information on the families they left behind in Gdansk. The Department of Justice are aware of this.
In the case of three Cubans who applied for and received entry visas to the United States the Department showed great patience but for some reason in this case the Minister and the Department seem to be anxious to shift these people back to Gdansk. I believe they still have refugee status and it is incumbent on the State to show some compassion to refugees. After all, there are Irish refugees in other countries and we like to see our emigrants being treated properly.
We are aware that one of the reasons two of the men left is that there is compulsory conscription. Both are practising Jehovah's Witnesses and it is against their religion to serve in the army. Colleagues of theirs who have been returned in this fashion have had their passports confiscated or marked at the port of entry thus ensuring that they are not utilised afterwards. I believe there will be persecution. I do not believe the transition has taken place. We are rushing too quickly into these things. Have the Russians left Poland? If the Minister can tell me that there is not a Russian army in Poland, that he has a crystal ball and can see that there will not be persecution in the future, I will be happy. The Minister is hoping there will not be persecution and I, too, hope democracy will develop in Poland and other countries. The Minister must be aware, however, from the news in the last few days that there were riots in Romania and baton charges on crowds in Bucharest. Everything is not yet settled in eastern Europe. I am appealing to the Minister from a humanitarian point of view. There is an interregnum. The Minister is very anxious to please the Polish authorities. It is quite right to encourage the Polish authorities to become a democracy but these poor unfortuante people were caught in midstream and now they will go back and never have an opportunity to leave Poland to seek better economic opportunities in Canada and the United States.
What disappoints me most is that the Canadian authorities have not indicated either that there has been a reversal of their previous policy of not accepting Iron Curtain country applicants as bona fide and giving them almost free entry. They did not convey that to me when I was in touch with them and the Canadian Baptist Federation who deal with refugees are also very disappointed. I would appeal to the Minister to adopt a more humanitarian approach and to see that the Canadian embassy process these visas quickly.
I would like to thank Deputy Carey for allowing me some of his time and to join him in supporting the four Polish people who are awaiting acceptance into Canada. I want to make two points. We should consider the major decision they had to take in deciding to go to Canada and their frame of mind when they left Canada and found themselves in Shannon. They are people who made a genuine decision and got caught in unfortunate circumstances.
Secondly, I ask the Minister to seriously consider what these people would have to face if they were to go back to Poland. It is fine to say democracy reigns in Poland just because there has been a major blitz over the past number of months in relation to eastern Europe but we in this House know, and it is well known worldwide, that democracy does not take place overnight. The institutions of democracy have to be built up over a length of time and eventually accepted and put in place. Things are very unstable in Poland at the moment as they are all over eastern Europe. There is a great deal of uncertainty there and the position those people will go back to is far more uncertain than it was even some time ago.
I ask the Minister to take these points into consideration in relation to these people. It is nothing new to have refugees here and we should be seen to take a decent and social-minded approach towards them. We must remember we are a country that can least afford to take a high-handed approach given that we are exporting hundreds of thousands of our people all over the world. We know the trauma that many, particularly those who have gone to America as illegals, have gone through on being deported back to Ireland which is a very civilised democracy. It is not so simple for these people. It is a personal matter. It is something very close to them and to the decisions they have made. It is integral to democracy and democratic institutions. I appeal to the Minister to show patience, to show caution and to show skilful judgment in this case and to allow due time to satisfactorily process this case to Canada or the United States.
The four Polish nationals referred to arrived at Shannon Airport on 13 December 1989 on Cubana flight No. CU479 en route from east Berlin to Gander and Havana. The flight was diverted to Shannon because of weather conditions at Gander Airport. The group applied for refugee status and they have also expressed a wish to travel to Canada. I accept fully the concern of Deputies in relation to this situation. I can assure them that there has been patience and caution. I do not need lectures from either of them about a social-minded approach. I secured the views of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and our own Department of Foreign Affairs in relation to the four applicants. Neither the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees nor our own Department of Foreign Affairs supported the applications. In addition, the Canadian authorities have advised that they are not prepared to accept the people involved. Their applications were, therefore, refused.
Arrangements were made for their departure on Tuesday, 23 January 1990. On 22 January the legal advisers obtained a High Court order preventing their removal from the State until the proceedings had been heard. It is a pity the Deputies did not check their facts because on 24 April the matter was before the High Court and the order was struck out by mutual consent.
I understand that.
That was not said in this House when the Deputy was making such an impassioned plea on their behalf. It was struck out by mutual consent and an undertaking was given that no action to remove them from the State would be taken before Friday 27 April. One of the applicants was a boy of 14 years of age——
Who is sick.
Recently he had surgery in Ennis Hospital and he will be attending the out-patients department in Ennis for a further six weeks. Accordingly, the boy's mother and himself will not be in a position to travel until he is fully recoved and I will take that fully into account. I am considering their case in the light of the circumstances of the young boy. I cannot say at this stage what my decision will be other than that it will be in accordance with the law.
The Dáil adjourned at 11 p.m. until 10.30 a.m. on Thursday, 26 April 1990.