Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 21 Oct 1997

Vol. 481 No. 7

Written Answers. - Illegal Immigrants and Asylum Seekers.

Austin Deasy

Question:

32 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if the large influx of individuals from Central and East Europe and third world countries are being classed as illegal immigrants or refugees seeking asylum; if he will give a breakdown of both categories; the measures, if any, which are being take to dissuade such immigration in view of the huge numbers of unemployed people in this country and our lack of facilities to cater for such an influx; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17040/97]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. O'Donoghue)

Persons who arrive in the State and seek asylum are classified as asylum seekers. Persons who do not satisfy the regulations governing control on entry to the State, such as arriving in the State without proper documentation and persons failing to report as required to an immigration officer or member of the Garda Síochána, would be classified as illegal immigrants.

The Aliens (Amendment) (No. 3) Order, 1997, which came into operation on 29 June 1997, provides that an immigration officer may examine a non-national arriving in the State from Great Britain or Northern Ireland for the purpose of determining whether he or she should be given leave to land in the State. The effect of the measure is to introduce into Irish law a requirement that non-EU nationals seeking to enter Ireland from Britain or Northern Ireland must meet the same entry requirements as non-EU nationals seeking to enter Ireland from any other part of the world.

As of 30 September this year some 2,992 persons had claimed asylum in the State. To date, approximately 1,300 persons, over 800 of them in the past four months, have been refused leave to land as they were not properly documented or did not meet other immigration requirements. It is not possible to give a breakdown of the number of persons who are illegally in the State. Such persons, by their very nature, are usually unknown to the authorities. Experience to date would suggest that a significant proportion of those persons who have sought asylum in the State over the past year in particular may be persons who have no valid claim to refugee status and are abusing the special provisions for protection of refugees.

The previous Minister introduced the Aliens (Amendment) (No. 3) Order, 1996, specifically in an attempt to stem the flow of illegal immigrants and to ensure the integrity of Ireland's refugee procedures. There has been much public disquiet about the growing problem of illegal immigration into Ireland and I share that disquiet. I am satisfied that any arrangements which will prevent persons from abusing the provisions for the protection of refugees will benefit genuine asylum seekers.

I might add that international experience is that asylum procedures are regularly abused for illegal immigration purposes. I recently attended an international conference with almost 40 other Ministers and representatives of international institutions which examine the worldwide problem of illegal immigration. At that conference, I was interested to hear the UNHCR representative speak on discouraging the abuse of asylum procedures. He said that a number of migrants seeking employment, rather than protection from persecution, circumvent legal immigration regulations and request asylum. He emphasised — and I agree with him — that attempts by people with no valid claim to international protection to take advantage of asylum procedures create serious problems by clogging those procedures. He went on to say that, moreover, such abusive claims have greatly contributed to the confusion between refugees and illegal migrants and, in turn, reflected negatively on the asylum institution and, hence, on bona fide refugees. The UNHCR also underlined another major concern of states and the UNHCR alike and that is the phenomenon of asylum seekers who leave countries in which they have found, or could have found, protection in order to seek asylum elsewhere. Movements of this kind have a destablising effect on international efforts aimed at finding durable solutions for refugees.

In order to ensure that genuine refugees and others who lawfully enter the state will be treated in accordance with the highest international standards — which is what they deserve — we simply must continue with measures designed to halt illegal immigration.