I thank the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform for making himself available to respond to this important debate.
Yet another shameful episode raises serious questions about our treatment of those trying to enter the country, especially from certain parts of the world and about the regime which operates in our name at Dublin Airport. A group of seven Pakistani businessmen arrived in Dublin Airport with passports in order, visas issued by the Irish consulate in Karachi, a letter from the company whose equipment they were coming to inspect, return air tickets to Pakistan and adequate cash to sustain them during their sojourn in this State. They had complied with all lawful requirements. They had done everything by the book yet they were refused entry and subjected to the ordeal of spending three days in the training unit of Mountjoy Prison.
Had a group of Irish businessmen been treated in this way in any state, for example Pakistan, there would have been outrage with angry statements from Members and Ministers and protests to the Pakistani ambassador. The refusal to allow the group to enter the country may have been lawful within the most narrow and technical definition but it was not just. The group may well pursue their right to seek compensation through the courts for their appalling treatment but, regardless of legal rights, common decency and good manners suggest that they are at least entitled to a public apology. I invite the Minister, as the person with political responsibility to this House and this country for immigration matters, to proffer that apology to the seven men concerned.
If this were a once-off occurrence, one might be willing to dismiss it as a terrible mistake, but unfortunately it seems to be part of a pattern which suggests that the policy for dealing with those trying to enter this State from certain parts of the world is at best cold and insensitive and at worst cruel. What I and the Minister know is that a similar delegation arriving from, say, New Zealand or Australia with the same level of documentation and information would not, by any stretch of the imagination, have ended up in Mountjoy Jail. That is an undeniable and appalling fact.
We simply do not know how typical this particular case is but we know it is not unique. My colleague, Deputy De Rossa, raised in this House last June the case of a Japanese woman coming to Ireland for Bloomsday who was held incommunicado at the airport. Earlier that month, the Polish counsel was reported to have protested to the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform about the treatment of seven Polish nationals who were refused admission. These cases may well represent the tip of the iceberg. We do not know how many people have been held on arrival and sent straight back on the next available flight. We do not know how many people were held in Mountjoy and because of language difficulties or because they did not know about our legal system were not in a position to seek the legal remedy sought in this case.
A number of procedural changes must be introduced given what has now happened. Where it is intended to refuse admission to a citizen of a country where there are resident diplomatic relations here, the very minimum that is required is that the ambassador or counsel of the country in question is informed of the refusal. Apart from any other consideration, a diplomat may be able to assist in differentiating between bona fide travellers and others who may be attempting to enter illegally. There should also be an automatic provision of legal advice before anybody is refused. The Legal Aid Board should be given the resources to provide an on-call solicitor in such cases. It should not be left up to the individual who may know nothing of the Irish legal system or where or how to go for help.
Where does one start when one does not even know the name of a solicitor? In the case of this Pakistani group, people will have heard Mr. Niazi, who is very familiar with Ireland, describe on RTE this morning how he had to phone dozens of solicitors before he got one willing to act on his and his groups behalf. This should be provided automatically. If the immigration officers are acting legally and reasonably, then they have nothing to fear from the provision of the services I have now demanded.
