Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 October 2004
161 Mr. F. McGrath asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if assistance will be given to persons (details supplied) in their application for family reunification and in securing their departure from a refugee camp; and if this case will be made a priority. [24860/04]
View answerSection 24 of the Refugee Act 1996 which deals with programme refugees, provides, inter alia, for the admission to the State of a person to whom leave to enter and remain for protection or resettlement, as part of a group of persons, has been given by the Government and whose name is entered in a register established and maintained by the Minister for Foreign Affairs. Such persons are usually admitted as part of Ireland’s annual programme refugee quota. The selection of that quota is based on a submission from the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees arising from its objective analysis of the status of the persons concerned and the need for resettlement as a durable solution.
The Irish based applicant, who is 78 years of age, was admitted to the State, together with other members of her family, under the aforementioned programme in 2003. The current application fell to be dealt with under the provisions of section 18 of the Act of 1996 which provides a statutory mechanism for the evaluation of applications for family re-unification with family members by refugees, including programme refugees, who are resident in this jurisdiction. Under section 18(3) such permission will be granted to immediate family members, that is, spouses, minor children and parents of minor children, upon verification of the authenticity of the relationship.
Applications for other dependent family members may also be made under section 18(4). Dependent members of the family means any grandparent, parent, brother, sister, child, grandchild, ward or guardian of the refugee who is dependent on the refugee or is suffering from a mental or physical disability to such an extent that it is not reasonable for him or her to maintain himself or herself fully. If such dependency is proved these applications may be granted at my discretion.
As the six additional family members who are the subject of the current application do not come within the ambit of either of these provisions I am not in a position to grant family re-unification under the provisions of the Act.
