Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 3 November 2004
235 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of non-nationals deported from this country in the past 12 months; if all of them have found sanctuary in their homelands; if any of them have been injured, threatened or persecuted in the interim; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27424/04]
Amharc ar fhreagraBetween 1 November 2003 and 1 November 2004 a total of 580 non-nationals were deported from the State.
I refer the Deputy to my responses to Question No. 250 of 13 December 2001 and Question No. 155 of 29 January 2004, wherein I indicated that the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform is obliged to consider the issue of risk to a person before, not after, a deportation order is issued in respect of that person.
There are legislative and procedural safeguards to ensure that persons are not returned to countries where they would be at risk. The issue of refoulement, as set out in section 5 of the Refugee Act 1996, is given full consideration in every case before a deportation order is made. My Department uses extensive country of origin information drawn from different independent sources, including UNHCR, in evaluating the safety of making returns to third countries. That means that a person shall not be expelled from the State or returned in any manner whatsoever to a state where, in my opinion, the life or freedom of that person would be threatened on account of his or her race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.
