Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 6 February 2008
290 Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform his views on whether Iran is not, in view of its human rights record, a safe country to deport failed asylum applicants from that region; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3924/08]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn determining whether to make a deportation order or grant temporary leave to remain in the State, I must have regard to the eleven factors set out in Section 3 (6) of the Immigration Act, 1999, as amended, and Section 5 (Prohibition of Refoulement) of the Refugee Act, 1996, as amended.
The Deputy might wish to note that, in addition to the eleven factors contained in Section 3 (6) of the Immigration Act, 1999 (as amended), I must, as stated earlier, also have regard for Section 5 of the Refugee Act, 1996 (as amended) on the Prohibition of Refoulement before making a deportation order. This essentially means that the safety of returning a person, or refoulement as it is commonly referred to, is fully considered in every case when deciding whether or not to make a deportation order i.e. 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. My Department uses extensive country of origin information drawn from different independent sources in evaluating the safety of making returns to third countries.
Each asylum application received from a citizen of Iran is considered on the basis of the facts, individual circumstances and merits of the case presented and a final decision is reached following a comprehensive examination and investigation of these facts, merits and circumstances taking full account of the political and human rights conditions prevailing in Iran and the latest reports of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.
291 Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of applicants from Iran who have asylum applications pending; the number who have been granted asylum and leave to remain in the past ten years; the number who have been refused; and the position of those who have been refused asylum, but are still here. [3925/08]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe information requested by the Deputy in relation to Iranian asylum and leave to remain applications is set out below.
As at the 31st of December 2007 there were 39 applications for refugee status pending in the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner and 75 asylum appeals pending in the Refugee Appeals Tribunal.
The total number of decisions/recommendations to grant refugee status at first instance and appeal stage from 1998 to 2007 was 152. The total number of decisions / recommendations to refuse refugee status at first instance and appeal stage from 1998 to 2007 was 574.
In relation to leave to remain, statistics are not available prior to the commencement of the Immigration Act 1999, which was commenced on 20 November 1999. From that time to the end of 2007 the total number of Iranian nationals granted leave to remain was 8 and the total number of Iranian nationals refused leave to remain was 17.
The information requested by the Deputy in relation to the position of persons refused asylum is set out below.
In the event of a final negative recommendation from the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner or the Refugee Appeals Tribunal, a notice of intent to deport under section 3(3)(a) of the Immigration Act, 1999 is served on the person concerned. A person served with such a notice of intent to deport is, since the 10th October 2006, afforded four options, viz. to leave the State voluntarily; to consent to the making of a deportation order; to apply for subsidiary protection or to make representations in writing within 15 working days setting out reasons as to why a deportation order should not be made and why temporary leave to remain in the state be granted instead.
In determining whether to make a deportation order or grant temporary leave to remain in the State, I must have regard to the eleven factors set out in Section 3(6) of the Immigration Act, 1999, as amended, and Section 5 (Prohibition of Refoulement) of the Refugee Act, 1996, as amended. Temporary leave to remain is considered in every case regardless of whether representations are made by, or on behalf of, the persons concerned. In the event that temporary leave to remain in the State is refused, a deportation order is made.
292 Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if, in view of the fact that a person (details supplied) has been refused asylum, they have other legal avenues to prevent them being deported to Iran; and if they have the right to remain here until Iran has been removed from the list of unsafe countries due to their human rights record, wars or other humanitarian crisis. [3926/08]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned arrived in the State on 25 August 2006 and applied for asylum. His application was refused following consideration of his case by the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner and, on appeal, by the Refugee Appeals Tribunal.
Subsequently, in accordance with Section 3 of the Immigration Act, 1999 (as amended), he was informed, by letter dated 6 November 2007, that the Minister proposed to make a deportation order in respect of him. He was given the options, to be exercised within 15 working days, of leaving the State voluntarily, of consenting to the making of a deportation order or of making representations to the Minister setting out the reasons why he should be allowed to remain temporarily in the State. In addition, he was notified that he was eligible to apply for Subsidiary Protection in accordance with regulations known as the European Communities (Eligibility for Protection) Regulations, S.I. No. 518 of 2006, which came into force on 10 October 2006. The person concerned submitted an application for Subsidiary Protection in the State in accordance with these Regulations and this application will be considered in due course. When consideration of this application has been completed, the person concerned will be notified in writing of the outcome.
In the event that the Subsidiary Protection application is refused, the case file of the person concerned, including all representations submitted, will be considered under Section 3 (6) of the Immigration Act, 1999 (as amended) and Section 5 of the Refugee Act, 1996 (as amended) on the Prohibition of Refoulement. When this latter consideration has been completed, the case file of the person concerned will be passed to me for decision.
The Deputy can be assured that all applications for Subsidiary Protection and for permission to remain in the State are considered on their individual merits. Among the issues to be considered, as I have referred to earlier, is that of refoulement. This is essence means that before the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform signs a Deportation Order, he must satisfy himself that the person who is the subject of that Order would not, in the opinion of the Minister, have their life or liberty put at risk by their being returned to their country of origin for reasons of their race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.
293 Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the status of a person (details supplied) in County Cork. [3927/08]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Deputy may wish to note that in the details supplied, the reference number and name do not correspond with each other. I am assuming that the Deputy is referring to the person whose name he supplied. Notwithstanding this, it is not the practice to comment in detail on individual asylum applications.
As the Deputy will be aware, applications for refugee status in the State are determined by an independent process comprising the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner and the Refugee Appeals Tribunal which make recommendations to the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform on whether such status should be granted.
A final decision on this application will be made upon receipt of the decision of the Refugee Appeals Tribunal.
