The Minister for Justice has admitted that people who may be trying to enter Ireland to seek asylum have been turned back at the French port of Cherbourg because they do not have adequate documentation.
Mr O'Donoghue said 124 people were refused permission to travel by Irish Ferries staff in Cherbourg between November 20th and December 31st last because they had inadequate or false documents.
A further 39 people were refused permission to enter the State by immigration officers prior to disembarking from ferries at Rosslare during the same period.
Mr O'Donoghue's statement follows recent concerns by leading bishops that a new policy of "pre-emptive exclusion" of asylum-seekers is behind a significant drop in asylum claims at the port late last year.
A spokesman for the Minister last night stressed that asylum-seekers are not being denied entry to the State and that anyone who arrives in Rosslare seeking asylum is automatically allowed to enter, regardless of their documentation.
The Minister's statement was contained in written replies to Dail questions from the Labour Party's Justice spokesman, Mr Brendan Howlin.
Mr O'Donoghue said anyone who claims asylum at Rosslare is given "leave to land" in strict accordance with Irish law. Regarding people embarking on ferries outside the State, he said most carriers conduct documentation checks prior to boarding. In many jurisdictions, including all EU states, carriers can be fined if a passenger arrives without necessary documentation.
The Minister said similar legislation is being drafted here, and discussions have already taken place with a range of carriers. Irish Ferries had sought assistance from the Garda National Immigration Bureau "with a view to reducing the extent to which its Cherbourg-Rosslare route was being abused by persons travelling on false documents", he said.
"Members of the Garda bureau are fully aware that they are acting in an advisory capacity only and that the company reserves the right of decision in relation to refusing to carry a passenger whose documentation is not adequate."
The Minister said it was "not known what the intention of the persons refused boarding by Irish Ferries might have been had they entered Ireland. Many of the persons may have planned to claim asylum, to take up employment illegally, or to use this country as a transit point for the United Kingdom.
"In any event, any of the persons in question who wished to seek asylum would be in a position to make the necessary application to the French authorities or to the authorities in the EU state through which he or she first entered the territory of the European Union."
This approach was underpinned by the Dublin convention signed by all EU states. Under it, Ireland can transfer asylum-seekers back to the first EU country they entered. Mr Howlin said last night he was deeply concerned. "There seems to be a policy now that if you can prevent people getting access to the soil of Ireland by all means possible, that's all very well and good. I don't think that's very moral or lawful."
The Irish Commission for Justice and Peace, which also raised concerns, will meet Mr O'Donoghue next week.