A rise in racism and xenophobia against asylum-seekers and refugees has gone largely unchallenged even though the State has a key responsibility in not tolerating racism under international law, an Oireachtas committee was told yesterday.
Ms Maura Leane, of Trocaire, made a submission to the Oireachtas Sub-Committee on Human Rights and criticised the lack of implementation of most sections of the 1996 Refugee Act.
"Why Ireland, uniquely among EU member-states, should feel that it can get by with ad-hoc procedures rather than the legislation passed by our democratically-elected representatives is a mystery." Since 1987, the acceptance rate for asylum applications in the EU had fallen from 50 per cent to 10 per cent. However, the causes of refugee flows had not.
Ms Leane said it had been pointed out that the negative approach towards asylum-seekers seemed to be influenced by EU policy which was increasingly unfavourable towards refugees. Asylum-seekers tended to be grouped in as illegal immigrants without the usual documentation.
Among Trocaire's recommendations was to request the Minister for Justice to reconsider the policy of not allowing asylum-seekers to work pending a decision on their applications where these took more than six months.
Ms Caoimhe de Barra, also from Trocaire, made a submission on gender and asylum rights. Women could be persecuted and abused in particular ways and were particularly vulnerable to physical and racist attack. In every Garda station, there should be a woman garda assigned to dealing with female asylum-seekers and refugees.
Mr Anthony O'Brien and Mr Niall Steedman, of the Tibet Support Group, said the situation in Tibet resembled that of Ireland under the penal laws. The committee passed a resolution that it request the Taoiseach to raise the issue of human rights in Tibet with the Chinese leadership when he visits China later this year.