Madam, - Now that the Supreme Court has found that the Refugee Appeals Tribunal was "in breach of fair procedures" (The Irish Times, July 27th), surely the question of regularising the status of asylum-seekers whose cases may not have properly been examined in the past needs to be addressed.
The serious psychological problems of many asylum-seekers left in limbo for years awaiting the resolution of their cases has recently been highlighted by the Immigration Advisory Service (UK): "Already traumatised by their flight from persecution. . .asylum-seekers will remain in further danger of psychiatric disturbance through the uncertainty of their fate and the inability to regain their sense of personal dignity by working and fending for themselves and their families."
Between 2000 and 2005, only 617 asylum seekers were granted leave to remain on humanitarian grounds in Ireland (Irish Refugee Council statistics). Some asylum-seekers have been here more than seven years without having received a response to their applications for leave to remain.
The fear of jeopardising their LTR applications by having them publicised has left their painful plight largely invisible - in contrast to the high-profile campaign for the Irish undocumented in the US.
This grossly unfair situation also needs to be addressed urgently. - Yours, etc,
VALERIE HUGHES, Cabra, Dublin 7.