A chara, – I note that Minister for Foreign Affairs Eamon Gilmore is visiting the US to lobby for new immigration legislation there which will put many, including an estimated 50,000 “undocumented” Irish, on the path to US citizenship (Breaking News, July 11th). This is all very laudable and hopefully a satisfactory conclusion will be reached for all those who are undocumented in the US.
However, Mr Gilmore’s trip to the US once again highlights the sheer hypocrisy of this Government. Migrant Rights Centre Ireland estimates that 30,000 undocumented migrants, including children and families, live in Ireland, the majority of whom have been here for many years. In 2011, for example, nearly 2,700 people were deported from Ireland by this Government.
Perhaps on his return from lobbying support for the “undocumented” in the US, Mr Gilmore might also lobby Minister for Justice Alan Shatter for those in a similar “undocumented” state here. – Is mise,
EF FANNING.
Whitehall Road,
Dublin 14.