Latest news with #MinisterForJustice
BreakingNews.ie
4 hours ago
- Politics
- BreakingNews.ie
Justice Minister defends deportation of children to Nigeria
It would be 'untenable' to have an immigration system in which children could not be deported, the Minister for Justice has said. Jim O'Callaghan said it would not be a 'good idea' to prevent the deportation of children as it would have a 'very significant impact' on the number of people seeking asylum in Ireland. Advertisement He was speaking after five children and nine women were among 35 people deported from Ireland to Nigeria on Wednesday night. The minister said the move, which was the third chartered flight used for deportations this year, was 'value for money' at a cost of 324,714 euro. Speaking on Friday, Mr O'Callaghan said: 'Can I just say it's not a pleasant part of the job, but it is a very important part of the job. 'In order to have a functioning immigration system, there has to be a consequence for people who are in the country unlawfully, whether they have overstayed a work permit, or whether they sought asylum and have not been granted asylum. Advertisement 'I've heard the commentary in respect of children being deported. 'I think the system will become untenable if we introduce rules or a new policy that says children cannot be deported.' He added: 'It's an unpleasant part of the job, but I think if I introduced a policy like that, the effect would be that we'd be an outlier in Europe, and that people would know that if they came to Ireland seeking asylum with children, that irrespective of the outcome, they couldn't be removed. 'It would have a very significant impact in the number of people coming to Ireland seeking asylum. So I don't think it's a good idea.' Advertisement The minister said Ireland is a 'very fair country' in allowing people seeking asylum to integrate into communities. 'The alternative is that we would do what they do in some countries and don't allow any form of integration – we allow people to integrate. He added: 'But I suppose a consequence of the asylum process is if you apply and you're refused there has to be a consequence, and if there isn't a consequence then what's the point in having the whole system in place in the first place? 'I can understand the concern that people have about it, but I just say the system will become untenable if a rule was introduced which said that children could not be deported. Advertisement 'It would mean that people could come to Ireland with children in the knowledge that no matter what the outcome, they would never be required to leave.' Mr O'Callaghan said his message to people was that they had to comply with the law. 'If you receive a deportation order, you have to comply with it. It's not meaningless. It means something. 'If you get a deportation order, and if you have children, you've got to get your circumstances in order, and that requires you to leave.' Advertisement Speaking at Leinster House earlier on Friday, Sinn Féin TD Eoin O Broin said that the international protection system needs to be 'compassionate', 'human rights-based', and 'timely'. He said: 'Nobody should be waiting three, four or five years for the final decision to be made, and then when people are refused, not just refused in the first instance, but refused on appeal, they need to be safely returned to their country of origin. 'So that's the way the system should work. Obviously, we've expressed enormous concern in the way in which the government is operating the current system.' Ireland Total of 120 new garda recruits sworn in at ceremo... Read More He added: 'There's far too much privateering, very poor-quality accommodation for adults and children awaiting the decisions. The decisions are taking far, far too long, and I know that from working with people inside the process. 'Where people are refused and are to be returned to the country of origin, it needs to be done in a compassionate and a safe manner. 'We will continue to raise our concerns with the government, but the system has to work. It has to work fairly efficiently, but ultimately the decisions have to be enforced.'
Irish Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
Family reunification delays having ‘devastating' impact on refugee families
Government delays in processing refugee family reunification applications are having a 'devastating' impact on families torn apart by war and violence, a solicitor has warned. In the case of Afghan applicants, many are awaiting a decision in Pakistan where they face deportation or forced return, says Andrea Martin, a retired solicitor who now works with Afghan refugees in Ireland. 'I don't think the Department of Justice or the Irish Government has any idea of how devastating such a long waiting period is for families that have already been devastated by trauma and involuntary separation,' said Ms Martin. 'The anxiety experienced by family members in Ireland when a parent, child or spouse is in danger overseas is appalling to witness. Some live daily with the fear that their family member is going to be arrested or killed, or drafted into a domestic or foreign army.' Ms Martin says the applications she has worked on usually take three years for full processing. READ MORE The Department of Justice said the median processing time for refugee family reunification applications in 2024 was 16 months. The median number describes the midpoint in the range. The current average processing time is 18 months, according to a recent statement from the Minister for Justice. Asked about delays in the system, a department spokesman said processing times varied depending on the nature of the application, documentation supplied and the 'often complex assessment' of applications. 'It should be noted that no two applications are the same and that numerous factors can impact processing times.' Zahra*, an Afghan refugee living in Canada but whose family is in Ireland and waiting to be reunited with a parent in hiding in Pakistan, said the process had caused 'deep depression and anxiety in my parents'. The woman and her parents requested not to be named for fear of reprisals by the Taliban. 'Every day we live with instability and fear,' she told The Irish Times over WhatsApp. 'My mother and father are struggling with sadness and loneliness, my siblings and I feel helpless we cannot do anything to bring them back together.' If forcibly returned to Afghanistan, her parent could face 'imprisonment, torture and persecution at the hands of the Taliban ,' she said. 'Reuniting Afghan families with their loved ones in safe third countries is not only a humanitarian need but an urgent one. Only by being together can we begin to rebuild our lives with dignity and hope.' Nearly 844,500 Afghan refugees have been forcibly returned from Pakistan to Afghanistan since 2023 as part of Pakistan's repatriation plan, according to a recent Amnesty International report. Earlier this year, Pakistan's government said Afghans holding proof of registration must leave by June 2025. It is also understood Afghans with approved visas to travel to a third country, such as Ireland, have 30 days to leave Pakistan before they are deported. Back in Afghanistan, they risk persecution by the Taliban, and women and girls are denied a broad range of rights and freedoms. Afghan refugees were among the top five nationalities to be granted family reunification to Ireland last year, along with people from Somalia, Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Sudan. There is no fast-track system in place for emergency situations and the family reunification unit considers applications 'on a case-by-case basis', said the department. The unit has issued 55 per cent more decisions on applications so far this year compared with the same period last year, it said. To date this year 542 applications have been made. A total of 1,467 applications were made in 2024. There are 13.5 staff working in the family reunification unit, compared with 10 staff members last year. The department said it could not provide the 'precise number' of staff who worked in the unit in 2022 and 2023. Irish Refugee Council (IRC) managing solicitor Katie Mannion said family reunification application delays were putting people's lives 'completely on hold' and affected their 'ability to integrate'. Often, refugee parents must flee and leave their children behind with extended family members in precarious living situations, said Ms Mannion. Most of these parents misguidedly believed they could be quickly reunited with their children. Once they have been granted refugee status, which can take years, and apply for family reunification within 12 months, they must secure documentation to prove their relationship with a family member, a time-consuming and sometimes dangerous process, said Ms Mannion. Family members left behind must often take 'extremely dangerous journeys to access DNA testing', she said, adding that many Eritreans found it 'almost impossible' to get birth certificates. In a recent IRC-supported case, two children disappeared while their parents awaited a decision. In another case, an Afghan woman awaiting a decision was forced to marry a Taliban member, Ms Mannion said. Immigration lawyer Stephen Kirwan, who has worked on family reunification applications with Somali, Afghan, Nigerian and Georgian refugees, said delays had 'reached crisis point'. 'These are very vulnerable people, legally declared as refugees, and it's their family members,' he said. 'The indeterminacy of it causes such stress. The problem is you're hurting real, vulnerable people. There's no push or pull factor here, it's humanity.' *Pseudonym used to protect identity
BreakingNews.ie
23-05-2025
- BreakingNews.ie
Garda who sued State after he was shot by his own machine gun settles action
A garda who sued the State after he was shot in the leg when his submachine gun discharged after he claimed it snagged on his bulletproof vest has settled his High Court action. The garda brought an action against the Garda Commissioner, the Minister for Justice and the Attorney General. Advertisement The garda's ankle was shattered after he claimed he was required to manoeuvre himself within the confined space of a patrol vehicle, leading to the safety selector switch and the trigger of his firearm allegedly snagging on his bulletproof vest and the gun discharging one round. In evidence, the garda told the court he had never experienced pain like it and nearly passed out. On the third day of the hearing, the garda's counsel, Richard Kean SC instructed by solicitor Brigid O'Donnell, told the court the case had been settled and could be struck out. In the proceedings, it was claimed that there was a failure to provide the garda with a safe place of work, and he had been caused to carry his firearm in close proximity in a confined space while wearing allegedly inappropriate personal protective equipment. Ms Justice Denise Brett ruled that the garda and any Garda witness in the case could not be identified. At the opening of the case this week, the court heard that liability was admitted. Advertisement In his evidence, the garda, who was in the force over 15 years at the time of the incident, said he had been on patrol in July 2019 with colleagues in an area where there had been serious incidents including shootings. He said he was the driver of the jeep and he was wearing a bulletproof vest. He had a pistol in a holster and a submachine gun in a sling around his neck pointing down. He said he turned around to check the back seat when his submachine gun discharged. 'I felt immediate excruciating pain and I saw smoke from the weapon and blood squirting up to the seat,' he said. Advertisement He added: 'The pain really kicked in; it was so bad, I nearly passed out. I never experienced that type of pain,' he said. Ireland Jozef Puska's brother couldn't tell gardaí more be... Read More He said his colleague made his weapons safe and he was brought to hospital. 'The ankle was shattered. I remember the doctor saying my leg was a mush before I went into surgery,' he told the judge. The bullet had gone through the back of his left leg and ankle joint and his left ankle had shattered. He had to have surgery and later physiotherapy and he was out of work for 18 months after the incident. The garda told the court he did everything he could to build up his leg afterwards 'but the pain never really left.'
