Influx of asylum seekers causes concern

ASYLUM SEEKERS are arriving in this State at the rate of 100 a week, according to the latest figures from the Department of Justice. These show that 1,266 refugees have applied for asylum so far this year, compared to 1,179 for all of last year.

Garda sources predict that the total number of asylum seekers may exceed 6,000 by the end of the year. As recently as 1993, fewer than 100 refugees a year were coming to Ireland.

In the past, refugees seeking asylum in Ireland would normally declare themselves to immigration officers at the airports. But 90 per cent of those arriving in the past year have registered directly with the Department in Dublin.

This suggests that many are entering the country illegally or staying on longer than their original entry visa allowed.

The Department says it has cleared much of the backlog of older applications, so that the oldest cases still pending date back to 1994. However, 60 per cent of asylum seekers who arrived last year, and virtually all of this year's influx, have not yet had their cases processed. The backlog stands at about 2,000.

Romanians form the largest single group of asylum seekers. Last year 428 Romanians applied for asylum; in the first three months of this year the figure was 207. In Dublin they are also the most visible group because many families beg and some have been in trouble with the Garda.

The next largest contingents of refugees come from Zaire, Somalia, Algeria and Nigeria.

The arrest in France last week of a group of Romanians who were headed for Ireland has increased fears that people are being smuggled into the country in an organised fashion.

The Minister of State at the Department, Ms Joan Burton told The Irish Times last month she believed "a fair number" of refugees were being hidden in lorries coming through the ports. Ms Burton was "very worried" that agents were targeting Ireland as an easy country to smuggle people into.

More than a quarter of asylum seekers withdrew their applications or simply disappeared, Ms Burton said. It appears that many of these use Ireland as a staging post" before moving on to other countries.

Asylumseekers may not work while their application is being processed, which takes an average of three years. The health boards give them supplementary welfare allowance of £64.50, as well as a rent allowance and free health care.

At least one reason for the influx is that other EU countries have tightened up their immigration laws. Under new laws passed in the UK last year, for example, refugees lose their right to welfare benefits if they do not apply for asylum within their first three days in the country.

In Ireland, refugees present their case to the Department in a four hour interview, usually carried out through an interpreter.

Under an arrangement reached in 1985 with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the documentation is sent to the UNHCR in London for adjudication. Ms Burton takes the final decision when she receives the UNHCR's views.

When the Refugee Act 1996 is implemented, this work will be given to a refugee appeals commissioner. This person will operate independently of the Department, with separate staff and resources.

It is hoped that by keeping the work within Ireland, the processing of cases will be speeded up.