An intervention by Catholic bishops in the refugee debate has been rebuffed by the Minister for Justice. Mr O'Donoghue rejected a detailed proposal that restrictions on refugees be relaxed, which the bishops described as a "regularisation" process.
The Bishops' Committee on Asylum Seekers and Refugees yesterday released a lengthy statement in which it called for a compassionate and welcoming attitude to asylum-seekers and refugees, and suggested that those here already be accepted and allowed to work.
"A particular humanitarian issue now exists in Ireland and calls for humane consideration," the bishops said. They referred to official estimates that the number of asylum applications this year will be 1,000 a month, and pointed out that a backlog of more than 15,000 people already exists.
While praising the Government for the efforts it has made so far and acknowledging the speed with which the problem has grown, the bishops questioned the treatment of existing applicants for asylum. "It is one thing to expel someone after an expeditious asylum process; it is another to envisage the deportation of those who have been living here for several years," they say.
The committee's members are Dr Laurence Ryan, Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin and president of the Irish Commission for Justice and Peace; Dr John Kirby, Bishop of Clonfert and chairman of Trocaire; Dr Jim Moriarty, Auxiliary Bishop of Dublin and president of the Council for Social Welfare; and Dr Fiachra O Ceallaigh OFM, Auxiliary Bishop of Dublin and chairman of the Irish Bishops' Refugee Project, which is part of the Irish Commission for Justice and Peace.
On RTE yesterday, Mr O'Donoghue said an amnesty - not a word that the bishops used - would send a message that people were "entitled to come here and abuse the asylum process and pretend to be refugees and be actually considered to have the same rights as Irish citizens". Such a system did not exist in any other jurisdiction.
"The reality of the situation is that if you introduce an amnesty people will expect that there will be further amnesties. An amnesty does, in fact, reward people who seek to abuse the asylum process. And current indications are that up to 75 per cent of applicants for asylum do not turn out to be refugees at all. They turn out to be illegal immigrants," Mr O'Donoghue said.
He added that while those applying for asylum were entitled to be treated with respect, if they were found to be illegal immigrants they would be asked to leave the jurisdiction.
The Labour Party spokesman on justice, Mr Brendan Howlin, described the bishops' contribution as "timely and positive". He said such measures as they recommended would regularise the position of those asylum-seekers here already and allow those coming in the future to be dealt with speedily. He described the Minister's response as "begrudging and ham-fisted".
Mr O'Donoghue also defended the Government's policy of dispersing asylum-seekers to various locations throughout the State. Despite the considerable resistance in several communities to accommodating asylum-seekers in their localities, Mr O'Donoghue said he had an obligation to ensure that "ghettoisation" was avoided.
He said officials from the Directorate of Asylum Services had visited areas where it was proposed to locate asylum-seekers to consult the local communities. "It may be the case that people are not satisfied with the explanations, but I can assure you that every possible assistance and information is given to local communities."