Abstract
This chapter examines the asylum application system in Ireland, focusing on the negative impact of direct provision accommodation centers on child asylum-seekers. Given concerns over children’s health and safety, why is the system of direct provision still in place? The chapter sheds light on a topic that receives scant attention in mainstream academic writing on Irish asylum policy: how the treatment of child asylum-seekers in direct provision illustrates Ireland’s failure to live up to its responsibilities as a party to the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Taking into account the Irish government’s security concerns and financial constraints, Luangrath concludes her chapter by offering some policy recommendations for amending the asylum application and housing accommodation systems in Ireland.
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Notes
- 1.
The IHREC, formerly the Irish Human Rights Commission, has a statutory remit to review the adequacy and effectiveness of law, policy, and practice relating to the protection of human rights and equality in the Republic of Ireland.
- 2.
A protection category in the European Union (EU) law given to “a third-country national or a stateless person who does not qualify as a refugee but in respect of whom substantial grounds have been shown for believing that the person concerned, if returned to his or her country of origin, or in the case of a stateless person, to his or her country of former habitual residence, would face a real risk of suffering serious harm as defined in Article 15 of 2004/83/EC, and to whom Article 17(1) and (20) of 2004/83/EC do not apply, and is unable or, owing to such risk, unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of that country.”
- 3.
A protection category in Irish law is defined as: “A person who has been refused a refugee or subsidiary protection declaration may be granted permission to remain in the State. A person may also withdraw from the asylum process and seek permission to remain in the State. Permission to remain is granted at the discretion of the Minister for Justice and Equality, usually on humanitarian grounds […] Persons granted permission to remain do not have all of the same rights as persons granted refugee or subsidiary protection status. They must have been resident in Ireland for 5 years before they are eligible to apply for Irish citizenship. They do not have the right to family reunification but anyone who is entitled to reside and remain in the State may apply to the Minister to permit family members to join them. The Minister for Justice and Equality can grant or refuse permission on a discretionary basis. In addition, foreign national parents granted permission to remain under the Irish Born Child Scheme (IBC/05) are not eligible for maintenance grants or free fees for third-level education” (Citizens Information Board 2017).
- 4.
A refugee is defined as “any person who, owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion is outside of the country of his nationality and is unable, or owing to such fear, unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.”
- 5.
An asylum seeker is a person who is seeking to be recognized as a refugee.
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Acknowledgments
Research for the chapter was originally conducted in Ireland from June to July 2012 with financial support from Boston College’s University Fellowships Committee, Winston Center for Leadership and Ethics, Clough Center for the Study of Constitutional Democracy, and Office of AHANA Student Programs. I also received additional financial support from the Atlantic Coast Conference-International Academic Collaborative. I am especially grateful for the feedback and support provided to me by Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission staff, and I am additionally thankful for the opportunity to lend my research assistance to some of the IHREC’s projects. The views presented in this chapter are mine alone, and do not represent the views of Boston College, the Atlantic Coast Conference, the IHREC, the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation, or the Fulbright-Schuman Program.
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Luangrath, N. (2016). No Date on the Door: Direct Provision Housing, Child Asylum Seekers, and Ireland’s Violations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. In: Ensor, M., Goździak, E. (eds) Children and Forced Migration. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40691-6_14
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