Unaccompanied minors seeking asylum ‘may end up in sex trade’
These children are not being afforded the same child protection rights as Irish children, according to Dr Pauline Conroy, the author of a report on unaccompanied minors for the International Organisation of Migration last year.
“It is widely known that these children are at risk of ending up in the sex trade or in forced labour. They are a very vulnerable group. Yet we’re hearing of several incidents where mobile phones are being used to lure children out of hostels and into questionable relationships with people from outside,” she added.
Dr Conroy said many of the hostels where children, some as young as 12, are living are not managed by childcare workers but a caretaker who has little training in dealing with troubled children. The hostels are run by the private and voluntary sector and visits by support workers are not regular.
A report published by the Irish NGO Alliance, which is made up of 40 non-governmental bodies, said one social worker was allocated for every 41 separated children in 2003, as against one social worker for every 10 Irish children. It agreed that non-accompanied foreign minors are not being protected under the Child Care Act 1991. The report revealed that nearly 250 separated children had disappeared from the care of the health boards in the Dublin area since the beginning of 2001, with 48 disappearances last year.
“There is a growing number of incidences of separated children being reported missing from care placement whilst in the care of the East Coast Area Health Board. There is a real fear that some children may end up being exploited for work or sexual purposes,” the authors said.
The report, due to be studied by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, said 496 separated children arrived between January and October 2004, with total numbers in the State rising from 32 in 1999 to 2,717 in March 2003.
“The hostel accommodation and level of care provided for separated children is inferior to that provided to other children in the care of the State and would not meet national standards for children’s residential centres,” it added.
“Adequate counselling and support services have not been provided either for these vulnerable children.”
Gardaí last year sought assistance for at least eight girls, aged between 12 and 16, who had gone missing from homes in Dublin.
In a number of cases, involving Romanian or Moldovan nationals, gardaí feared the girls had been sold into marriages with older men.
“I cannot see why these children can’t be given care on par to that of Irish children in children’s homes,” said Dr Conroy.
“Safeguards have been improved and a questionnaire is now given to persons who may claim to be related to the child in question.
“It is very personal and only a parent or close relative would know the answers to the questions. If not, DNA is being used.”
