Asylum-seekers ‘denied vital services’

ASYLUM-SEEKERS outside of the greater Dublin area are being denied vital services, it was claimed yesterday.

The EU-backed asylum seeker support group SONAS warned of significant gaps in service provision in areas such as legal advice, information and medical assistance.

The group also criticised Ireland’s failure to endorse an EU directive dealing with asylum seekers at the launch of its first annual report yesterday.

SONAS claimed Ireland was one of only two member states not signed up to a directive to provide minimum standards for the reception of asylum seekers.

SONAS chairman Brian Moore said: “While there are already a range of state organisations providing specialist services to asylum seekers, along with a number of local voluntary groups, there are huge gaps in the service which need to be filled, especially outside of the greater Dublin area.”

Services such as legal advice, information provision, psychological and appropriate medical support could be provided on a broader scale, said SONAS.

Mr Moore added: “Asylum-seekers arriving in Ireland immediately enter a legal process with which they are generally ill-equipped to cope. Language difficulties can add considerably to the problem.”

The group’s outreach workers said depression, isolation and racial abuse are commonplace problems facing the country’s 11,000-plus asylum-seekers.

Managed by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, SONAS is the only Irish project funded under an EU-backed EQUAL programme which focuses on asylum-seekers.

Mr Moore encouraged further action at EU and national level to assist people seeking asylum in Ireland.

He said all of Ireland’s transnational partners, with the exception of Denmark, agreed to implement an EU directive on the provision of minimum standards in January last. Ireland, however, has a further two years to sign up to the minimum standards’ directive.

While Mr Moore conceded many of the services are above the proposed minimum standards, he said they were anxious to see minimum requirements enshrined in Irish legislation “in case of a change of government or a change of attitude towards asylum seekers by any new administration”.

“The sense of compassion for which Ireland is rightly noted compels us to offer vulnerable people all the support we possibly can.

“During the asylum determination process, which takes on average 12 months, they are not permitted to work, access mainstream education or training initiatives.

"Many are waiting three or four years for a decision on their application for leave to remain on humanitarian grounds.”