Hundreds of immigrants held in prisons, reveals report

Hundreds of people are being detained for immigration related reasons in overcrowded conditions alongside criminals in the country’s prisons, it emerged today.

A new report on the detention of immigrants called for sweeping changes in the use of immigration-related detention with around 2,798 people held between 2003-2004.

“People can be detained for immigration reasons without being charged with any criminal offence. They are a particularly disadvantaged group, who are away from the public eye and may not have access to services available for other immigrants,” Denise Charlton of the Immigrant Council of Ireland (ICI) said.

The independent report – which was published jointly by the Irish Refugee Council, the ICI and the Irish Penal Reform Trust – found over 90% of people detained for immigration-related reasons were held in either Cloverhill Prison or the Dochas Centre at Mountjoy Prison in Dublin.

The report ‘Immigration-related Detention in Ireland’, which was carried out by Mark Kelly of a human rights consultancy firm, found male and female immigration detainees were being kept in overcrowded conditions alongside suspected and convicted criminals.

Claire Hamilton from the Irish Penal Reform Trust said the findings of the research had shown prisons were not an appropriate place to hold immigration detainees.

Peter O’Mahony of the Irish Refugee Council said there had been an increase in the numbers of people detained for immigration-related reasons due to the introduction of a range of statutory detention powers.

Mr O’Mahony said the report was commissioned due an increase in queries relating to the detention of immigrants.

The report revealed some two-thirds of the people detained in 2004 were held in prison for periods of longer than 51 days.

“We were also concerned that there was a general lack of clarity and knowledge on the rights and entitlements of those detained, the legal basis for their detention and their treatment during the period of detention,” he said.