FF/FG/Green Government - Part 3

It's the same rhetoric being used by the GOP with the exact same pearl clutching about how to go about it.

Is there any party that backs up your "STOP" viewpoint? (or maybe you feel there is, but they won't say it publicly, even the tories didn't go that far).

The direct provision system in Ireland has been criticised time and again for human rights abuses.

I can send you a load of links but here are a few

End Direct Provision - Amnesty International Ireland

For more than 21 years, Ireland’s Direct Provision system has been a human rights scandal. Direct Provision has failed utterly to fulfil Ireland’s human rights obligations to people seeking protection here. Instead, it has been 21 years of people being hurt and marginalised, and 21 years of lives put on hold.

We are at a critical moment. The current Government’s commitments to finally end Direct Provision are welcome. But we still have a long way to go to ensure it delivers on these commitments. Direct Provision has to be fully and finally ended, and the proposed alternative must protect people’s human rights.

The real test will be how these commitments are implemented, and how people within the system until then have their rights upheld. Direct Provision has continued through more than 21 years of successive governments and, until it ends, thousands of people will remain in a system the Government has admitted is not fit for purpose.

Direct Provision was established in 2000 and is Ireland’s system of state provided accommodation and other basic necessities to people seeking international protection. DP centres are mainly hostels, hotels and other accommodation owned and run by private companies for profit, paid for by the Government.

DP was designed as a short-term emergency measure. Instead it has lasted more than 21 years. People were meant to spend no longer than six months while their asylum application was processed. Instead, they are trapped in limbo, often for years. Many are in overcrowded conditions, sharing bedrooms and bathrooms with strangers, lacking dignity and privacy.

The living conditions, institutionalised regime and lack of appropriate support services are unacceptable for anyone, especially for such long periods of time. It is particularly harsh for families, children, people who have experienced trauma, sexual violence or torture, and other vulnerable people.

DP centres are often in isolated locations far from local communities. The isolation and hopelessness can damage physical and mental health and hinders people’s ability to restart their lives once recognised as refugees. For torture survivors, it can severely compromise their rehabilitation.

Direct Provision - Doras

Key Issues

• Length of time: The average length of stay in Direct Provision is 24 months, with some residents having spent up to 10 or 12 years living in these conditions.
• Profit: The majority of Direct Provision centres are managed by private contractors on a for-profit basis, on behalf of the State.
• Employment: Until February 2018, asylum seekers had no right to work in Ireland – unlike most EU member states. Restrictions still apply and the majority of people who live in Direct Provision centres have no right to access employment.
• Education: Limited access to further & higher education.
• Isolated locations: Some centres are located in rural areas, with limited transport options and support services.
• Privacy & overcrowded living conditions: Residents live in shared accommodation, with single adults sharing rooms with up to eight people of different backgrounds and nationalities.
• Food: Three meals are provided at set times each day; limited cooking facilities are available in a small number of centres. Complaints have been made regarding lack of variety and lack of nutritional options in the centres.
• Standards & monitoring: The living conditions vary widely from centre to centre. There is little trust in the IPAS complaints procedure & limited publicly accessible information on complaints or transfer decisions. The existing inspection system focusses on health & safety issues and does not consider the social or emotional needs of residents.
• Health: Physical and mental health issues among residents are very common. Asylum seekers are 5 times more likely to experience mental health issues and psychiatric conditions.
• Children: c.30% of Direct Provision residents are children. Children have been born and raised living in these conditions, the long-term developmental effects of which are still unknown.

New group to ensure commitment to end Direct Provision (rte.ie)

A group organisations have joined together to ensure that the Government fulfils its commitment to ending Direct Provision.

The coalition named STAD (Standing Against Direct Provision) includes Nasc, Amnesty International Ireland, Crosscare Refugee Project, Cultúr, Doras, Immigrant Council of Ireland, Irish Refugee Council and MASI (Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland.

STAD aims to ensure the Government replaces Direct Provision with alternative systems of accommodation that are compliant with human rights standards by 2024.