The largest overhaul of migration and asylum legislation, due to come into force next year, will “radically reduce” asylum seekers’ rights, a coalition of human rights groups has said.
The Coalition on the EU Migration Pact, which includes the Irish Refugee Council (IRC), the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL), the Jesuit Refugee Service and Doras, issued joint statements on Tuesday as the Oireachtas Justice Committee continued its scrutiny of legislation to give effect to the agreement.
The International Protection Bill is expected to complete its passage through the Oireachtas by the end of the year.
Member states are required to be ready to enforce the pact, which will increase co-operation on migration across the bloc, by June 2026.
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The European Commission said the migration pact “introduces new procedures and regulations, including accelerated border procedures, new solidarity mechanisms between member states and more efficient returns for unsuccessful applicants”.
But at a joint press conference the concerned organisations said there was a “huge risk” that credible applicants for international protection would not be recognised as procedures would “rushed” and applicants would have reduced access to interpreters and legal representation.
There were “grave concerns” for especially vulnerable asylum seekers, such as possible human trafficking victims, LGBTI people and young people whose ages were disputed.
“[The legislation] is going to make it much harder for people to get access to the refugee process and it will also make it much harder for people to recognised as refugees,” Nick Henderson, chief executive of the IRC, said.
“We have long campaigned for a reduction in waiting times, but that does not mean fast-tracking with such severe fast tracking, with claims being decided in a matter of weeks.”
[ What is the EU Migration and Asylum Pact pact and why has it been so controversial? ]
John Lannon, chief executive of Doras, a Limerick-based human rights and migrant support organisation, said the Bill “goes further than the pact requires especially in relation to some restrictions” on asylum applicants.
He said the 12-week border procedure, whereby the majority of applicants would be accommodated in “border” locations and their applications processed within three months, was “not appropriate” where an applicant was vulnerable.
This measure “should be the exception not the norm”, he said.
Claire McEvoy, ICCL policy and research leader, also said the Bill went “further” than the EU required.
“There is no obligation, legal or otherwise, for Ireland to do this. This is a political choice,” she said.
“Ireland has a clear legal obligation to provide due process for asylum claims and to respect the [EU] Charter of Fundamental Rights.”
Ms McEvoy said the ICCL’s three key concerns were: the Bill’s provision for “expanded Garda powers”; risks the oversight mechanism for the border procedure would be “toothless”; and the inclusion of facial imagining data in the definition of biometric data.
Gardaí will have increased powers of arrest and detention and can compel an asylum seeker to provide passwords to their phones or laptops.
In addition, asylum seekers could have their movements restricted to “certain geographical areas” and be forced to stay in designated accommodation even when they had family or friends with whom they could stay.
