News Bulletin 
ICI News Bulletin - Issue 82
Thursday, 17 February 2011
- Deportation order revoked for mum of Irish citizens
- Speedy response by authorities for migrant women experiencing domestic violence
- Parties spell out their priorities for immigration and integration – summary of commitments
- Groups seek election pledge to review social welfare rule
- Spotlight on overlooked migrant voters
- UK asylum and immigration appeals tribunal judge to address seminar
- High Court grants leave to apply for judicial review in case of "constructive expulsion"
- Lecture to discuss inclusion of second generation migrants
- Migrant Integration Policy Index to be launched
- NGO Alliance Against Racism submits report to UN committee
- Research project to examine migrants' experiences of racism in Dublin
- Teachers receive anti-racism training certificates
- Irish men support campaign to make buying sex illegal
- ICI takes part in briefing of MEPs on sex trafficking in Europe
- Dublin conference examines solutions to sex trafficking and prostitution
- Report on EU Member States' implementation of anti-trafficking strategies now available
- Presentation to Filipino community leaders
- Goethe-Institut seminar examines the implications of the economic crisis on migrants and immigration
Deportation order revoked for mum of Irish citizens
The Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service has revoked the deportation order against one of our clients, allowing her to return to Ireland from Nigeria. In a previous bulletin, we mentioned the woman was deported from Ireland in April last year, with two Irish children, although her Irish partner and four other children, now naturalised citizens, remained in Ireland. After the deportation, one of the Irish children had to return to Ireland due to health complications.
Last month, the ICI submitted an application for the revocation of the deportation order against our client. This week, she received the happy news that the deportation order has been revoked and that she has also been granted a residence permit allowing her to live in Ireland. The family members are looking forward to being reunited soon.
This year, the ICI will continue to campaign for the introduction of clear family reunification policies and procedures for Irish citizens, migrants and their family members.
Speedy response by authorities for migrant women experiencing domestic violence
We're delighted to report that three separate female clients have been granted residence permits allowing them to live and work in Ireland after separating from their partners due to domestic violence. Two of the women were undocumented at the time.
The ICI is very encouraged by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service's (INIS) quick response to the women, with the decisions made within six weeks to three months of receiving their applications. This was extremely important for all of the women concerned as it has assisted them to access accommodation or to retain refuge supports. One client, who is pregnant and has a small child, was entirely dependent on the support of a friend for accommodation, after having been refused emergency payments by her local Community Welfare Officer. The other two clients did receive emergency payments pending the processing of their applications, but one had been told the payment was under review and she was at risk of losing her place at a refuge.
While the ICI is pleased the women's cases were dealt with quickly, the problems caused by a lack of clear immigration and welfare policies for migrant women experiencing domestic violence is highlighted by their experiences. The ICI will continue to lobby for migrant women and their children who access refuge accommodation to be able to receive financial assistance from their Community Welfare Officer if they provide evidence such as a court order, police or doctor's report. We will also continue to lobby for INIS to publish information and guidelines for the public on its website regarding applications for residence permits for migrants experiencing domestic violence.
Parties spell out their priorities for immigration and integration – summary of commitments
The ICI has written to the leaders of the five main political parties, asking them to commit to addressing the very serious deficiencies in Ireland's immigration system. In particular, we have asked them to commit to addressing the "undesirable ethos" and inherent racial prejudice in decision-making that was identified by Opposition deputies during debate on the now-lapsed Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill 2010. We will let you know what responses we receive.
In the meantime, we've examined all five parties' manifestos in relation to their impact on migrants in Ireland and provided a summary below. We have not looked at the impact of economic, health, environmental or other policies that affect everyone living in Ireland. We have limited our overview to immigration and integration policies, policies only affecting migrants or their family members and those policies that relate to areas of reform called for by the ICI. Every effort has been made to list all of the parties' relevant commitments, with some parties making more promises than others.
Fine Gael
Fine Gael has given a commitment to introduce comprehensive reforms dealing with immigration, residence and asylum issues, including "a statutory appeals system to ensure we comply with best international standards". Fine Gael has also flagged exploring the possibility of a new visitor visa agreement with the UK, which would allow non-EU citizen tourists to visit both countries with the one visa "at a reasonable cost".
In addition, they have committed to overhauling the student visa system as part of a push to double the number of international students coming to Ireland.
Labour
Labour has committed to enacting comprehensive and transparent immigration legislation within 12 months, setting out migrants' rights and obligations in Ireland. In addition, they would introduce an independent appeals mechanism for immigration-related decisions and have committed to streamlining and speeding up administrative processes. Labour has also promised to reform the tourist visa process.
In relation to international students, Labour has committed to allowing postgraduate students to work for up to a year after they complete their studies and to allowing "high value research" students to bring their families to Ireland if they are staying here for more than two years. In addition, the party would develop a one-stop shop website for international students where they could choose a course, learn about Ireland and apply for a visa.
Labour has also given a commitment to promote social inclusion, equality, diversity and participation. The party has committed to tackle financial exclusion through measures including the introduction of basic bank accounts.
In addition, Labour has promised to abolish the Habitual Residence Condition in the case of family carers. However, the party also commits to raising the issue of the payment of Child Benefit in respect of non-resident children at EU level and to seek to have the entitlement modified to reflect the cost of living where the child is resident.
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil commits to maximising the number of overseas visitors through a number of measures, including "tourist-friendly" immigration and visa arrangements. The party also promises to have Enterprise Ireland launch a campaign to attract overseas entrepreneurs to Ireland.
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin has committed to establishing a fully independent and transparent Immigration Appeals Tribunal and to ensuring Irish citizens have family reunification rights equal to those of other EU citizens living in this country.
In relation to integration, the party has committed to tackling racism and other forms of discrimination, to introducing stronger hate crime legislation, to reinstating previous levels of funding for anti-racism initiatives, and providing annual increases, and to fully implementing and resourcing the National Action Plan Against Racism. In addition, the party would implement a new Equality Strategy and establish an Oireachtas Committee on Equality and Human Rights to monitor implementation of new equality and human rights laws. The party would also restore language resource teachers where there is a demand for them.
Sinn Féin has also committed to extending voting rights to migrants who are not Irish citizens but who have been legally resident in the country for at least five years.
The Green Party
The Green Party has committed to protecting funding for English language classes and to review third-level education tuition fees to ensure people with an established immigration history are not excluded by prohibitive costs. The party has also committed to developing a "learning programme" and examination on Irish culture and history for citizenship applicants. They would also ensure the gardaí, HSE and other key public sector organisations have further training in cultural sensitivity.
The party has made a range of commitments in relation to combating human trafficking, including to introduce legislation along the lines of the "Swedish model" to criminalise the purchase of sex, to introduce laws criminalising human trafficking and to ensure the protection of victims of this crime. In addition, it would support awareness campaigns about human trafficking.
The Green Party has also committed to tackling racism and xenophobia through education and awareness-raising initiatives and monitoring of racist incidents.
Groups seek election pledge to review social welfare rule
The ICI is among a group of NGOs that has drawn up a pledge asking the political parties to commit to undertaking a comprehensive review of the social welfare habitual residency condition if they are elected to government. The group also includes Cairde, Crosscare, Doras Luimní, Focus Ireland, Flac, the Simon Community of Ireland, the Society of St Vincent de Paul and the Vincentian Refugee Centre, all of which have witnessed the hardship brought upon their clients by the maladministration of this legislation.
So far, Labour and Sinn Féin have signed the pledge, which will be launched on Monday.
Spotlight on overlooked migrant voters
The ICI, with the support of the Integration Office in Dublin City Council, is reminding election candidates that thousands of people who will cast their votes on February 25 will be migrants who have been granted Irish citizenship. The ICI has launched the "Count Us In" campaign in response to complaints from migrants that candidates and canvassers are overlooking them.
Integration Manager Fidèle Mutwarasibo said that as a handful of votes could decide seats, candidates could pay a heavy price for ignoring the voting power of naturalised Irish citizens.
"I know from personal experience that when I answer the door to canvassers and they see I am not of Irish origin, they lose interest immediately," Fidele said. "We are hearing constantly from migrants, many of whom are Irish citizens with the right to vote, that candidates simply don't bother engaging with them because they automatically assume they can't vote."
UK asylum and integration appeals tribunal judge to address seminar
Mr Justice Nicholas Blake, President of the Upper Tribunal of the Asylum and Immigration Chamber in the UK, will address a seminar being hosted by the Irish Refugee Council (IRC) and the ICI at Mandate Head Office, 9 Cavendish Row, Dublin 1, on Saturday (February 19) from 10am to 12.30pm. Mrs Justice Catherine McGuinness, President of the Law Reform Commission and former Supreme Court judge, will chair the event.
The subject of the seminar will be, "The Asylum and Immigration Process in a Democratic Society – the Role of an Independent Appeals System".
There is no fee to attend the seminar but donations would be welcomed on the day. Seating is limited so please book to reserve a place. For more information, please contact Sharon Waters – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 01 764 5069.
High Court grants leave to apply for judicial review in case of "constructive expulsion"
The Brazilian mother of an Irish toddler has been granted leave to apply for a judicial review of the Government's decision to deport her, on the grounds that it would effectively mean her young son would also be deported. Senior Solicitor Hilkka Becker said the Government's decision to deport her client would have resulted in the constructive deportation of her young son by reason of his age and dependence on his mother.
Hilkka said one of the grounds for the judicial review was that the Minister for Justice and Law Reform had erred in law in his evaluation and balancing of the interests of the State against the rights, interests and welfare of the woman's child to reside and be reared in Ireland in the care of his mother.
"The ICI has been calling on the Government to introduce clear and fair rules spelling out the rights to family life within the State of Irish citizens and migrants and this case highlights the need for reform of the system, once again," Hilkka said. For more information, please contact Hilkka – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Lecture to discuss inclusion of second generation migrants
The ICI and Sports Against Racism Ireland (SARI) will be hosting a public lecture by Professor John Mollenkopf entitled, "Inclusion of Second Generation Migrants and Beyond – Lessons from Old Countries of Immigration" at the Gresham Hotel on Monday. Professor Mollenkopf is the director of the Centre of Urban Research and professor of political science and sociology at the City University of New York Graduate Centre.
A number of young people on the SARI Sport and Education Mentoring Programme will share their experiences and the challenges they faced in accessing third-level education at the event.
The event is co-funded by the European Programme for Integration and Migration – an initiative of the Network of European Foundations. For more information, please contact Integration Manager Fidèle Mutwarasibo – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Migrant Integration Policy Index to be launched
The Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPEX), a reference guide and interactive tool to assess, compare and improve integration policy across 31 countries, will be published on February 28. The British Council national office and the ICI are the Irish partners in the project, which the British Council and MPG are leading overall, along with 38 national think tanks, NGOs, foundations, universities, research institutes and equality bodies. ICI Anti-Trafficking Coordinator Nusha Yonkova will speak at the launch on behalf of the European Network of Migrant Women and will stress the need for gender sensitive European policies on family migration.
The third edition of MIPEX will be published as a book and state-of-the-art interactive website which will allow policy makers, academics, journalists and the wider public to delve deeper into data than was previously possible and to produce customised reports to aid migration advocacy and analysis. There are about 21 million legally resident migrants in Europe today but the political and legal frameworks for migrants to participate alongside citizens, and in time become citizens themselves, vary widely from country to country.
For more information, please contact Senior Solicitor Catherine Cosgrave – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or for more information about MIPEX, please see - http://www.mipex.eu/
NGO Alliance Against Racism submits report to UN committee
The NGO Alliance Against Racism (NAAR) has submitted a shadow report to the Irish Government's combined third and fourth Report to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD). Endorsed by 40 NGOs, the report highlights concerns relating to the funding cuts to national anti-racism and human rights bodies and the lack of effective remedies to address racism. The report makes more than 50 recommendations to ensure that the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination is given full effect in Irish law and that Ireland complies with its international obligations.
The ICI is a member of NAAR and has endorsed the report. Ireland will be examined by CERD next Tuesday and Wednesday and ICI Senior Solicitor Hilkka Becker, together with other NAAR members, will attend the hearing in Geneva to present the NAAR report and recommendations. The report can be found on the ICI's website - http://www.immigrantcouncil.ie/submissions-policy-papers-and-analyses/2009-2010/464-ngo-alliance-against-racism-shadow-report
Research project to examine migrants' experiences of racism in Dublin
A research project commissioned by the ICI and co-funded by Dublin City Council Office for Integration aims to document migrants' experiences of racism in the capital. Migrants involved in front-line service provision, such as public transport networks, will be among those interviewed for the project.
The City Council is co-funding the project under the One City, One People campaign. The project will include 12 in-depth case studies, including people who have contacted the ICI's Racist Incidents Support and Referral Service, and focus group interviews with service providers including health professionals and public transport workers.
One of the main aims of the project is to identify gaps in service provision to victims of racially motivated attacks. For more information, please contact Integration Manager Fidèle Mutwarasibo – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Teachers receive anti-racism training certificates
The ICI and the English Language Support Teachers' Association (ELSTA) have presented 27 teachers with certificates in anti-racism training. Late last year and early this year, the ICI, ELSTA and HT Consultancy provided training to primary and second-level language support teachers on anti-racism issues. The training modules covered areas such as defining racism and prejudice, exploring attitudes and responses to race issues and the often subtle, sometimes overt, ways that racist attitudes can manifest themselves, ranging from instances within personal interactions through to organised or institutional racism.
The ICI's input into the training module focussed on defining and initiating mechanisms to record and respond to racial incidents that allow for appropriate monitoring of incidents, support for those affected and accessing appropriate services to seek redress.
The ICI would like to thank Marian Tannam and Helen Harnett of HT Consultancy and Mary Ryan of Castleknock Community College for their invaluable contribution to this important project.
Irish men support campaign to make buying sex illegal
A group of high-profile men from business, trade unions, civil society and the arts joined forces to call for reform of Ireland's prostitution laws to help end exploitation through prostitution and sex trafficking. ICTU general secretary David Begg, ICI chair John Cunningham, TEEU general secretary Eamon Devoy, poet Theo Dorgan, Barnardos chief executive Fergus Finlay, Ruhama chair Diarmaid Ó Corrbuí and writer Peter Sheridan have lent their voices to the Turn Off The Red Light campaign. Singer Christy Moore also attended the event.
The campaign, which has the support of a wide variety of organisations throughout Ireland, is calling for the introduction of legislation along the lines of that in Sweden, which penalises those who buy sex, while decriminalising those who sell sex. Labour justice spokesman Pat Rabbitte attended the event and gave an undertaking that Labour would support the introduction of such legislation.
The ICI's involvement stems from the fact that about nine out of 10 women involved in indoor prostitution in Ireland are migrant women and through our work with victims of human trafficking. For more information about the project, please see the Turn Off the Red Light website – http://www.turnofftheredlight.ie or contact our Anti-Trafficking Coordinator Nusha Yonkova – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
ICI takes part in briefing of MEPs on sex trafficking in Europe
Chief Executive Officer Denise Charlton gave a presentation to MEPs at the European Parliament in Brussels at a well-attended briefing about the Dignity Project and sex trafficking in Europe. The Dignity Project is a transnational, EU-funded project which looked at best practice in service provision for victims of sex trafficking. The ICI and Dublin Employment Pact were the project's lead partners.
The briefing highlighted the fact that about 100,000 people are trafficked into and within the EU annually while globally, the International Labour Organisation estimates that 1.39 million individuals are victims of sexual exploitation annually.
The briefing was also addressed by Swedish MEP Eva-Britt Svensson and Head of Equality and Women's Services from Glasgow Community and Safety Services, Ann Hamilton. Proinsias De Rossa MEP chaired the event, which was attended by other Irish MEPs Nessa Childers, Liam Aylward and Gay Mitchell. The delegation also met with Marian Harkin MEP who also pledged support for the work. For more information, please contact Anti-Trafficking Coordinator Nusha Yonkova – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Dublin conference examines solutions to sex trafficking and prostitution
The Dignity Project held its closing conference in Dublin on February 7. The Project was a two-year EU funded initiative led by Dublin Employment Pact and the ICI with project partners from Ireland, Scotland, Spain and Lithuania.
The conference discussed how a prohibition on the purchase of sex, such as that operating in Sweden, can significantly reduce sex trafficking and prostitution. Speakers included the National Coordinator Against Prostitution and Trafficking in Sweden, Patrik Cederlöf, and Head of Equality and Women's Services in Glasgow, Ann Hamilton. Mr Cederlöf detailed how a combination of a legislative ban on the sale of sex, coupled with better supports for trafficked women and those involved in prostitution, has changed the landscape of the sex industry in Sweden, while Ms Hamilton spoke about how a system of information sharing and supports for trafficked women has paved the way for speedy prosecutions in Scotland.
Other speakers at the conference included Head of the European Commission Representation in Ireland, Barbara Nolan; Proinsias de Rossa, MEP; Senator Fiona O'Malley and Colette de Troy of the European Women's Lobby Observatory on Violence Against Women. The event was formally opened by the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Cllr Gerry Breen. For more information, please contact Anti-Trafficking Coordinator Nusha Yonkova – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Report on EU Member States' implementation of anti-trafficking strategies now available
The "E-Notes Report on the Implementation of Anti-Trafficking Policies and Interventions in the 27 EU Member States from a Human Rights Perspective" has now been completed and can be downloaded from our website. The ICI submitted the publication's country report for Ireland.
The report is a project of the European NGOs Observatory on Trafficking, Exploitation and Slavery with financial support from the EU's Prevention of and Fight Against Crime Programme of the European Union European Commission Directorate General Home Affairs. The report can be downloaded at - http://www.immigrantcouncil.ie/images/stories/E-notes_report.pdf
Presentation to Filipino community leaders
Information and Referral Service Coordinator Brian Killoran undertook an information session on the work and services provided by the ICI with Filipino community leaders late last month. The session focussed on the information needs of Filipino migrants and the issues and challenges they face in Ireland, including navigating the immigration system and difficulties encountered by their children when they turn 18 or complete second-level education. The event was hosted by the Philippines Embassy. For more information, please contact Brian – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Goethe-Institut seminar examines the implications of the economic crisis on migrants and immigration
Chief Executive Officer Denise Charlton and Integration Manager Fidèle Mutwarasibo attended a seminar hosted by the Goethe-Institut, which looked at the impact of the economic crisis on migrants and immigration, earlier this month.
Fidèle told the seminar immigration needed to be discussed in terms of a pathway to citizenship, rather than as a "safety valve" that could be opened and closed as needed. He said leadership and the avoidance of populist rhetoric on immigration and integration issues were needed at times of economic crisis. For more information, please contact Fidèle – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it