DUBLIN, Ireland, January 30 (UNHCR) – The UN
refugee agency on Wednesday welcomed a draft immigration and asylum bill that will overhaul all existing Irish legislation on these key issues.UNHCR Representative in Ireland Manuel
Jordão said the new Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill, published by the government on Tuesday, offered "a unique opportunity to strengthen Ireland's existing asylum system by introducing
a single asylum procedure."The draft legislation, which must be tabled in the Dail (parliament), aims to transpose the European Union's asylum directives into Irish law and streamline the
current and multi-stage asylum process.At present, this involves an initial refugee status determination and appeal, followed by a ruling on whether or not the asylum seeker is eligible for
subsidiary protection and/ or if other reasons exist for letting the person stay.Ireland's Department of Justice says this process is far too lengthy and delays a final decision, adding that
this delay can also affect the final decision.Supporters of the new bill say it will offer a single procedure in which future asylum applicants will set out their claim and decision-makers
will look at all the grounds for protection, both under the 1951 Refugee Convention and the EU Qualifications Directive. This will give the decision-makers wider scope to make a ruling at the initial
and appeals stages of the asylum process."The new approach to protection applications will result in a more streamlined and efficient process which will ensure that a protection applicant
receives a quick and comprehensive answer to the whole question, 'Can I stay,'" the Department of Justice said in a statement on Tuesday.UNHCR's equally upbeat Jordão said the bill was
"much clearer than previous drafts, better structured and easier to read." He believed it would enhance the quality of asylum decisions, greatly reduce the risk of gaps occurring in the assessment of
asylum claims, speed up decision-making and reduce the time asylum seekers live in accommodation centres.UNHCR has welcomed, in particular, Ireland's aim to grant subsidiary protection holders
similar rights to refugees, in particular for family reunification. The refugee agency has also backed ideas for revising the appeals procedure in Ireland, which has been heavily criticized. A
new Protection Review Tribunal is proposed to replace the Refugee Appeals Tribunal, with provisions to increase consistency of decision-making and the possibility of full-time members to make rulings.
Under the bill, the independent Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner is to be subsumed into the Irish Nationality and Immigration Service, part of the Department of Justice.UNHCR is
looking closely at how the bill deals with detention, the withdrawal of refugee status, use of safe country notions, as well as use and scope of public security concepts. The refugee agency will be
urging Ireland to ensure measures to tackle illegal immigration do not affect the possibilities for asylum seekers to access its territory.By Steven O'Brien In Dublin,
Ireland
Kenya's President Mwai Kibaki (R) addresses a gathering after launching humanitarian fund to help 300,000 refugees from the violence in Nairobi, January 30, 2008. Kibaki urged victims of violence to avoid ...
