Month: January 2021

Press Statement: 31^st January 2021 

The Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland (MASI) is shocked to learn that Ms Una McGurk SC is the tribunal member who upheld the International Protection Office (IPO) decision to refuse refugee status to a bisexual man. The IPO rejected his asylum claim on the grounds that he had not established a well founded fear of persecution. Apparently the fact that he would face jail time or the death sentence in Nigeria due to his sexual orientation does not, in the IPO’s opinion, qualify him for refugee status.

Press Statement: 28th January 2021

The Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland (MASI) is appalled by the decision to reduce the waiting time to 6 months. There is no plausible justification for keeping people out of work. In May last year, Catherine Day who chaired the advisory group that was reviewing Ireland’s asylum reception system recommended that asylum seekers be allowed to work within 3 months from the date of applying for protection in Ireland; that the permit is issued in the form of a GNIB/Irish Residency Permit Card; the permit is valid for 12 months and renewable; and it is issued to all asylum seekers in Direct Provision who haven’t received a final decision on their asylum claim. Catherine Day further called on the government to give asylum seekers access to bank accounts and driving licences.

Press Statement: 18th of January 2021

The Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland (MASI) welcomes the decision taken by the Minister for Justice to review the expulsion notices that were given to asylum-seeking healthcare workers. The two migrant healthcare workers who initially spoke out against this appalling decision to expel them from Ireland have since been granted leave to remain. The expulsion notices that were served on migrant healthcare workers who had dedicated their lives to protecting vulnerable Irish nationals in nursing homes were simply cruel. They caused a lot of distress on those directly affected and should never have happened.