Get involved: documenting direct provision complaints
How you can become an activist in a nationwide campaign to protect the health and welfare of asylum-seekers housed in residential institutions in Ireland
The Irish Times reported in May 2011 that “[s]everal hundred residents at an asylum seekers’ hostel in Galway have called on the Department of Justice to improve their living conditions”. The health and welfare of asylum-seekers housed in residential institutions all over Ireland is jeopardised every day, particularly as there is no independent body charged with ensuring that conditions are adequate or that the concerns of residents are treated seriously.
An alliance of some 14 NGOs working together as the NGO Forum on Direct Provision campaigned last year for an independent complaints mechanism by which asylum seekers in residential institutions could register concerns about their accommodation. The group has welcomed a commitment in the programme for government to expand the remit of the Office of the Ombudsman to include asylum seekers, and it is committed to ensuring that the change remains a political priority.
The Forum has also asked the Minister to realize commitments made last July, when he stated that: “The direct provision system was introduced as a cost saving for the State in the context of the amount spent on social welfare. The manner in which it operates should be subject to a fundamental review. I hope within the next two years, or preferably in the next six months, we will see Fine Gael in government. That review should take place and we need to see if there is a better way to deal with people.”
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Asylum-seekers are reluctant to complain to the Department of Justice when their personal safety, health or welfare is jeopardised due to failing standards or mismanagement of their accommodation. For that reason, the Department keeps telling us that they believe everything is fine, because they haven’t had many complaints.
The member organisations of the NGO Forum want to record the complaints that people are afraid to make, in order to document the problems in the centres, and to provide evidence that the system urgently requires reform. We have designed an anonymous complaints form, which will be used by organisations all around the country, and which we can then use as a campaigning tool, to demonstrate the volume of “repressed” complaints.
If you can give a few hours of your time on a regular basis over the next few months, we can provide a space where asylum-seekers can call to fill out the form with your assistance. Maybe you are an asylum-seeker yourself, or someone who wants to demonstrate their solidarity with people who have sought safety in Ireland.
If you can help, please send an email to info@nascireland.org.
We look forward to hearing from you!
