Mags GarganA retired High Court judge who headed a Government working group which recommended reform of the processing of asylum seekers in Ireland has called for an amnesty “in the spirit of 1916” for those in the direct provision system for five years or more.
Judge Byran McMahon made the suggestion at the launch of an analysis by the Jesuit Refugee Service into how well the working group’s 173 recommendations have been implemented.
“It is 10 months since we published our report and even though the Government accepted it and adopted it and congratulated us, little has happened in the meantime,” said Mr McMahon.
He called on the new Government to have the “strength in their back bone to do something if the political will is there to do it”.
Fast-tracked
“We felt no one should be in direct provision for five years or more and 3,500 should be fast-tracked after they reached five years,” he said.
“As I have been participating and serving in the 1916 celebrations I am minded by the men who signed the Proclamation and the idealism of poets, and said to myself why don’t we do the bold thing, the courageous thing and just give the people in that position some kind of amnesty and clear them off the books?”
Mr McMahon said the arguments against the amnesty would be “a pull factor and precedent”. However, he said if this was a “one off” to commemorate the men of 1916 a century later, “there would be no pull factor because it is a one off.”
“Secondly there would be no precedent until 3016 and we could probably live with that!
“It would take a certain courage to do it, but it is not too much of an ask in my opinion,” he said.