Tag Archives: Clare Immigrant Support Centre

THE provision of tented facilities for up to new 100 asylum seekers in Meelick has prompted concern about “two-tier” accommodation. Clare Immigrant Support Centre co-ordinator, Orla Ní Éilí is worried short-term emergency accommodation could be in place for months or years in a worst case scenario. “This is very worrying. Asylum seekers in the Knockalisheen Accommodation Centre can hang out in their bedroom whereas up to ten asylum seekers could be living in one tent. “It is introducing a new two-tier accommodation system for asylum seekers.” It is understood the tents in Knockalisheen will be used to accommodate single, asylum-seeking men. Ms Ní Éilí said people are coming to Ireland seeking asylum from several different war-torn countries because transport has opened up again following the Covid-19 pandemic. The Knockalisheen Accommodation Centre accommodates about 200 people including families. Clare Immigrant Support Centre along with other organisations working with the Ukrainian community and the international protection community are concerned about the provision …

FIGURES released last week show that 2,452 Personal Public Services Numbers (PPSN) have been issued to Ukrainians in Clare, but the numbe of arrivals here may actually be much higher. Orla Ní Éilí of the Clare Immigrant Support Centre said, “We’re a bit confused by the numbers, they’re based on PPS numbers, which people have to have. “But we can tell you in the hotels there are around 2,500 people at this stage and out in the community there are a lot more. We would say that Clare has had 10% of arrivals from the word go.” Should that be the case, then there would be approximately 3,500 Ukrainian refugees in the county. Ms Ní Éilí said that many people are still coming, with around 26 arriving on one day last week alone. Clare Immigrant Support Centre has never had to deal with a situation like this, with so many people arriving at one time, she said, while noting that …

WORLD Refugee Day is being celebrated in Ennis this weekend with Clare Immigrant Support Centre organising a gathering to celebrate the day this Sunday, June 19, in Ennis’ Fair Green at 5.30pm. Orla Ní Éilí of the Clare Immigrant Support Centre explains World Refugee Day is an international day designated by the United Nations to honour refugees around the globe. She explains that Sunday’s event is an opportunity to celebrate refugees in our community. “It celebrates the strength and courage of people who have been forced to flee their home country to escape conflict or persecution. World Refugee Day is an occasion to build empathy and understanding of refugees life circumstances and to recognize the resilience involved in rebuilding their lives.” World Refugee Day has been marked in Ennis since 1998 with Ms Ní Éilísaying Clare Immigrant Support Centre “is privileged to have a unique role in supporting and working with and for refugees in Clare”. This year, the focus …

THE people of Clare are being urged to don their county colours in solidarity with the people of Ukraine this Wednesday. A march for Ukraine will be held at 6pm on March 2 at the Fair Green, Tim Smythe Park in Ennis. The event has been organised by concerned Irish and Polish people living locally who wanted to show their support for the people of Ukraine in the wake of Russia’s invasion. A spokesperson for the organisers told us that they are encouraging people to come along with their Clare county flags and colours as the saffron and blue is similar to the Ukraine yellow and blue flag. “This event has been organised as an opportunity for us as a community to share our solidarity and our grief with the people of Ukraine, and to call for further action to be taken to end what is happening. “People can bring a candle, and because the colours of the Ukrainian flag …

A LANDMARK scheme to regularise long-term undocumented migrants will transform the lives of many individuals and families living in Clare and all over Ireland, according to the Clare Immigrant Support Centre. The centre have welcomed the announcement of the scheme which will launch early in  2022 and be open for six months. The scheme proposes to regularise the immigration statuses of individuals with dependent children after three years of being undocumented in the State and individuals living in Ireland undocumented for at least four years by the time the scheme opens in 2022. Successful applicants will have the right to live, work engage in education and will also have a pathway to becoming Irish citizens. The scheme will also be open to individuals who have been in the international protection process for two years or more. According to Orla Ní Eilí from Clare Immigrant Support Centre this will be of great benefit to  reducing the large backlog of asylum seekers living …

CLARE Immigrant Support Centre is urging those who are undocumented to avail of a new scheme which could provide them with a path to Irish citizenship. The Regularisation Scheme for undocumented migrants was announced by Justice Minister Helen McEntee. It followed representations and submissions by organisations, including Clare Immigrant Support Centre. The initiative means that people who have not had legal status for at least four years – or three years if they have children here – will be eligible to apply. While there are calls for the scope of the scheme to be widened, Clare Immigrant Support Centre believes it has benefits for many. According to the centre, there are many different reasons a person becomes undocumented in Ireland. Some arrive on tourist visas and overstay to work, others may come as students or on temporary work permits and illegally remain in the country after their permission has lapsed, others could be victims of human trafficking. Due to the …

HUMAN rights organisation Doras are collaborating with the Clare Immigrant Support Centre on a new community sponsorship initiative that will enable local groups to provide support for refugee families, writes Owen Ryan. The idea is that the groups would fundraise and help source accommodation for refugee families, who can then leave refugee camps in Lebanon for Clare. Orla Ní Éilí of the Clare Immigrant Support Centre said, “Essentially this is another stream operating from the Department of Justice and the Irish Refugee Protection Programme. In this one the idea is that individual groupings can come together, they need to fundraise, they need to prepare, they need to set all the things in place for a family to come to Ireland. The family would be coming from the Lebanon, they will probably be a Syrian family that’ll be living in a refugee camp. They’ll still be going through the screening and orientation process with the Department of Justice.” Ahmed Hassan will …

THE project manager at the Clare Immigrant Support Centre in Ennis has described this week’s Supreme Court finding that the ban on asylum seekers joining the working force is unconstitutional as “very significant”. The ban was appealed by a Burmese man who lived in Direct Provision for eight years, prior to being granted refugee status. The court adjourned making a formal order for six months, to allow the Dáil to address the issue. Ireland and Lithuania are the only EU member states with indefinite bans on the right to work, while the working group report to government on Improvements to the Protection Process, including Direct Provision, recommended that the right to work be brought in. The Irish Government has yet to implement the recommendation. “This is a very significant and welcome decision by the courts,” Orla Ní Éilí, who has worked in the Clare Immigrant Support Centre for 24 years, told The Clare Champion this week. “I remember in 1996, …