WE’RE all well aware of the stories of illegal Irish immigrants in the United States, who are afraid to come home on holiday or for a family occasion, in case they are stopped re-entering the country.

There’s hardly a parish in County Clare that isn’t directly or indirectly affected by the plight of the undocumented Irish. The Clare story is replicated throughout the country.

Many of the 50,000 illegal Irish have made new lives for themselves, holding down good jobs and raising families – making a contribution to the US – but always under the radar. Some are fortunate enough that authorities turn a blind eye to their status but there’s always a fear that their luck will run out.

The only thing that has improved in recent years is the fact that transatlantic ties can be sustained via social media.

The campaign to help the undocumented Irish has been pursued by successive governments and, to be fair, has found favour among quite a number of influential US senators and congressmen.

Progress has been slow, with various pieces of legislation chipping away at the impediments to a more benign approach to illegal immigrants.

Things are at a critical juncture now, however, as a new piece of legislation, the Pro Immigrations Bill, is due to begin its passage through the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. It has recently been approved by the Senate, having been drafted by a cross-party group.

The proposed legislation would help the undocumented Irish living in the US, by creating a path to citizenship, as well as allowing for 10,500 new e3 visas.

It’s a case of perfect timing for Clare TD and chairman of the Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, Pat Breen, who is set to lead a cross-party delegation to Washington next month to lobby American politicians on this key legislation.

The Fine Gael deputy said scarcely a week goes by without hearing stories of Clare people being unable to return home for family occasions, such as weddings and funerals. “Their illegal status leaves them under the constant threat of deportation or being refused entry on their return,” he said.

He is hopeful their visit to Washington will be part of a final push by Irish politicians “to lobby our American counterparts on the importance of the immigration reform legislation, which has already passed through the US Senate”.

He has cautioned, however, that considerable challenges lie ahead if it is to be successfully passed through the House of Representatives.

There’s a lot at stake and Irish people living in the US should play their part by lobbying their congressmen and women.

 

Abortion bill fall-out

IN a very brief statement on Tuesday afternoon, Áras an Uachtaráin announced that, in accordance with Article 31 of the Constitution, President Michael D Higgins had signed the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill 2013 into law.

This followed a meeting of the Council of State and he had the option to either sign the abortion bill into law or refer it to the Supreme Court to assess its constitutionality.

Given the controversy surrounding the issue and the complexity and sensitivity of the decision-making process in respect of individual cases of women seeking abortion, one would have thought the President would have been more inclined to opt for the court route. The fact that he announced his decision in such a short time didn’t go down too well with a lot of people.

As expected, there has been mixed reaction to the passing of the new bill. However, now it’s not a question of if, but rather when, the legislation will be tested in the courts?

The Government believes the legislation is “constitutionally robust”, having been “very carefully prepared” and will stand up to any legal challenge.

The Government may not have to wait too long to defend against a fight to “repeal of this unjust law”, as it has been described. It has also been claimed “the new law is life-ending not life-saving”.

“A key milestone in Irish law,” was Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore’s reaction. “The core purpose of this legislation is about saving women’s lives. It is about providing for a very basic human right.”

Not so, say opponents. “For the first time in our history, it is now legal to deliberately target the life of an innocent human being,” the Pro Life Campaign states.

There is a risk, as with all controversial legislation, that the government of the day will suffer a serious backlash at the next election. Pro Life supporters will certainly be to the fore in any such campaign.

It will be interesting to see if the focus is just on the next general election or if next year’s local elections are also targeted. If so, this could certainly influence the outcome, as Fine Gael currently has the lion’s share of local authority seats. The abolition of town councils and the reduction in numbers on most county councils could lead to tight margins, where votes could be won or lost on specific issues.

Also, don’t rule out the possibility of Pro Life candidates emerging for the local and general elections.