Ireland aids Malta-based refugees

Ten handpicked refugees have arrived in Ireland to ease the pressure on the overburdened island of Malta, writes Conor Ryan in The Irish Examiner:

The unique resettlement process falls under a new European Union agreement to help the island country cope with unrivalled levels of immigration. However, before it became one of the first countries to accept refugees under this pact Ireland laid out strict criteria for what it was willing to take, according to a statement on behalf of the Minister for Justice Michael McDowell.

“Following discussions in March 2006, the Minister agreed that Ireland would accept a maximum of 10 recognised refugees from Malta. “The Maltese authorities referred a number of cases for resettlement and Ireland accepted four family units based on information provided by the Maltese authorities.” The four families are originally from the Ivory Coast, Eritrea and Sri Lanka and after flying in last Wednesday they have been accommodated in the Dublin area. The cost of their transfer was paid for by Ireland..

Ireland is the third country, after Germany and the Netherlands, to welcome refugees under the pact. The selection of refugees and their subsequent transfer took place after lengthy interviews and negotiations with Irish immigration officials. Mr Muscat said the process was very thorough as the Department of Justice’s criteria for granting asylum is stricter than the conditions sought by the United Nations’ refugee agency (UNHCR). “It is not a case of 10 people being selected in a lottery process. This was the result of months of negotiations between the authorities in Ireland, in Malta and the UNHCR offices in both countries...

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