The agreement on immigration matters between Ireland and Nigeria, which was approved by the Government on 27 March 2001 and which I intend to sign as soon as the necessary arrangements can be made, provides a mechanism for the repatriation of a person in respect of whom a decision to deport has been made. The agreement itself has nothing to do with a decision to deport.
In line with usual practice in relation to such agreements, the text will be made available as soon as signature takes place. Thereafter, as this is an international agreement which will involve a charge on public funds, its terms must, under Article 29.5.2º of the Constitution, be approved by Dáil Éireann for it to be binding on the State. Provision is made in the agreement that it will not come into force until Ireland and Nigeria notify each other of completion of domestic procedures required for its entry into force. I will table the necessary resolution in the House at the appropriate time.
The main provisions of the agreement were outlined in reply to Parliamentary Questions No. 23 of 12 April and No. 503 of 1 May. The agreement will replace the present ad hoc arrangements with the Nigerian authorities for the return of their nationals who are residing illegally in the State and will provide an agreed mechanism and structured framework for this purpose.
There is no provision in Irish law which requires me to make inquiries after a person has been deported in relation to the position of that person. On the contrary, the position is that such inquiries must be made in advance of the deportation and any such decision is subject to review by the courts. In the context of the determination of an asylum application at first instance and at the appeals stage, detailed inquiries are carried out on the basis of comprehensive country of origin information, which is updated on an ongoing basis, by both the Refugee Applications Commissioner and the Refugee Appeals Tribunal as to whether an applicant for asylum has a well founded fear of persecution having regard to the definition of "refugee" in section 2 of the Refugee Act, 1996, as amended.
In addition, the Immigration Act, 1999 sets out in a transparent way, the principles, powers and procedures governing the deportation process. These principles include a requirement that the person be given a 15 day period within which to make representations as to why a deportation order should not be made. Even if representations are not made, I am required to have regard to 11 different factors, including humanitarian considerations, in determining whether a deportation order should be made.
Lastly, but most importantly, the making of a deportation order is subject to section 5 of the Refugee Act, 1996, which absolutely forbids the sending of a person "in any manner whatsoever" to a place where the life or freedom of the person would be threatened on account of that person's race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. This overarching principle is the bedrock of Ireland's repatriation framework and cannot be circumvented by the provisions of a repatriation agreement to which the State becomes a party.
Consequently, the procedures of any such agreement, including the Nigerian agreement, cannot be invoked in an individual case in advance of the foregoing provisions of national legislation being applied. It is also open to a person who is not satisfied with the manner in which national legislative provisions have been applied to challenge the validity of any deportation order made by way of an application for judicial review in accordance with the provisions of section 5 of the Illegal Immigrants (Trafficking) Act, 2000, and legal aid is available for that purpose. Some 85 such cases involving Nigerian nationals are currently before the courts.
