Residents’ hunger strike in protest against ‘inhumane conditions’ in the Skellig Star Hotel is on its second day.
Minister for Children, Disability, Equality and Integration Roderic O’Gorman told residents of a controversial Direct Provision Centre that he would “work to get [them] transferred to appropriate accommodation” over 2 months ago, but a representative from his Department told JOE that “until the transfer of legal functions takes place, operational responsibility for Direct Provision rests with Department of Justice.”
A large number of residents at the Skellig Star Hotel Direct Provision Centre in Cahersiveen are currently on hunger strike, as they seek to be moved from the Centre which saw an outbreak of Covid-19 in April.
In an email, Minister O’Gorman, who had not taken up his portfolio by this point, replied to photos emailed to him by residents on 18 May saying “I want to thank you for sharing the pictures, and I will continue to do all I can to highlight your situation and work to get you transferred to appropriate accommodation”.
Dear Minister @rodericogorman,
They shouldn't have to go on a hunger strike to be heard. Move them out. Remember this? #EndDirectProvision #SkelligStar #Cahersiveen pic.twitter.com/YUsKTpMUbe
— MASI – Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland (@masi_asylum) July 28, 2020
A number of Skellig Star residents, and migrant advocacy group MASI, have expressed anger and disappointment at Minister O’Gorman for not acting in the time that has since elapsed.
There is a commitment to end Direct Provision in its current format within the lifetime of this government, and a White Paper is expected to be published by the end of this year, informed by the recommendations of the Expert Group led by Dr Catherine Day.
The Department of Justice told JOE that this “will set out how a replacement to the Direct Provision system will be structured and the steps to achieving it.
“It will be a matter for the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, to progress the matter and to make any decisions around future accommodation provision following the transfer of this function to his Department.”
A spokesperson for Minister O’Gorman’s Department confirmed to JOE this afternoon that the email was from Minister O’Gorman, but reiterated the point made by their counterparts in the Department of Justice;
“Until the transfer of legal functions takes place, operational responsibility for Direct Provision rests with Department of Justice.
“Minister O’Gorman met with Minister McEntee regarding Cahirsiveen [sic] yesterday, and will be in touch with her and Department of Justice officials throughout today. Both Ministers are committed to finding a solution to concerns raised by the residents.”
The statement from Minister O’Gorman’s Department also says that “the policy of the Government is to end Direct Provision, while in the interim improving conditions for asylum seekers living in the International Protection System.
“In this regard, the Minister has spoken with Department of Justice regarding vulnerability assessments and the right to work, and is engaging with Department of Transport regarding driving licences for people living in Direct Provision.”
Since his election for the first time in February of this year, Roderic O’Gorman has been a vocal critic of the Direct Provision system generally, and has made a number of contributions to the Dáil relating to the need for reform and highlighting specific controversies in a number of Direct Provision centres, including the Skellig Star Hotel.
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