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Monday, August 20th, 2007A business that assists would-be migrants to Australia claims that there has been a large jump in the number of workers moving to Australia.
Migration.ie spokesperson Barry Dowling told the Irish Independent, “We deal with about 350 applications a month and we probably deal with about half the market for Australia”. The newspaper reports that the company is dealing with an increasing number of construction workers who are looking for jobs as the industry slows down.
He says that people are leaving for economic and lifestyle reasons. “Most people leaving for Australia are looking for a better standard of living and Australia consistently beats Ireland hands down in terms of both cost and standard of living.”
Australia is actively encouraging immigration to deal with a skills shortage. The recruitment efforts include efforts to attract a wide range of workers, including medical professionals, cooks, hairdressers, accountants and construction workers.
The newspaper also reports that the number of students taking up the J-1 visa has also increased substantially.
“Irish Prisoners Abroad” published by DFA
Monday, August 13th, 2007A report highlighting the status of Irish prisoners abroad has been written by Chris Flood for the Department of Foreign Affairs.
According to “Irish Prisoners Abroad”, there are about 800 Irish prisoners abroad, although Mr Flood recognises that this estimate is likely to be on the low side, as not all prisoners are known to consular officials. Prisoners serving time away from their home countries can be disadvantaged for a variety of reasons, and, the report notes, “their plight sometimes evokes little sympathy among some sections of the wider community in Ireland”. However, the Irish government has obligations as a result of international law to ensure the consular rights of prisoners.
The report makes a series of recommendations aimed at ensuring prisoner welfare abroad. These include:
- Recognise a need to ensure best international practice
- Establish a new unit within the DFA dedicated to the consular needs of prisoners
- Establish a register of Irish prisoners abroad.
- Ensure that every prisoner have a right to a consular visit at least once a year.
- Embassies should pursue the automatic notification of consular staff.
- The policy dimension of NGOs such as the Irish Commission for Prisoners Overseas should be funded.
- Prisoners should receive an information pack that would include the details of ICPO.
In launching the publication, the Minister said,
“Of course, if Irish people commit crimes abroad, they must face the consequences of their actions before the local criminal justice system. However, we have a responsibility to ensure that our people are not discriminated against as foreign prisoners, and that any concerns they may have regarding their safety or treatment, are brought to the attention of the relevant authorities within the local prison system or the civilian authorities where necessary�.
The Minister pledged to examine the report to see how the Government might improve on current services.
Mr Ahern also announced a grant of €218,000 to the Irish Commission for Prisoners Overseas, paying tribute to the organisation’s work: “The ICPO is a valued partner in the provision of consular assistance to Irish citizens imprisoned abroad and compliments the work of our diplomatic missions”.
Aer Lingus’ Shannon shift means end to repatriation
Friday, August 10th, 2007There has been substantial commentary on the issue of the Aer Lingus decision to end its London Heathrow route out of Shannon. While most of this commentary has focused on the decision’s effect on the industry around Shannon, a small amount of this commentary has focused on the move’s effect on emigrant travel. One RTE commentator told of a US-based emigrant’s anger at the move, and subsequent pledge to stop using the airline.
There is another dimension, however, as pointed out by Fr Tom Ryan, as quoted in the Irish Times. Fr Ryan told the newspaper that the end of the service will mean that the bodies of Irish people who die in Europe and the UK will no longer be repatriated through Shannon. Families in the West will now need to travel to Dublin or Cork to receive the bodies.
Fr Ryan said, “The dead don’t have a voice and this decision to end the Heathrow service will only add to the distress of families at a very vulnerable time where they will have to embark on long journeys to retrieve the bodies.” He adde that he hoped Aer Lingus would reverse its decision.
A Limerick-based funeral director confirmed that the move would have a negative effect.
“The service at Shannon is used greatly as Heathrow was the hub for all over the world for bodies being repatriated”, said Gerry Griffin. “The emotional impact will be huge for families worried about not being able to bring their loved ones home through Shannon and will only add to the trauma.”
Read the full report in the Irish Times.
Immigration scholar retires
Wednesday, August 8th, 2007One of the leading scholars of Irish immigration to the US is retiring. Charles Fanning, who founded the Irish and Irish immigration Studies programme at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, is leaving teaching after 14 years there, reports the Southern Illinoisan.
Dr Fanning has written and edited more than ten books, including “Exiles of Erin: Nineteenth-Century Irish-American Fiction�, and “The Irish voice in America�, both of which won awards. He began his academic career with a doctoral dissertation entitled, “Finley Peter Dunne and Mr Dooley: the Chicago Years�. Mr Dooley, a creation of Chicago-based Dunne, was a fictitious Irish born-bartender. He says that he will continue to write, and is planning a work of fiction as his next effort.
The new director of the Irish Studies programme will be creative writing professor Beth Lordan.
Read the report in the Daily Illinoisan.
J-1ers go west as traditional spots lose pull
Wednesday, August 8th, 2007California is the big draw this summer for Irish students working in the US summer on J-1 visas, according to journalist Carole Coleman. She reports on RTÉ that there is a growing trend for students to go to the western state, as numbers fall from the traditional favourites of New York, Boston and New Jersey.
Bernadette Cashman of Irish Outreach San Diego says that 2,500 J-1 students arrived this summer; the group contacted employers in advance to and provided orientation for hundreds of the students.
While many are attracted to the sunny weather and the beaches, the city’s proximity to the Mexican border is another big draw: students who are under 21 can buy drink legally in Mexico. High rents and competition from other European students in many of the traditionally Irish areas are serving as additional disincentives.
In a similar vein, the student-run Daily Californian carries an article on the Irish students spending the summer in Berkeley. Journalist Sonja Sharp quotes an area employer as saying the city has become “In the past three or four years, Berkeley’s just become a Mecca� for Irish students A 2005 USIT survey showed that 35% of students wound up in California.
The RTÉ report mentions that some students are having trouble with the wait for their social security numbers. The Emerald Isle Immigration Center’s Padraig Nolan says that some students in the New York area have been forced into debt and even gone home.
See the news stories:
Seanad loses emigrant advocate
Wednesday, August 1st, 2007A longtime advocate for emigrants has lost his place in the Seanad. Pascal Mooney, a former journalist and broadcaster, says he is devasted by the loss in this year’s elections. He was first elected to the body in 1987.
Mr Mooney’s interest in emigrant issues had its roots in his own experience living in London for seven years in the 1970s. He often highlighted emigrant issues, and had a special concern for the emigrants who went to Britain in the 1940s and 1950s. He told the paper,
“The biggest single fallout from this political disaster is that all work now stops at national level. It’s always been seen as a marginal issue and many do not understand the psyche of the emigrant. I have always been acutely aware of it.”
He said that he had been receiving support from individuals and emigrant groups in Britain, adding that his supporters “have been making strong representations to make sure the emigrant voice is continued.
Read the article at the Irish Post website.
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