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AS SOMEONE WHO has lived through the reality of the working ban for asylum seekers for over six years I can tell you my life has been deeply affected. Our basic instinct as human beings is to want to live with dignity, and to know you are valued in the society you live in.
To be made feel useless and dependent is the opposite of what freedom and dignity means. Asylum seekers are often highly qualified, ie, in medicine, IT, engineering, education, business.
Barring us from working is wasting precious talents, skills, knowledge and importantly the ability to contribute to Ireland’s development.
There’s so much to gain from allowing people seeking asylum the right to work. To leave home and seek refuge is far from easy. In fact it’s one of the hardest things a human being will face. If from the moment we arrived we could be supported to be part of life here, to be independent and have the freedom to live life with dignity, the damage caused by the trauma of seeking refuge in the first place would be lessened.
If people seeking asylum were supported to have a sense of humanity and allowed to integrate into the communities that are now our homes, everyone would benefit, including the economy.
Mental illness
For a healthy society to exist the State has a duty to step up the fight against discrimination and social exclusion. From the UN to local groups the inhumane treatment asylum seekers have been subjected to has been widely criticised. The mental illness, and all the problems linked to forced segregation are devastating and has a deep impact on the lives and future stability of entire families forced to live in the direct provision system.
I know from direct experience how hard it is to be forced to lie idle, to feel worthless, to feel the frustration of not being able to use my skills and experience. It is devastating and tore the heart out of me, for far too long.
Many people waiting to be recognised refugees are left sitting in limbo for years. Imagine what it means to be left in what is effectively left in cold storage, waiting to be allowed pick up the pieces of your life again.
Severe deskilling
The Direct Provision system and the ban on working leads to severe deskilling, fosters a lack of self-esteem, destroying people’s confidence and in the process turns us into double victims.
The Irish government says it is committed to supporting an intercultural society. For this to happen they must make it possible for solidarity and relationships to cultivate and grow. This is not possible as long as people are kept segregated in direct provision centres.
Being able to work means having colleagues and peers, what a positive step towards fostering positive dialogue and open dialogue between people from diverse cultures and experiences. This can only have a positive impact on society.
What would be nearly as bad as the total ban that exists right now would be if the government decided to give a ‘half right’ or in other words if people seeking asylum were told they couldn’t work full time or confined to certain jobs. Imagine being a qualified nurse but told you can’t work in this profession or told you can’t start your own business or use the skills you have spent years developing.
According to the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, “everyone has the right to work and to protection against unemployment”. Considering Ireland has been championing human rights on the global stage it’s time they walked the talk at home and allowed people seeking asylum the right to work and to live with dignity and freedom.
Lassane Ouedraogo was declared a refugee by the Irish State after six years in direct provision. He had fled political persecution in Burkino Faso and had been in fear for his life. He now works in a third-level institution.
https://www.facebook.com/UpliftIreland/videos/798417333672343/
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I am a counsellor and can confirm that there are counsellors nationwide, newly qualified, only looking out for clients, even if the Government subsidised such services, a sliding cheaper scale could meet the state funding meaning vulnerable persons would have someone to speak to at least. Better to sit on a counsellors chair than on a waiting list.
@Vincent Doyle: the government – and frankly most counsellors – don’t care about the poor.
Counsellors charge about 70/hour and most will hear a please for help coupled with a, ‘I don’t have 70/hour’ and say, ‘tough luck’.
Counselling, psychology and psychiatry in Ireland are money rackets largely. Not because people wouldn’t benefit from genuine help, but because the people in the system in Ireland are in it for themselves and their bank accounts.
So of course, vicious cycle, the rich get help and the poor end up suffering needlessly.
@Vincent Doyle: I am not a five-star chef, and I can confirm there are expensive restaurants nationwide, but nobody on minimum wage is able to eat in any of them, for the same reason that they are unable to access councillers nationwide to address their mental health care, because it is beyond their financial means to do so, regardless of the availability.
The solution is really quite simple, deal with the issues that are causing adults and children to fall through the cracks of our mental health care system, delays span months between someone reaching out for help to mental health care services and that help being given.
Nobody presenting to any A&E department bleeding out is being told to wait a month or more, a mental health crisis for a child or adult is the mental equivalent.
@Vincent Doyle: I have a qualification in counselling. But I haven’t used it yet. I want to get experience before I start off. I know there is a huge need for counsellors.
@Pat Corr: see question further down
@Chris O’Brien: Sorry Chris but your talking nonsense there. There are plenty of low cost and free counselling services provided through charities and other NGOs. Most Counsellors are also reasonable and will often charge on a sliding scale based on a person’s financial position. Not all in the private sector make this accommodation but many do
@Vincent Doyle: depends where these guys got their qualifications .
@Chris O’Brien: you don’t expect experts to offer their services for free or at cut costs ? You any idea as to how much to cost to run a practice with insurance and indemnities , annual fees to their professional body , and expenses for constant regular training and seminars . €70 is nothing . The “poor” just need to prioritise ; laying off the drugs would be a start for many of them and stop making excuses .
@Dvsespaña: why the f u c k do you assume that 5 star places ever intended to cater for the minimum wage sect ? Why are you whinging ? It’s not for you nor is it suppose to be for you . (Not you personally )
In every dept most people want the german system(works for all) , we keep getting the american one (works only for wealthy).
@bruce banner: we ain’t commies or socialists .
Time to bring our troops home from Lebanon. It’s quite clear peace has collapsed with Israel and Lebanon launching attacks against each other. I’d rather our troops brought home safely now instead of them sitting in bunkers with the conflict escalating.
Not properly regulated
And that’s the way the unions & the professional bodies want it
They also run a Monday to Friday health service but people are selfish & continue to get sick/have accidents/give birth at weekends
I am sick to my back teeth hearing of problems & failures in our health service. I’m also sick of muppet politico’s saying it needs more money.
It needs REFORM – real meaningful reform from a minister with the courage to face down all the vested interests
And it appears we haven’t had one of them for the last 40 years
Not properly regulated. Or funded.
Our economy loses 1.8B annually because ADHD isn’t diagnosed or treated.
For context, long term social welfare costs the state 550M. Which is less than a third lost just to ADHD.
And these issues exist because for generations Irish voters choose ‘out of sight out of mind’ for mental health issues. And politicians cynically took advantage of that.
And now we’re all reaping the rewards of our societal shame re mental health issues and our collective hatred of the poor.
Well guess what, pretending problems don’t exist isn’t public healthcare policy. It costs us all. And not a little. It costs us annually more than unemployment. It costs more than out healthcare ‘overspend’.
Until we behave like compassionate humans and fund services for EVERYONE we’ll all just suffer.
The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members
@RIP: bollox ! Pay your way or die . It’s up to clans and families to look after their own. Don’t expect strangers to do it . Thatcher was right about “society”. You want communism or socialism ? You won’t find it in Ireland (or anywhere else for that matter )
@Gerry Kelly, great comment, the whole public sector needs both massive reform and investment in proper IT systems. I wouldn’t mind if there were a few billion put aside for it but only if the management and staff are accountable afterwards. Any excess staff in one area could be offered retraining in other areas and if they don’t want that then there is compulsory redundancies. We now have a situation that management get paid the big bucks but can’t make a decision without getting outside consultants in and once they’re in the costs spiral. Time for a root and branch review of it all while we have the money.
There’s two types of Irish people:
- People who have never used mental health services in Ireland/the rich who simply buy what they need despite the high prices – this group has no issues with public mental heath services in Ireland
- People who have tried to use public mental health services in Ireland and aren’t rich – this group feels like they’re in a third world country and are usually treated like garbage.
FFFG has long been reelected by the first group. The second group typically won’t vote FFFG once they realise just how poor the HSE really is. And why.
@Chris O’Brien: mental health issues don’t care about a person’s pedigree or wealth. It effects everyone . The waiting lists effect everyone too . Can’t always buy one’s way out of them . Talking sh it e as usual. Shut the f u ck and do something about your evidentially whiney sh I Tty situation . No one cares about your ranting. You and your kind do nothing but sit on your arse and expect others to spoon feed you. Do us all a big favour and get off social media and do something constructive . Maybe get a job and take those chips off your shoulders towards people who are better than you or more successful. Alternatively , find a river or moving train and don’t look back. Either way, do one. Ranting here is doing you no favours .
So what is stopping you getting the experience?
@Antoni marr: meeting the criteria for registration ? Recognition of qualifications etc , High expense to run a practice ? Might be a bit of a closed shop eg only register practitioners from a certain organisation ? Funding and a lack of resources would be a big issue . Can’t do it for free and the State will have to intervene as those that really need urgent care don’t have the funds to pay for it
One final note, if this could be connected to refugees in ANY WAY the comments would be rammed. But since this only affects the poor and mentally ill all of those, ‘save Ireland from the refugees’ types are completely disinterested.
Go figure.
Save Ireland, unless it’s the poor or sick or elderly then who cares, right lads?
@Chris O’Brien: eh, THE ONLY PEOPLE who rant and rave on this platform about Refugees and the ills of them , which leads to closing down of the comment sections ; and the ONLY PEOPLE who have gone out protesting against refugees etc and acted violently ARE THE POOR ! So , your thesis is , as usual, nonsense . Sincerely get help where you can. Ranting and raving here isn’t the right way to go about it .
Ag we’re all mad
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