Our commitments to the Middle East
2018-04-15 10:26:25 -
Editorial
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Our commitments to the Middle East
 
Some weeks ago, Ireland brought to a close its participation in the EU relocation programme from Greece. The 129 refugees who arrived by charter flight at Casement Aerodrome included 73 adults and 56 children, of which 36 are under the age of 12. This brings the total number of refugees who have come to the country under the Irish Refugee Protection Programme (IRPP) to 1,022, of which 792 programme refugees were settled in Ireland directly from Lebanon.
Speaking following the arrival of the final group from Greece, Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan said Ireland volunteered to take in such refugees as “an act of solidarity with EU member states responding to the plight of an unprecedented number of asylum seekers fleeing conflict in the Middle East, and also because it was quite simply the right thing to do. Ireland committed to offer protection to 4,000 people and work is continuing under the IRPP to deliver on that commitment.”
Minister of State David Stanton separately noted that the number welcomed into Ireland during the scheme, which ended on 31 March, “doubled our existing commitment to bring in 520 people under resettlement in our most ambitious programme ever.”
The Government has announced that it will focus on delivering upon its commitments under the resettlement strand of the IRPP, including working closely with the UNHCR and on the new humanitarian family reunification scheme (FRHAP) aimed at bringing in a further 1,723 people to Ireland.
While Metro Éireann welcomes Ireland’s continued humanitarian commitment to people in the Middle East who have been forced from their homes by conflict and instability, we also urge the Government to do everything possible with our EU partners to find lasting peace in the area, so that its people do not have to seek refuge in the first place.
 
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