Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)

By implication, that means supporting the view that up to 12,000 migrant workers and their families without official sanction should also be given permission to remain and make their lives in the US. We do not single out the Irish as being special and that they alone must receive compassion.

Will the Government extend this to a few dozen people seeking the compassion of the Irish people for refuge and a new life? Seven of the group are under 18 years of age, studying for their leaving certificate examinations. Their classmates are concerned and supportive. Six have been taken to hospital, one described as being in a serious condition. Will the same humanitarian concerns for immigrants in the US, particularly for our fellow countrymen and women, be applied by the Government in the case of those coming from a tragic, troubled and dangerous country?

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