Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

We are talking about a negotiated arrangement with the country of origin. However, leaked memos have shown that the EU suggested stripping Afghanistan of aid if the government did not co-operate, and all the while acknowledging that the security situation in the country is getting worse. In a country that relies so heavily on foreign aid and where domestic revenue makes up just 10.4% of GDP, the benefactor holds all the power in deals like this. According to Dr. Liza Schuster, a migration expert based in Kabul, the Afghan deal is an example of how developed countries are able to push through their agendas in countries where there simply is not the capacity in ministries to push back.

Currently, more than 9 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan. According to the UN, hunger is a particularly grave issue affecting 1.8 million malnourished people of which 1.3 million are children aged under five. This is aside from the fact that the majority of those who left and do not want to return went due to the Taliban or ISIS. Some were threatened because they worked for the US military over there.

The Minister may say we are negotiating with the Afghan Government, but I still do not understand because it is not an open process in that sense. It is not fair to send them back there.

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