Seanad debates

Wednesday, 20 October 2021

Criminal Justice (Smuggling of Persons) Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages

 

10:30 am

Photo of Lynn RuaneLynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The most basic entitlement that people deserve and which this Bill seeks to protect is to be treated with respect and dignity. This starts with the training of the people who will be the first responders to anybody who enters this country.

The Council of Europe's Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, GRETA, committee recently recommended that Irish authorities ensure their front-line staff involved in the identification of victims of trafficking should be provided with regular training and guidance on best practice. By placing a provision in the Bill committing the State to reporting on the level of training provided to officers and officials dealing with smuggling and trafficking, we offer these vulnerable people the best possible chance of being dealt with in a dignified and respectful manner.

In regard to amendment No. 17, to ensure the vulnerable people this Bill seeks to protect are given the protections and rights to which they are entitled, it is crucial smuggled persons are properly identified. Currently, Ireland and Romania are the only two EU states that are placed on the tier 2 watch list of the recently published Trafficking in Persons report. The report, compiled by the United States Government to combat human trafficking, suggests with this ranking that the estimated number of victims of severe forms of trafficking or smuggling in Ireland is either very significant or is significantly increasing.It is, therefore, essential that there is a commitment in this Bill to the establishment of a proper identification process which ties in to the rights and entitlements laid out in it. I am asking, therefore, that this amendment be accepted in order to ensure that the State is properly identifying highly vulnerable people.

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