Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
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223. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality in respect of the ten persons who were deported from Ireland to Kinshasa on 16 June, if he will detail the circumstances surrounding his decision to sanction the deportation of the persons in view of the fact that no deportations to the Congo have taken place since mid-2011; if he acknowledges that the risks and dangers facing the persons have not changed since 2011 and in some cases have even worsened; if he will suspend future deportations to the Congo taking into account the increasing instability of the region; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32857/13]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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On 16th June last, 10 failed asylum seekers were deported from Ireland to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on a chartered flight which was organised through the EU Frontex network. Belgium, France and Germany also participated in this joint return operation.

In enforcing the law in this respect, Ireland is no different to other countries who also remove individuals who have no lawful right to remain within their territory. Ireland, like other EU member states, uses deportation of illegal immigrants and failed asylum seekers as the policy of last resort. The process leading to a deportation is extensive with many avenues of appeal, including judicial review in the High Court, open to persons subject to Deportation Orders. It should also be noted that a Deportation Order requires a person to remove themselves from the State and it is only where they fail to do so that the State is forced to remove them and enforce the rule of law.

In determining whether to make a deportation order, I must have regard to the factors set out in Section 3 (6) of the Immigration Act, 1999, as amended, and Section 5 (Prohibition of Refoulement) of the Refugee Act, 1996, as amended.

This essentially means that the safety of returning a person, or refoulement as it is commonly referred to, is fully considered in every case when deciding whether or not to make a deportation order i.e. that a person shall not be expelled from the State or returned in any manner whatsoever to a State where the life or freedom of that person would be threatened on account of his or her race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. My Department uses extensive country of origin information drawn from different independent sources in evaluating the safety of making returns to third countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo. The countries that participated in this operation, i.e., Belgium, France and Germany also adhered to this standard in this instance as do all EU Member States for such operations.

Each asylum application received from a citizen of the Democratic Republic of Congo is considered on the basis of the facts, individual circumstances and merits of the case presented and a final decision is reached following a comprehensive examination and investigation of these facts, merits and circumstances taking full account of the political and human rights conditions prevailing in DR Congo and the latest reports of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.