The Centre for the Care of Survivors of Torture (CCST) has reported a five-fold increase in the number of torture victims it has cared for since the start of last year.
The Dublin-based centre said its client list in the Republic has risen from 84 at the beginning of 2002 to 590. CCST is marking UN International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, which falls on June 26th each year.
CCST, established in 2001, is the only independent specialist centre in Ireland providing multidisciplinary healthcare services to survivors of torture.
It claims that between 10 and 35 per cent of all asylum seekers arriving in Ireland have experienced torture or other forms of serious violence in their place of origin.
CCST director Mr Michael Begley estimated that if just 10 per cent of the 11,634 asylum seekers who entered Ireland last year are torture survivors, at least 1,100 need specialist medical and psychological help.
"The increase in clients attending the centre can mostly be accounted for by an expansion of the CCST's capacity in response to the increased number of referrals from health boards, doctors and refugee legal services," he said.
"While the human trauma of enforced migration is not captured by our statistics, they do emphasise the reality that survivors of atrocity seek safe haven in our midst".
CCST is marking International Day in Support of Victims of Torture with a 12-hour long dance event starting this evening in Dublin.