Immigrants working in the State are being treated more like economic units than people, seminar delegates were told today.
Groups dealing with migrants called on the Government to address the problems some workers had encountered in getting visas for relatives for short or long-term visits.
The executive chairperson of the Immigrant Council of Ireland, Sister Stanislaus Kennedy, told the seminar in Dublin: "The Irish Constitution recognises the family as the primary and fundamental unit of society.
"However, current Government policy has scant regard for families of immigrants and this causes great hardship and suffering for those concerned.
"There is a need for legislation to be introduced so that families have greater legal entitlements to family reunification.
"This could help to ensure equal and fair applications processes and, more particularly, meaningful family life for all within Irish society."
According to the Central Statistics Office, the State has a population of 4.04 million - the highest figure since 1871. Immigration peaked at 66,900 people in the 12 months to April 2002 but fell back to 50,100 in 2004. Nearly a third of immigrants come from countries other than EU member states and the USA, while just over a third (34 per cent) of immigrants are returning Irish Nationals. Nine per cent of immigrants are Chinese while 8 per cent come from Central/Eastern European countries.
The seminar was told many migrant workers encountered problems trying to get children, wives and partners to join them in Ireland either for a short visit or for a longer stay. Among the problems migrant workers have encountered are long waiting times for visas, high rates of refusal and limited opportunities to appeal against decisions.
A recent study, 'Voices of Immigrants - The Challenges of Inclusion,' revealed many live in Ireland without close family members. Participants spoke of loneliness and isolation as they lived without their partners and children for long periods of time and the difficulties of long-distance parenting.
The Immigrant Council of Ireland was joined by the Irish Refugee Council and the Irish Council for Civil Liberties in calling on the Government to ratify the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families 1990.
They also called on ministers to place family reunification for migrant workers on a statutory footing. The council's legal officer, Ms Catherine Cosgrave, said as the Irish economy grew it increasingly had to rely on migrants to fill jobs.
"If the Irish economy is to continue to grow, Ireland will have to rely on workers from outside of the state and family reunification will remain an important policy issue," she argued.
"Current Government practice lacks consistency and arguably discriminates against different classes of workers.
"As an essential part of Ireland's future, immigrants must be accepted as more than just workers; they are also husbands, wives, fathers and mothers."
PA