New legislation being brought forward to replace the 1935 Aliens Act will contain a number of new safeguards for non-nationals facing deportation.
The Bill, to be published within days, will have special relevance to asylum-seekers, guaranteeing them a right to representation on various grounds, before a deportation order is made.
These include representations on their domestic circumstances, humanitarian considerations, length of time living in the State and connections made with it.
The circumstances in which deportation orders may arise include cases where a non-national has been convicted of a particular crime, where he or she has been refused asylum, or has been refused leave to land in the State.
The new legislation will provide that, before making such an order, the Minister for Justice will have to consider a range of issues relating to the circumstances of the non-national. The term "alien" will no longer be used.
It will enshrine the principles of natural justice, the rights of the individual and the UN Convention, and take into account a number of recent court judgments relating to deportation orders.
Those facing deportation will have 14 days' notice of an order being made and will be invited to make representations on a number of grounds as to why they should not be deported.
These will include the duration of the person's residence in the State, humanitarian considerations and representations by those threatened with deportation or by others on their behalf, their domestic circumstances and any connections they may have here.
There are 6,500 people currently seeking asylum in the State. The largest ethnic group is from Nigeria, followed by people from Romania and then by Zaireans.
Applications for asylum reached 3,883 last year, and a backlog of applications has built up.
Last month the High Court found the section of the Aliens Act 1935, from which the power to make deportation orders derives, was unconstitutional as it failed to set out policy or principles on which the orders are made.
In his judgment Mr Justice Geoghegan said: "There is no inherent reason why an Act of the Oireachtas cannot set out some policy matters at least in relation to deportation."
The 1935 Act preceded the Irish Constitution and the 1952 UN Convention on Human Rights, and was based on a 1914 British Act which came into law on the eve of the second World War, when the "aliens" being deported were perceived as Germans or German agents. Following the judgment, the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform suspended deportations.
It is also appealing the judgment to the Supreme Court, but in the meantime is bringing forward legislation which will set out policy and allow the Minister to make deportation orders where these are deemed to be justified. The Supreme Court appeal will be heard on February 23rd.
However, the aliens section of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform was expanded to 153 to deal with new applications and the backlog, and a new centre was opened, to enable them to be processed more quickly.
