Ethnic profiling by Irish state is illegal

Ethnic profiling is a form of racial discrimination facilitated by the Irish state, according to a report published by the Migrant Rights Centre Ireland (MRCI) this week.

  

This issue was also addressed last Friday when the High Court ruled that Section 12 of the Immigration Act is unconstitutional.  Section 12 makes it a criminal offence for ‘non-nationals’ not to produce ID on demand.

“Irish citizens are not required to carry ID, yet Irish immigration legislation states that ‘non-nationals’ have to present ID on demand.  

Gardaí and Immigration Officers are clearly making judgements on who to ask for ID on the basis of colour, accent and appearance and this is recognised internationally as discriminatory,” said Siobhán O’Donoghue, MRCI director.  

She welcomed the court ruling and said that the law now needs to be changed to remove Section 12.  

MRCI wants to meet with the Gardaí to discuss the issue, and states the Garda Ombudsman also has a role to play.

The report Singled Out gives insights into the treatment of black and ethnic minority communities travelling to and from Northern Ireland and in police, immigration and security checks in the Republic.  

Researchers for the report spent time observing border areas and checkpoints and noted how people of visible ethnic origin are the focus of discriminatory checks on trains, buses and on the street.  

For example, in the report, one person describes how he was forcibly removed from a train and detained in a police cell despite having photo ID and proof of his legal status.  

Others spoke about their fears for children as they grow up under a constant cloud of suspicion that they have done something wrong.

“There will be second and third generation Irish citizens and it will be divisive; it will cause bigger problems down the road,” said another victim of ethnic profiling.  

Members of the public interviewed for the research assumed that people being checked, were “illegal.”

Ms O’ Donoghue, MRCI, said, “International research now recognises that ethnic profiling, apart from fuelling racism, is an inefficient and ineffective use of public resources.  Checks and inspections should only be done on the basis of reasonable suspicion and not on the colour of a person’s skin, accent or appearance.”

Avila Kilmurray, Director of the Community Foundation Northern Ireland said that ethnic profiling is having a detrimental impact on the integration of immigrant families and fuelling racism towards black and ethnic minorities. 

It is difficult to live with the constant assumption of guilt and this creates feelings of alienation.
 
Ethnic profiling involves targeting people for the purposes of security and public safety while relying on stereotypes about ethnicity such as colour, nationality, and religion rather than on reasonable suspicion.  

In 2009, the UN Human Rights Committee found that police identity checks motivated by race or ethnicity run counter to the international human right to non-discrimination.

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