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Compassion versus the Law |
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2005
It proves, as Mr. John O'Neill, the Principal of Summerhill National School, said, that “ice can melt”. He was referring to the U-turn by Minister Michael McDowell to allow the deported Leaving Certificate student, Olukunle Elukanlo to return to Ireland and complete his exams. “It is sad”, he said, “ that it took a group of schoolchildren to teach the Minister for Justice the meaning of the word justice”.
At least he's back. Olukunle Elukanlo is a 20 year old Leaving Certificate student who was deported from Ireland in March this year. He had fled from Nigeria after his father was shot dead by a criminal gang, and he himself was wounded. He had been in Ireland since he was 15 and was attending Palmerston Community School. He was arrested at the Immigration Bureau, brought to Cloverhill Prison overnight and deported back to Nigeria the following day, still wearing his school uniform. He arrived in Lagos, penniless, destitute and with nowhere to go. He has no idea where his mother is. He was beaten up on arrival in Lagos by a gang who thought he had money when they saw the school uniform he was wearing.
Olukunle's life was in Ireland. He spent most of his teenage years here, he had made many friends, was being educated and planning to go on to third-level education. He was working part-time to finance himself. Until 15th March, Olukunle had a fulfilling future to look forward to. In Lagos, he became a homeless, destitute vagabond with no future except crime and jail.
As a result of protests by his Dublin schoolmates, the Minister reversed his decision and allowed Olukunle to return. The Minister admitted that he had “made the wrong decision” and that “he should have been more mindful of his requirement to finish his Leaving Certificate.” The Minister's admission that the decision was wrong is to his credit.
However, many questions remain unanswered. The most important is: How are such decisions made? Many are now justifiably calling for a major review of the whole immigration process. Olukunle had been in Ireland for over three years, surely long enough for all his circumstances to be assessed so that a “wrong decision” could be avoided. The Minister had personally signed the deportation order against Olukunle. Either he had not read the details before making a decision that would utterly devastate a young person's life, or maybe the details were incomplete. Either way, the deportation decision was unjust. People's lives deserve more than a cursory glance.
Other questions arise. The young man stated that, on arrest, he requested to be allowed to contact his solicitor and was refused. However, the Minister was informed that the Gardaí had asked Olukunle if he wanted to contact his solicitor and he declined. This, quite frankly, is totally unbelievable, as Olukunle was desperate to stay in Ireland. The young man stated that he was not given any opportunity to collect any of his belongings. The Minister was informed that Olukunle had been asked if he wanted to return to his flat and collect his belongings and he declined. This too appears highly improbable, as he was deported to Nigeria in his Dublin school uniform, with no appropriate clothes to change into! Clearly the Minister was told lies by the Gardaí to cover up the inhumane manner in which he had been deported.
Olukunle's case is only one of a number of deportees whom the community within which they live, or have lived, believe strongly that they should be allowed to stay on humanitarian grounds. Many have lived here for several years (while their applications for asylum are being processed) and have put down roots in this country. Ireland has become their home, their children are going to school and many are very involved in community affairs. Some of the students in Castleblayney Community School, where a 15 year old student was also deported on the same plane as Olukunle, were receiving trauma counselling. Their communities want to adopt them and give them a new life. Many of them are well educated and skilled. But we deport them and issue work visas to unknown strangers. To return them to their country of origin is to uproot them and leave them to die, if not literally, at least emotionally and psychologically. To quote the Minister of Justice himself (in defending his decision to deport Olukunle): “Immigration policy is not a theoretical matter, it must apply to real people”. Indeed.
Some will say that you cannot run an immigration policy on compassion. The Law must take its course, rationally and objectively.. If the State allowed compassion to determine the decisions which it makes, the whole immigration process would become cumbersome, subjective and unworkable. The Law must take precedence over compassion.
As we celebrated the saint who brought Christianity to our island two days after Olukunle and many others were deported, perhaps it would be pertinent to ask: What would Jesus say?
Jesus was a Jew for whom the observance of the Law was a religious priority. It was the observance of the Law that expressed the commitment and fidelity of the Jew to God and by which their relationship to God could be judged. Jesus, as a good Jew, observed the Law. He made a point of observing the Law. But when the Law took precedence over compassion, then Jesus had no hesitation in breaking the Law. In a beautiful story in Mark's gospel, Jesus, when preaching in the synagogue on the Sabbath, notices a man with a withered hand. He says to the man: “Stand up out here in the middle.” Now why does Jesus invite the man to stand up in public? He is about to heal the man on the Sabbath, which is forbidden by the Law. He is asking for trouble. He is going to infuriate Castleblanies who were watching, who will accuse him of disrespect for God and scandalising the people of God by his disregard for the Law. Why did Jesus not heal the man quietly, when everyone had gone home? Because the God that Jesus represented and revealed, and the God that St. Patrick preached in Ireland, was a God for whom compassion overrides the Law.
Perhaps we should cancel St. Patrick's Day in future years.
The deportation of Olukunle was heartless, cold and cruel. It may have been in accordance with the Law – although the criteria that determine who can stay and who must go are not publicly available and the decisions being made are not transparent. While people are very occasionally allowed to remain “on humanitarian grounds”, compassion rarely seems to have much priority in applying the Law.
The return of Olukunle was welcome. Of course only cynics would believe that Olukunle's return may have had anything to do with the image of the Progressive Democrats as cold and heartless - and an election just around the corner!
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