More than 400 stowaways turned away from Irish ports in space of four years
A spokesperson for the department said the individuals were refused leave to land following their detection.
The figures relating to attempted entries through a sea border in Ireland have risen from 56 in 2020 at the height of the pandemic to a high of 119 in 2022. There were 435 stowaways detected in total between 2020 and 2024. There were 96 stowaways in 2021, 73 in 2023 and 91 last year. No figures for this year are available officially so far.
In January, nine men were found in a container in Rosslare Europort, which led to calls for the French port authorities to put stricter security in place.
Two men were also found in a container at Rosslare Europort last October, and gardaí launched a human-trafficking probe following the discovery of 14 people in a shipping container in Rosslare Europort in January last year.
In contrast to the numbers of migrants arriving by small boats in the UK, the Department of Justice said there have been no 'small boat' arrivals in Ireland over the past five years.
Marine experts say this is due to the much longer distance from France to Ireland and the rougher seas. John Lannon, the chief executive of migrants rights organisation Doras, said immigration policies force people seeking international protection to make dangerous decisions to board small boats or to hide in containers and lorries making ferry crossings.
'They often do so because they see no better alternatives and as a result they often end up in situations where their lives are at risk,' he said. 'Policies designed to make it more difficult for people to seek international protection in Ireland are dangerous and misguided. They put people's lives at greater risk and are playing into the hands of smugglers and traffickers.'
Up to the end of last May, he said there were 5,037 applications for international protection in Ireland, compared to 9,199 in 2024.
'Forcing freight companies and lorry drivers to have to take preventative measures to stop people stowing away on their vehicles or containers has the effect of preventing people who want and need to apply for asylum in Ireland from doing so,' he said.
'Equally, we know people regularly need to escape from persecution or war without valid documents, as getting these from a government that's persecuting you is not possible.'
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Irish Independent
12 hours ago
- Irish Independent
More than 400 stowaways turned away from Irish ports in space of four years
Figures released by the Department of Justice show 91 people were detected last year attempting a 'clandestine entry' into the country on a passenger or freight ferry. A spokesperson for the department said the individuals were refused leave to land following their detection. The figures relating to attempted entries through a sea border in Ireland have risen from 56 in 2020 at the height of the pandemic to a high of 119 in 2022. There were 435 stowaways detected in total between 2020 and 2024. There were 96 stowaways in 2021, 73 in 2023 and 91 last year. No figures for this year are available officially so far. In January, nine men were found in a container in Rosslare Europort, which led to calls for the French port authorities to put stricter security in place. Two men were also found in a container at Rosslare Europort last October, and gardaí launched a human-trafficking probe following the discovery of 14 people in a shipping container in Rosslare Europort in January last year. In contrast to the numbers of migrants arriving by small boats in the UK, the Department of Justice said there have been no 'small boat' arrivals in Ireland over the past five years. Marine experts say this is due to the much longer distance from France to Ireland and the rougher seas. John Lannon, the chief executive of migrants rights organisation Doras, said immigration policies force people seeking international protection to make dangerous decisions to board small boats or to hide in containers and lorries making ferry crossings. 'They often do so because they see no better alternatives and as a result they often end up in situations where their lives are at risk,' he said. 'Policies designed to make it more difficult for people to seek international protection in Ireland are dangerous and misguided. They put people's lives at greater risk and are playing into the hands of smugglers and traffickers.' Up to the end of last May, he said there were 5,037 applications for international protection in Ireland, compared to 9,199 in 2024. 'Forcing freight companies and lorry drivers to have to take preventative measures to stop people stowing away on their vehicles or containers has the effect of preventing people who want and need to apply for asylum in Ireland from doing so,' he said. 'Equally, we know people regularly need to escape from persecution or war without valid documents, as getting these from a government that's persecuting you is not possible.'
Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- Irish Examiner
Cork woman on trial for deception said she feared for both her and her children's lives after harassment
Cork woman Catherine O'Brien has told her trial for deception charges of her fears for both her and her children's lives after harassment at her Dungarvan home. The 47-year-old Buttevant native left the Waterford town after the incident in September 2019, during which, she said, men had been shouting through her letterbox and rattling her side gate before sending her a WhatsApp video message 'demanding' thousands of euro. She referenced the incident when she was being cross-examined by counsel for the State, Conor O'Doherty, at Waterford Circuit Court on Friday. Ms O'Brien is accused of deception charges related to a man called John Blake and the purchase, transport, and insurance of a French mare called Lingreville. It is alleged that she 'dishonestly by deception' induced Mr Blake to pay €20,000 to purchase the horse — which the State alleges was not purchased; to pay €1,100 insurance for the mare — which the State said was not paid; and €984 to transport the horse from France to Ireland — which the State says was not transported as alleged. Ms O'Brien, of An Grianan, Ballinroad, Dungarvan, Co Waterford, has pleaded not guilty to the three charges of making gain or causing loss by deception contrary to Section 6 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001. During the seventh day of the trial, Ms O'Brien said of the incident at her home: 'It was a horrible, scary event. My life was threatened. My children's lives were threatened. 'I was not comfortable in Dungarvan.' She responded to questions by Mr O'Doherty about her whereabouts from September 2021 — when the DPP had directed that she be charged — until her arrest in June 2024. She said she spent time outside the jurisdiction in Newry 'foaling mares', as well as in Louth and Meath. She added: 'I was back in Dungarvan in May 2021 for at least a week. I went to Cork after that to my daughter's graduation.' She also said she had spent around a week in France. Mr O'Doherty queried whether she was aware that she was wanted by gardaí in relation to the case before the court. She said she had read a report in the Irish Examiner in 2023 saying that she was sought by gardaí but said she 'took it with a pinch of salt' at the time. She said she was regularly receiving any mail sent to her home in Dungarvan and did not receive anything 'to say I was wanted by anybody'. She also said she was unaware there were court proceedings relating to the complaint she had made regarding the September 2019 incident at her home. She said her solicitor, Ray Kavanagh, had not contacted her to say she was being sought for it. She added: 'I would have turned up if I had known.' She accepted that her arrest in Meath in June 2024 was not by arrangement. During cross-examination, the court heard that a phone number used by the accused had also been linked to communications with Wetherbys and Five Star Bloodstock by women called Kate Egan and Amy Power, respectively. Mr O'Doherty asked Ms O'Brien who these women were and if Amy Power was a fake name she had used, to which she replied: 'I do not accept that.' The trial is being presided over by Judge Eugene O'Kelly and is being heard by a jury of seven women and five men. It will continue on Tuesday.
Extra.ie
3 days ago
- Extra.ie
Brigitte Macron's accusers free to say what they like after appeal court ruling
Two women who had been convicted of defaming the French first lady Brigitte Macron by saying she was 'born a man' were today cleared on appeal. Judges at the Appeal Court in Paris have today ruled that Amandine Roy, who is a 53-year-old clairvoyant, and Natacha Rey, who is 49 and a blogger, had every legal right to make the false allegations. Both women claimed to have been subjected to 'intimidation' by the French authorities and accused 'ultra protected' members of the Paris establishment of trying to cover up a 'state secret'. Brigitte Macron. Pic:Lawyers for Brigitte Macron, who is 72, have indicated that the French First Lady is 'devastated' by the development, and plans to take the case to France's Cassation Court which deals with civil and criminal cases and is the highest court in the land. Ms Macron is currently returning from a State Visit to Britain with her husband, President Emmanuel Macron and was not in court to hear today's judgement. The two women who made the claims had appeared in a Youtube video back in 2021, in which they falsely claimed that Brigitte was in fact born a male, called 'Jean-Michel Trogneax' in 1953, but this is the name of Brigitte's brother, and Trogneux was her surname before her first marriage. French president Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron. Pic: Chesnot/Getty Images The defendants also claimed that Brigitte's first husband, André-Louis Auzière, had never actually existed. Earlier this year, a Judge in Normandy fined the two women around €1,900 euros each, after finding them both guilty of libel, but now they won't have to pay anything and are free to repeat their allegations against Ms Macron. The two women had been sued by Ms Macron in 2022, but were not in court today to hear the judgement which ruled that the assertions made in the video 'do not constitute defamation' and instead represent 'good faith' free speech. It comes as Brigitte Macron finds herself increasingly under attack, not just in France, but right across the globe, with several influencers like American Candace Owen also stirring up outlandish conspiracy theories about the French first lady. Brigitte Macron. Pic: Chesnot/Getty Images 'Becoming Brigitte', a controversial book about her personal life written by journalist Xavier Poussard, is also said to be stirring up conspiracy theories about her. Ms Macron is currently finishing up a State Visit to the UK along with her husband President Emmanuel Macron, despite being in mourning due to the sudden death of her older sister Anne-Marie Trogneux less than a week ago. A spokesperson for the First Lady said 'Madame Macron adored her sister, and the loss has affected her greatly, but she agreed it was her duty to be in the UK alongside her husband, despite it coinciding with a period of mourning'.
