VOL. XXV, Issue 5, UO

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Features

Should UCD hold winter exams after Christmas? Orla Keaveney & Nathan Young P7

The Work-Work balance of nursing students Andrea Andres

VOL. XXV, ISSUE 5

Proportion of young people working in Ireland at risk of poverty doubled in 2017

Science

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Sports

Autonomous robotic surgery: The new frontier

The refereeing rollercoaster

Lillian Loescher P12

Rory Clarke P20

THE UNIVERSITY

OBSERVER 29th January 2019

UNIVERSITYOBSERVER.IE

“As soon as you get into Direct Provision, you become a number” - Life as a student in Direct Provision

Brían Donnelly EDITOR Statistics from the European Statistical Office, Eurostat, released last week show that the proportion of working young people (aged 18 - 24) at risk of poverty more than doubled between 2016 and 2017. At 9.3 per cent, almost one-in-ten working young people in Ireland are now at risk of poverty. This places the country among others such as Austria (8.4 per cent), Belgium (9.4 per cent) and the Netherlands (10.5 per cent) which are experiencing similar levels of at-risk-poverty in working youth. The new data published by Eurostat put an end to the downward trend which had been seen in the country over the three years to 2016, where 4.7 per cent of young people in work were at risk of poverty, and is at odds with the general downward trend in other EU countries. Among EU countries, Romania and Luxembourg had the highest rate of working young people at risk of poverty, at 28.2 per cent and 20 per cent respectively, while Czechia and Slovakia recorded the lowest for the year 2017, falling in at 1.5 per cent and 3.8 per cent respectively. In total, 12 EU countries recorded rises in the proportion of working youth at risk, including Spain, Malta, Lithuania and Estonia, which experienced the highest proportionate rise within the EU. Greece, whose economy is expected to grow by 2.2 per cent in the first quarter of 2019, experienced the biggest drop in at-risk young workers, but remains high at 14.1 per cent. Across the EU, 11 per cent of young workers are at risk, down 1.9 per cent from its peak in 2014. The figure is higher on average for those countries in the Euro Area countries, at 11.9 per cent, however, is still down on the previous year where it reached 12.6 per cent. Ireland has experienced a high rate of growth in recent years with the Department of Finance forecasting GDP growth of 7.5 per cent for 2018. Figures released in December show that the economy grew by an annualised 4.9 per cent in the third quarter of 2018, while the unemployment rate in December was 5.3 per cent, down from 6.2 per cent a year earlier. Youth unemployment in December 2018 was 12.2 per cent, falling marginally from 12.3 per cent in November. Speaking to Kildare FM on 25 January, Political Officer at the European Commission Representation in Ireland Tim Hayes said that the Eurostat figures “seem to indicate that people just aren’t earning enough, that they’re in low wage jobs, or perhaps part-time or zero-hour contract jobs.” The figures come after the Central Statistics Office (CSO) in Ireland released its Facts and Figures 2018 report this month which showed that 11.8 per cent of children and 10.2 per cent of persons under 60 were living in jobless households. Despite increases of between 4.7 and 5.5 per cent in disposable income and earnings, the report noted that 18.8 per cent of people were considered to be experiencing “enforced deprivation”. Eurostat identifies individuals as being at risk of poverty if their equivalised disposable income is less than 60 per cent of the median equivalised disposable income after welfare transfers are accounted for. The equivalised disposable income is the total income of a household, after tax and other deductions, that is available for spending or saving, divided by the number of household members converted into equalised adults. According to the 2017 Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) report published by the CSO, approximately 109,000 people with jobs in Ireland are living in poverty. Social Justice Ireland, an independent think tank and advocacy organisation, recently stated in relation to the report, that while “many people assume that a job is an automatic poverty reliever...this is clearly not the case.” Eurostat’s figures show that the proportion of all working persons over the age of 18 who are at risk of poverty rose by 0.3 per cent.

UCD Main Restaraunt (center) was boycotted by anti-direct provision campaigners in 2018

Dylan O’Neill DEPUTY EDITOR A UCD student has come forward to describe his experience of living under direct provision as “nothing better than what was happening with the Magdalene laundries.” Liam Hanley*, a first year sociology and social policy student, has spoken to The University Observer about his experience over the past two and a half years, attending UCD whilst living in a direct provision centre. Having first come to Ireland as an asylum seeker, Hanley described the initial procedure upon entering the Reception and Integration Agency (RIA) in Balseskin, Dublin. “There they get all your information, your particulars, your private information, they get them through medicals and everything. After a while, at least three weeks, you are then transferred to a centre out of Dublin, where you are then going to start your new life in a prison set-up.” Asylum seekers entering direct provision are provided with a bed, food, access to a GP and €21.60 per week for all their expenses including transportation, toiletries and “meals for the day” if they are not in the centre at the set meal times. Hanley spoke of the restrictions he faced once he had settled into the centre, “you’re not allowed to work, you can’t open a bank account. You basically are stuck in there. You have got to adhere to all the meal times. Out of meal times, if you missed your meal, you missed your meal, that’s it.” As of 29th June 2018, the Irish Government’s decision to opt-in to the EU reception conditions directive took effect and allowed asylum seekers who have been waiting nine months for a first instance decision to seek employment in Ireland. Permission for seeking employment is for 6 months at a time and applicants must re-apply in advance for permission to work, according to the Irish Refugee Council. This was later confirmed by a spokesperson from the Department of Justice, who added “the regulations provide access to both employment and self-employment in all sectors and categories of employment with the exception of the Civil and Public Service, An Garda Síochána and the Irish Defence Forces.” “The Department of Justice does not take that lightly and remember we’re not even allowed to leave the state, because all our documentation is taken and we are given an identity by the department, which is not an ID, just to say you are an asylum seeker. That has a number so you lose your name instantly. As soon as you get into direct provision you become a number.” Within the centre, Hanley has said that the living conditions operate under a “prison set-up”. “I feel

[management] are all taught and told that ‘these are the prisoners, you are jailors, you look after them.’” Describing the health services available to the centre’s residents, Hanley said, “mental health is the order of the day in all direct provision centres and no one bothers. We’ve got people that we just avoid because they are violent. Yes, we do have our medical cards. You get a GP as of when you need, but the GP has to be there or you have to leave [the centre], so medically you are covered like all other Irish people I suppose.” When asked by the University Observer for comment, a spokesperson from the Department of Justice said “any residents with complex medical conditions or identified vulnerabilities are transferred to RIA’s Reception Centre at Balseskin so that their needs can be addressed. RIA also holds on-site clinics to address any health issues with residents. A resident can apply for a transfer to another accommodation centre. This may be facilitated in exceptional circumstances, for example, a medical reason.” Hanley entered UCD through an access course, before enrolling as an undergraduate in sociology and social policy. “It’s good studying, at least it brings a bit of sanity back to me, as opposed to living in Direct Provision where you sit all day, wait for your meal times, wait to go to the toilet, sleep, wake up and that is the routine.” UCD was awarded University of Sanctuary status in March 2018, which permitted refugees and asylum seekers access free fees under the new policy. University College Cork, University of Limerick and Dublin City University are the only other universities in Ireland to have been awarded University of Sanctuary status. “Coming to UCD has been a change, it has been a daybreaker for me. It’s been everything for me, I regained my sanity, I consider myself as a human being again.” Despite not paying college fees, transportation is still a concern for Hanley on a day-to-day basis. “I started my first year, I moved to Waterford. In Tramore, I had to wake up at 3:30am and walk for an hour to catch my 5am bus in the city centre. Travelling has been a killer and going through the day without a meal. Going back to try and catch my supper, which was never possible, because I would get back to the centre after 8pm. When I get there, there’s nothing left.” When asked if he could apply to transfer to a direct provision centre closer to the Belfield campus, Hanley replied, “I wouldn’t get a transfer because the Department of Justice will always tell you that it is not their priority for any asylum seeker to be attending college, it is a choice.” This situation has led to many problems both academically and socially while he attends UCD. “I’m behind in everything because I can’t do classes late in the afternoon...or I have to go without a meal.” When he

is unable to attend lectures in the afternoon, Hanley has received help from some of his lecturers who “understand something about Direct Provision...and they will be very accommodating, that will want to assist out of lecture times and out of tutorial times. I am very grateful for those that do understand and they offer support and assistance.” Hanley spoke of how UCDSU has helped him in attending college,“there is an arrangement with the Students’ Union in UCD where they will provide lunch vouchers.” A strong advocate for the end of direct provision, Hanley believes that the centre of the problem is that “people don’t know anything about it. They don’t know the kind of life, they are not exposed to it. Direct provision is there, it’s being spoken about but no one says the truth.” Speaking about how direct provision will be perceived in the future, Hanley said that “I know in the future, this will haunt the government, this will haunt the state.” “I am very pitiful of the children that live in direct provision because they don’t have a life that children should have. I would also plead with whoever is in power to at least get the children and single mothers accommodated in a decent manner if they still want to keep the system, because it just doesn’t work for the children. It’s a disgrace.” “I just believe that [the Irish Government] must end Direct Provision, they must stop deportations, they must give the full and unhindered right to work. People must be allowed to get driver’s licenses and drive to work. People must be allowed to open bank accounts. The people must get back their lives and just be treated like human beings. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.” Information received under the Freedom of Information Act 2014 shows the total number of people living in direct provision centres in Ireland is 5,938, as of 2nd December 2018. The University Observer has learned that there are 26 registered students currently living under direct provision, according to UCDSU. The University Observer approached the Department of Justice for comment, to which a spokesperson replied “It is important to stress that in general, the majority of those living in RIA accommodation centres, have either made claims for international protection that have not yet been positively determined or their claim has not been successful and they are challenging a decision through the Courts. Applicants who have been granted status or a permission to remain – either because their claim for international protection has been accepted or on other discretionary grounds – should no longer be residing in accommodation centres as they have the same housing, social welfare and other rights as everyone else.” *Name has been changed.

29TH JANUARY 2019

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