The Irish Refugee Council report, Asylum in Ireland, contained descriptions of a number of assessments, with comments on their shortcomings.
These included minimising or dismissing the applicant's fears. For example, the examiner stated in relation to one applicant: "In regard to the applicant's alleged arrest because he was accused of having urged people to vote against the mayor of his town, it will be seen that if this occurred, it would have been just a vindictive act on the part of the mayor and not connected with any political reason."
A Rwandan Hutu woman who fled to Zaire where she was beaten and raped had her application for refugee status turned down.
The assessor wrote: "There is no doubt that X found herself in a terrible situation, - but so did too many thousands of other Rwandans - simply because they had become innocent victims of a tragic conflict.
"I find it difficult to accept that alone in the population the (Zairean) soldiers were actually targeting her for particular attention."
A Nigerian woman unsuccessfully sought asylum on the basis of having been detained, interrogated and kept in solitary confinement on countless occasions, when she was also raped.
The assessor commented: "Applicant 96 claims she was raped on several occasions while in detention. "If true, this must have been a dreadful ordeal for her, however, it is evident that this alleged rape was a criminal act perpetrated on her by the guards. It was not connected with any political opinion she may have held."