Gardaí are investigating an elaborate passport scam in which men are alleged to have falsely claimed to be the fathers of children born to single women, writes Carl O'Brien, Social Affairs Correspondent.
The mothers now face the prospect of going to court to prove through blood or DNA tests that details on their children's birth certificates are incorrect.
The cases all involve births in the Rotunda hospital in Dublin. An Irish woman and a male non-national are among those believed to have been questioned in relation to the fraud.
In at least one case the pair allegedly went to the general register office, posing as a couple, and claimed they were the parents of the child. The non-national then allegedly went on to seek an Irish passport as part of a claim for Irish citizenship.
It is unclear how the details of the birth were obtained by the pair.
The Department of Health confirmed yesterday that four cases were the subject of a Garda investigation. The General Register of Births, Deaths and Marriages has since strengthened security procedures for entering registration details since it was alerted to the alleged fraud.
A spokesman for the registrar-general declined to comment on the specific case, but defended the office's procedures. He said identity checks had been strengthened and a new electronic registration system was being introduced. This would offer greater security, provide for local registration of details and involve the transfer of hospital records directly to the office.
"Where something comes up which suggests there may be a chink in our armour, we revise our procedures," a spokesman said. "We are always building on our past experience to ensure births are properly registered."
At least one of the women affected is due to go to court shortly in an effort to prove that the man listed on her child's birth certificate is not her child's father.
The mother, who does not wish to be identified, says she has been unable to travel abroad with her child since the fraud occurred and is facing a large legal bill as she tries to resolve the issue.
The General Register of Births, Deaths and Marriages records about 66,000 birth a years. About 4,000 cases are amended each year, typically for misspelled names.
The Status of Children Act 1987 provides for the use of blood tests and other data in determining the parentage of children in civil proceedings.
Sinn Féin's Mr Aengus Ó Snodaigh TD, who represents Dublin South Central, where the woman lives, said she was unhappy with the response of State authorities.
"This is a woman who doesn't have a lot of money and, through no fault of her own, is having to go about this process with little help or support from any of the authorities," he said.
"She was shocked to find out what happened and has been trying to resolve it ever since. The only option she has is to go through the courts to prove that the details on the birth certificate are incorrect," he added.