A group of about 70 Nigerian fathers of Irish-born citizens have gone on hunger strike in Dublin, following fears that they are about to be deported.
Most of the men arrived in Ireland after January 1st to be reunited with their wives and had applied for residency on the basis of their Irish-born children.
The men, all staying at the same guesthouse on Lower Gardiner Street, had been already signing on with the Garda National Immigration Bureau every morning. On Wednesday they were given letters telling them to report to a garda at their guesthouse at 5pm yesterday.
They said the immigration authorities told them informally that this was "a preparation for deportation". But a spokesman for the Department of Justice said people would not be deported while a residency application was under way.
There was widespread confusion at the guesthouse yesterday when two bureau members arrived and presented letters to most of the men, telling them to report in person again this evening.
The garda presenting the letters said he could not discuss the matter, but he could confirm that a deportation was not under way last night. The guesthouse owner then told The Irish Times to leave the building as it was private property.
The men said they did not know why some had received letters and others had not, even though they were all in the same situation. They said other men who had come to Ireland at the same time or later than them had been reunited with their families.
A department spokeswoman said Nigeria was one of the countries whose citizens' applications had been prioritised for processing by the Minister for Justice in January. She said it was within the powers of the immigration bureau to ask people to report to them as often as necessary.
The men, together with Residents Against Racism, will hold a protest outside the Garda National Immigration Bureau on Burgh Quay today at 12.30pm. Meanwhile, a rally objecting to the recent mass deportation of Nigerians is planned for Athlone at noon tomorrow.
