THE SYSTEM of providing State care for unaccompanied children seeking asylum in the Republic may be “racist” and should be reviewed, a senior HSE director has said.
Philip Garland, assistant national director for children and families at the HSE, has also apologised for the health services’ record in providing care for the children, who until this week were put in hostels without carers at night.
“I would have been really annoyed if my daughter had been looked after by someone without any experience,” said Mr Garland, who was appointed to his post in November to implement reforms.
He said the current system of care offered to separated children claiming asylum is flawed because they receive a lower standard of care than Irish children in care.
“One of the problems is that if you are an Irish child you are protected under the Childcare Act, because when you hit 18 years of age the State continues to look after you. But if you are an African or Chinese child you are sent all around the country by the refugee agency away from all the support structures and people you know in Dublin,” said Mr Garland.
“This means they lose all the relationships and networks they have set up in Dublin . . . This imposes a lot of stress and anxiety on the children,” he said.
"Voluntary organisations have raised this as a racist policy. And I think this needs examination," he told The Irish Timesin an interview.
The Government and the HSE have been strongly criticised by the Ombudsman for Children for the substandard level of care offered to unaccompanied children. In a report published last year the ombudsman found 454 children went missing while staying in hostels run by the HSE, which did not have any care staff in attendance after 5pm.
Mr Garland said the HSE had appointed Crosscare, a social care agency of the Catholic archdiocese of Dublin, to provide carers in the hostels. He said the carers began work last week and the hostels for unaccompanied children would be closed by year end.
The charity Focus Ireland will launch a public campaign today urging the Government to provide a statutory right to after-care for vulnerable young people leaving State care.
It is asking people to e-mail the Minister for Children, Barry Andrews, to ask him to amend the Childcare Amendment Bill, which is currently passing through the Oireachtas.