AN Albanian musician who has been invited by Trinity College Dublin to do a PhD at the School of Music, and who conducted the Leeds Symphony Orchestra, has been refused a student's visa by the "Minister for Justice, the High Court was told yesterday.
Mr Eno Koco and his wife Ms Raimondo Koco, St Martin's Avenue, Leeds, were both given leave by Mr Justice Flood to judicially review the Minister's decision to refuse them students' visas.
They are also seeking an order directing the Minister to rehear an appeal they took against the refusal.
Mr Colm Mac Eochaidh, council for Mr and Ms Koco, said that his clients were two Albanian nationals who went to the UK in 1991. Mr Koco was the conductor of the Leeds Symphony Orchestra.
In the UK they applied for political asylum in 1991 and were informed of the final refusal of this application in August 1995.
Prior to this decision, Mr Koco was invited by TCD to do a PhD at the School of Music. His sole interest in pursuing this academic qualification was to obtain a doctorate which would be recognised internationally.
The applicants entered the UK lawfully with visas and remained there lawfully. No effort had been or was being made to deport them from the UK.
They applied for appropriate visas to the Minister in this State to enable Mr Koco to pursue his TCD course. On September 15th they were informed of the decision by the Irish authorities not to grant the visas.
On September 22nd 1995, the refusal was appealed to the Minister. In a letter dated November 10th 1995, they were informed the appeal had been unsuccessful.
The reasons given for the refusal were based upon the Kocos's earlier unsuccessful application for political asylum in the UK.
The decision of the Minister was expressed to have been taken in the interests of protecting the Common Travel Area which exists between this State and the UK.
Mr Mac Eochaidh said no inquiry was made on whether they were likely to enter the UK from this State and there was no evidence from the Minister concerning the applicants' possible or probable intention to enter the UK from the State.
He said they were objecting to the decision, which was based on irrelevant circumstances. The applications for student visas should be taken on their own merits. They were not asking for political asylum in the State. There was no evidence whatsoever of any future intent to enter Britain illegally.