JOE BERGIN,
Madam, - Fintan O'Toole outlines some of the inconsistencies that the recent Supreme Court judgment has thrown up in relation to the whole area of Irish citizenship (Opinion, January 25th). Here is another.
It appears that many children of asylum-seekers, who are Irish citizens, may be forced to leave the country with their deported non-Irish parents. These children will, no doubt, grow up, form relationships and have children of their own in another country. This will, more than likely, be the homeland of their parents or some other country in which their parents find refuge. Quite possibly their life experiences will be much more difficult than they would have been had it been possible for the family to remain in Ireland.
The spouses, children and grandchildren of these Irish citizens will naturally be entitled to Irish citizenship under what is sometimes referred to as the "grandfather law". In time, they will probably avail of such citizenship to seek whatever advantage from it that they can. This will probably involve "emigrating" and settling in Ireland.
If the Government chooses to force Irish children to leave the country by deporting their parents, they will merely succeed in creating a new class of Irish citizen who, alien by upbringing and alienated by the shabby treatment meted out to them by the Irish state, will not be at all well disposed towards Ireland, its institutions or its indigenous inhabitants.
The Government should think very carefully before it embarks on a course of action that would cause such a class of disaffected citizen to be created. - Yours, etc.,
JOE BERGIN,
Ballinasloe,
Co Galway.
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Madam, - Your Sports section last Saturday carried a photograph of the Republic of Ireland football team lining up before kick-off at the Heysel Stadium in 1986.
Six of the 11 players qualified to play for this country under the "parentage rule". They were located by hard-working football officials who travelled up and down the motorways of the UK checking out family trees.
As a result of last week's Supreme Court decision, will we have to repeat this exercise in years to come in an effort to locate our exiled citizens and encourage them to play for their country.
Come on, you boys and girls in green. - Yours, etc.,
KEN McCUE,
Coleraine Street,
Dublin 7.