IRELAND'S PROGRESS ON TRAVEL DOCUMENT SECURITY

UNCLAS DUBLIN 001379

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CVIS CMGT PGOV PREL KFRD
SUBJECT: IRELAND'S PROGRESS ON TRAVEL DOCUMENT SECURITY

REF: STATE 203819


1. (U) Summary. Cons Chief met with Irish Assistant
Secretary for Consular Affairs Ray Bassett to deliver a

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white paper on the 2004 VWP Review as per reftel and engaged
in a lengthy discussion on Irish plans to upgrade the state
of travel document security. With Ireland the 14th ranked
country in terms of non-immigrant admissions to the U.S.,
efforts to tighten up passport security here have a direct
impact on U.S. national security. End Summary.


2. (U) On November 8, Cons Chief met with Irish Assistant
Secretary for Consular Affairs Ray Bassett. The main

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purpose of the meeting was to deliver a white paper
detailing the release of the 2004 Visa Waiver Program
Country Reviews by DHS as pertaining to Ireland. The report
was well received and gave Cons Chief and A/S Bassett the
opportunity to discuss current plans by the GOI to upgrade
the integrity of its travel documents and to better regulate
their use. Given the large numbers of visitors to the
United States entering on Irish passports, this is welcome
news.


3. (U) According to DHS records, there were 428,209 non-
immigrant admissions of Irish citizens into the United
States in FY-2004, making Ireland the 14th ranked country in
terms of admissions to the U.S. Of this figure,
approximately 320,000 entered under terms of the Visa Waiver
Program. In addition, between 1991 and 2004, a total of
34,504 Irish-born people became U.S. citizens through
naturalization. As Ireland's economy has boomed in recent
years and the level of immigration has increased
dramatically, Irish citizenry is no longer restricted to
those whose roots are deep in the Emerald Isle. It is not
unusual to see Irish citizens born in Africa, Asia, and the
Near East. Also, approximately 30,000 Irish passports are
issued each year to residents of Northern Ireland (this
number is expected to grow to around 50,000 per year).
Because of all of this, it is clearly in the U.S. national
interest that the Irish passport scheme is a secure one.


4. (U) A/S Bassett told Cons Chief that the very day of our
meeting the GOI was preparing to announce the launch of the
new biometric Irish passport. In essence, this will merely
require the insertion of the biometric chip into the current
passport, which was introduced last year with the biometric
requirements in mind. The same firm, SDU of the
Netherlands, will be developing the chip. A/S Bassett
estimates that full implementation could begin in as little
as nine months, meaning that Ireland would be well within
the October 2006 deadline.


5. (SBU) A major loophole in Irish law has been that there
are no real penalties on the use of fraudulent documents to
get into Ireland. Anecdotally, we have heard that this fact
makes Ireland particularly attractive to fraudulent asylum
seekers, as the repercussions for travel here on bogus
documentation are far less severe than in other countries.
This legal loophole provided a significant amount of comfort
to the "Colombia Three," the IRA members accused of
assisting the FARC and who escaped Colombian custody,
fleeing to Ireland on allegedly false documents. This case
was a sort of wake-up call to this notable gap in Irish
legislation. As a result, the GOI is currently drafting
legislation that would provide criminal penalties for the
use of false documentation and are looking to British models
for insight. A/S Bassett said that he hopes this
legislation could be introduced by this coming spring.

6.(SBU) A/S Bassett said that Ireland is now beginning to
take seriously the issue of lost and stolen passports and is
developing a mechanism whereby that information would be
passed to the Embassy as it becomes available. In addition,
they are hoping to be able to begin providing lost and
stolen passport information to their visa officers in the
field, something that is not currently done.


7. (U) Comment. Ireland appears to be making a serious
effort to bring its consular operations in line with
European and worldwide norms. Its history, until recently,
as a net exporter of immigrants, caused it to focus on these
issues far later than many other countries, but it has been
able to benefit from their experience in this area to try to
adopt the most effective new technologies, especially as
regarding its new passport. End Comment.

KENNY