RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR IRISH GOVERNMENT PRACTICES ON

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DUBLIN 000224

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR S/CT HILLARY BATJER JOHNSON
DEPARTMENT FOR S/CT PAUL SCHULTZ

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KVPR PTER PREL PGOV CVIS ASEC KHLS EI
SUBJECT: RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR IRISH GOVERNMENT PRACTICES ON
INFORMATION COLLECTION, SCREENING AND SHARING

REF: A) SECSTATE 32287
B) 07 DUBLIN 859

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1. While Ireland is taking steps to enhance the amount of
information it collects on travelers entering the country, it faces
an uphill battle. Irish laws limiting the use of public data,
public skepticism and the lack of enabling legislation are stalling
efforts to upgrade the quality of data collection. This cable
responds to the questions posed reftel A.

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IMMIGRATION DATA BASES AND TRAVELER INFORMATION COLLECTION
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2. Ireland does not currently have a system in place to collect
either Passenger Name Record (PNR) data nor does it have an advance
passenger information system (APIS). The Department of Justice is
currently preparing a tender for the development of an APIS system,
but it is being stalled by a lack of enabling legislation. Desmond
Foley, of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, who is
tasked with developing the tender, told EMBOFF that a pilot program
may be put in place while the system is being developed.


3. Ireland's sea traffic remains a thorny problem. Most of
Ireland's sea travelers come and go from UK ports and are not
required to present passports before boarding, nor are they
carefully inspected upon arrival, under the Anglo-Irish Common
Travel Area (ref B). Until that situation changes, Irish
authorities acknowledge that APIS cannot be implemented for those
ports of entry (POE).


4. The Ministry of Justice, Equality and Law Reform oversees the
collection of traveler information. Governing their actions on this
point are Ireland's data protection laws. They mandate that
information collected by the government can only be used for the
purpose for which it was collected. Due to these limitations, the
government is focusing its efforts on developing the APIS for now.
Legislation would be required to upgrade to a PNR system.

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WATCHLISTING AND BIOMETRICS
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5. Ireland maintains its own internal watchlists. These lists are
drawn up through information-sharing between government departments
and coordinated by the Depart of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.
There is no current effort to provide information on the Irish watch
lists to other governments.


6. The Irish government does have an automated fingerprint
identification system (AFIS). Electronic fingerprint collection
began in November 2007. The AFIS system is not fully installed at
every Irish POE - airports are being outfitted with the system
first. Because ferry passengers don't travel on passports, Irish
authorities note that AFIS cannot be implemented at their seaports.
Ireland's AFIS system is NIST compliant.

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BORDER CONTROL AND SCREENING
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7. Currently, there is no software in place to screen travelers of
security interest. That is purpose for the APIS tender. Generally
speaking, travelers by road or sea are not tracked electronically.
Most crossings, entries and exits are non-recorded. The Garda
National Immigration Bureau staffs immigration checkpoints at all
ports of entry, and has the authority to detain or question any
traveler, using the same general guidelines that apply to US Customs
and Border Protection officers. Routine, thorough checks are only
conducted at airports.

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Passports
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8. Ireland currently issues machine readable biometric passports.
The electronic chip contains the same details as can be found on the
biographic page of the passport: name, date of birth, place of
birth, and a copy of the photograph. According to Deirdre Fanning
with the Department of Foreign Affairs Passport Office, adding
further information such as fingerprint or other biometric details
would be difficult politically, given Irish privacy and
information-sharing sensitivities. Ireland is not a Schengen Zone
country and is therefore not bound by EU directives in this regard.


9. The passport office operates two centers in the Dublin area that

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print the majority of Irish passports. Diplomatic posts outside
Ireland have the capability of printing emergency passports, which
are generally limited to 11 months or less in duration. They are
similar to the current EPDP produced by US embassies, as they are
machine readable and feature a digital photograph on a foil that is
covered by a thin laminated layer. They do not contain biometric
information. All Irish emergency passports begin with the letter
"X". Full validity Irish passports currently all begin with the
letter "P".


10. Generally, Irish citizens who lose or have a passport stolen
are required to apply for a full-validity replacement. In certain
cases, habitual offenders will receive a replacement with only a
year or two of validity. Because the Irish government is now
electronically storing passport photographs, a one to one comparison
is made for applicants who apply for replacements.

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FRAUD, PRIVACY AND DATA SECURITY AND APPROPRIATE PARTNERS
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11. Based on its recent history as a destination for illegal
immigrants and asylum seekers during the boom years of the Celtic
Tiger, Ireland has vigorous anti-fraud measures. An on-going
high-profile case involves a Nigerian woman who sought asylum based
on fears that her daughters might be subjected to female genital
mutilation (FGM),who may end up being deported due to the discovery
that a fraudulent document was used to support her case.


12. Ireland has stringent data protection legislation. It applies
to all data collected by the government and requires that this
information can only be used for the purpose for which it was
collected.