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The Price of Dignity Cearta a thrádáil; A Trade-Off Of Rights Conceptualizing a Framework of Dignity for Asylum Seeker Care using Ireland’s Direct Provision as an Illustrative Example

Mughames, Amy LU (2024) MRSM15 20241
Human Rights Studies
Abstract
The issue of dignity in the context of asylum seekers and their care has been widely discussed from various perspectives. As the rate of asylum-seeking increases, so too does the politics surrounding bare minimum standards. In the process of seeking asylum, individuals are increasingly forced to trade-off access to other rights. This study investigates the normative and human rights gaps in asylum seeker care, legislation, and governmental claims in Ireland. It uses Ireland as a case study to address the broader, theoretical question of how to apply dignity as an operative concept within a framework of asylum seeker care, based on a reconceptualization of John Rawls’ Two Principles of Justice as the Principles of Dignity, built on a... (More)
The issue of dignity in the context of asylum seekers and their care has been widely discussed from various perspectives. As the rate of asylum-seeking increases, so too does the politics surrounding bare minimum standards. In the process of seeking asylum, individuals are increasingly forced to trade-off access to other rights. This study investigates the normative and human rights gaps in asylum seeker care, legislation, and governmental claims in Ireland. It uses Ireland as a case study to address the broader, theoretical question of how to apply dignity as an operative concept within a framework of asylum seeker care, based on a reconceptualization of John Rawls’ Two Principles of Justice as the Principles of Dignity, built on a non-ideal foundation. By doing so, the study seeks to illuminate how human dignity is treated as a currency within the realm of asylum seeking. The case of Ireland illustrates how dignity is systematically excluded from the Direct Provision system through various practical and theoretical barriers to accessing a dignified experience of asylum care. Beyond the questionable legal and political approaches of the Irish State, this study applies a critical theoretical lens—including concepts such as liminality, carceral systems and layers, bare life, state of exception, docile bodies, homo sacer, and hostipitality—to uncover the extent of the normative and human rights gaps. Overall, the proposed framework for the application and operationalization of dignity would allow for a more orderly and standardized approach to asylum seeker care by eliminating the trade-off of dignity as a currency to access the human right to seek asylum. (Less)
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author
Mughames, Amy LU
supervisor
organization
course
MRSM15 20241
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Dignity, Asylum Seekers, Direct Provision, Ireland, Normative Gap, John Rawls, Non-Ideal Theory, Liminality, Carceral Spaces, Right To Seek Asylum, Right To Dignity, Human Rights, Asylum Seeker Rights
language
English
id
9177053
date added to LUP
2024-12-04 07:41:54
date last changed
2024-12-04 07:41:54
@misc{9177053,
  abstract     = {{The issue of dignity in the context of asylum seekers and their care has been widely discussed from various perspectives. As the rate of asylum-seeking increases, so too does the politics surrounding bare minimum standards. In the process of seeking asylum, individuals are increasingly forced to trade-off access to other rights. This study investigates the normative and human rights gaps in asylum seeker care, legislation, and governmental claims in Ireland. It uses Ireland as a case study to address the broader, theoretical question of how to apply dignity as an operative concept within a framework of asylum seeker care, based on a reconceptualization of John Rawls’ Two Principles of Justice as the Principles of Dignity, built on a non-ideal foundation. By doing so, the study seeks to illuminate how human dignity is treated as a currency within the realm of asylum seeking. The case of Ireland illustrates how dignity is systematically excluded from the Direct Provision system through various practical and theoretical barriers to accessing a dignified experience of asylum care. Beyond the questionable legal and political approaches of the Irish State, this study applies a critical theoretical lens—including concepts such as liminality, carceral systems and layers, bare life, state of exception, docile bodies, homo sacer, and hostipitality—to uncover the extent of the normative and human rights gaps. Overall, the proposed framework for the application and operationalization of dignity would allow for a more orderly and standardized approach to asylum seeker care by eliminating the trade-off of dignity as a currency to access the human right to seek asylum.}},
  author       = {{Mughames, Amy}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{The Price of Dignity Cearta a thrádáil; A Trade-Off Of Rights Conceptualizing a Framework of Dignity for Asylum Seeker Care using Ireland’s Direct Provision as an Illustrative Example}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}