LONDON (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The first deportation flight to Rwanda is set to carry people who arrived in the UK without authorization. Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, has announced that the flight is scheduled to leave on June 14.
The officials have revealed that home security has sent notices to a group of asylum seekers that they will be relocated to Rwanda soon. And the office asked them to get prepared for it.
However, it is still unknown how many asylum seekers will board the first flight to Rwanda. Officials have also claimed that the people who will be removed are in UK police custody.
On the other hand, the British Government is ready to face critics over its removal of asylum seekers.
The statement from the department states, “The Home Office has begun issuing formal removal direction letters to those who are set to go to Rwanda where they will be able to rebuild their lives in safety.”
NGO’s Reacting To UK Home Security Move To Deport Asylum Seekers
Charities and human rights advocates have condemned the UK Home Office’s decision to send the first refugee deportation flight to Rwanda on June 14.
As per reports, the home security has sent notices to the people, mostly from Syria or Afghanistan. They have sent them notices to make them aware that they will soon be deported to a central Asian country.
Freedom from Torture, UK based NGO, wrote on Twitter, “The plan to send refugee to Rwanda is cruel and out of step with public opinion. People seeking safety deserve so much better than this government’s cruel policies”.
They further added, “It is not a done deal- that’s why we have to keep fighting to stop it.”
Freedom from torture is one of the groups of civil society organizations, including Detention action that has issued legal challenges to the home office decision. They have appealed for funding to support these efforts.
Zoe Gardner, head of policy and advocacy at the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI), claimed that 15 Syrians had been told that they would be deported within the next two weeks.
Zoe Gardner tweeted, “We know that our country is better than this. We shouldn’t leave the floor to retrograde rubbish.” She also called on people to speak up for humanity, justice, and generosity.
🗣️”The reason our client came via boat is there is no safe route, no visa route that exists for somebody to leave Syria and come safely to the UK.”
– our @ZoeJardiniere responding to govt’s abominable Rwanda deportation plans. More details + how to resist below /1 🧵 pic.twitter.com/cOsixzTZUb
— JCWI (@JCWI_UK) June 6, 2022
Public and Opposition Parties Criticised Home security’s Plan
Opposition parties have shown dissatisfaction and criticised the conservative government’s plan.
Yvette Cooper, Home Secretary of Labor Shadow, said, “The Rwanda scheme is not about deterring the criminal gangs or small boat crossing; it’s about chasing headlines regardless of reality.”
She added, “This is a completely unworkable, extortionately expensive, and deeply un-British policy. There is no proper process for identifying people who have been trafficked or tortured”.
The UK Government made some amendments to the asylum seeker policy in April and announced the deportation of people who came to the country without legal authorization. Their decision sparked an instant outrage all over the UK.
A survey conducted by one of the major organisations suggests that some 86% of the British public strictly opposed this move. They believe its sheer cruelty to the people who are in desperate need.
Merseyside Anti-Racists Mobilise Against Deportations To Rwanda
Anti racists are gathering to confront the recently announced Home Office policy of deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda. The campaign has already achieved a little success as they successfully released one person who was scheduled to be deported on June 14.
NGO Care4calais Brought Refugees To Liverpool
On Friday of last week, an urgent call came from the Care4calais refugee charity. They have taken around 100 refugees to Liverpool and accommodated them in hotels used by the Home Office, almost certainly ahead of their transport to Rwanda.
We have spoken to over 100 people in detention who’ve been told they will be forcibly sent to Rwanda. Almost all are overwhelmed by total shock and despair.
Many came to the UK believing it to be a good place that would treat them more fairly than the places from which they pic.twitter.com/QXvUOx6uSO
— Care4Calais (@Care4Calais) June 8, 2022
Care4calais called for volunteers to visit the hotels and distribute information leaflets in different languages containing essential contact details for legal and welfare support.
UK Home Security’s Stance On The Deportation To Rwanda
In a statement, UK home secretary Priti Patel said, “Our world-leading partnership with Rwanda is a key part of our strategy to overhaul the broken asylum system and break the evil people smuggler business model.”
She added, “Today’s announcement is another critical step towards the delivering of that partnership and, while we know attempts will now be made to frustrate the process and delay removals, I will not be deterred.”
Conclusion
The UK Home security office seems determined to execute their deportation to Rwanda plan without caring about the criticism they will receive. However, different UK-based NGOs are making efforts to provide justice to asylum seekers.
They are challenging the government’s decision and want a quick justice for the people who have already suffered a lot.