Kurdish government bans deportation flights from UK

September 2, 2010 by Webmaster · Leave a Comment 


The Kurdish Regional Government in Iraq has banned the landing of flights deporting failed asylum seekers to its territory, amidst plans for sixty Iraqis to be deported in the next week.

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Living against the clock

August 18, 2010 by Webmaster · Leave a Comment 


By Rowenna Davies

A family awaits the dawn knock at the door amid fears that ending detention of child asylum seekers will lead to quicker deportations

Fourteen-year-old Farzana Begum sits on her bed. She is wearing eyeliner and heavy silver earrings dangle around her small brown face. Her room could belong to many teenage girls in Manchester. A mirror is propped up on a cabinet and faded printouts of friends scatter the walls. It looks like a safe place, but it isn’t. Two weeks ago, a letter arrived informing Farzana and her mother that, after five years in the UK, their asylum claim had been rejected. Although it didn’t say when they would have to leave the UK, it did say they would be deported if they did not agree to return voluntarily to Bangladesh.

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NUJ member Charles Atangana faces deportation

July 31, 2010 by Webmaster · 1 Comment 


The National Union of Journalists has stepped up its campaign to save Glasgow-based journalist Charles Atangana from being deported to Cameroon where he is likely to face detention, torture or worse.
Attend the protest at 1pm Monday 2 August in Glasgow

The protest will be on Monday 2 August outside the UK Border Agency premises in Brand Street, Govan, Glasgow. There is a map here http://bit.ly/9CzPlO
Time is running out to halt the Home Office deportation order. Several high profile politicians and campaigning groups have already called on the Home Secretary Theresa May to intervene urgently to stop his forced deportation, scheduled for Monday 2 August.
The International Federation of Journalists believes his life would be at serious risk if he was to be deported.
Pete Murray, Scottish President of the NUJ said the situation was very serious. Already, a journalist, Bibi Ngota, had died while in custody in Cameroon and the country has an appalling record as one of the worst jailers of journalists in Africa.
Several Scottish MPs have already agreed to take up the issue and Margaret Curran, Charles’ constituency MP, is contacting the Home Office as a matter of urgency.
The International Federation of Journalists has also written to Theresa May, urging her to intervene as a matter of urgency to stop Charles deportation. President Jim Boumelha said ‘’We have strong evidence that this administration routinely uses security forces and criminal laws to settle scores with the media. As a result, the number of arbitrary arrests and criminal prosecutions of journalists, and even allegations of torture of journalists has soared, raising critical questions about the rule of law and democracy in the Cameroon.’’ He added  ‘’We strongly believe that the life of Mr Atangana will be seriously at risk were he to be deported back to the Cameroon.‘’ We believe that Mr Atangana should be released and allowed to stay indefinitely in safety in Scotland.’’
Asylum seeker Charles Atangana (42) has made his home in Glasgow since being forced to flee Cameroon after being harassed, detained, stripped and beaten while in custody after writing articles critical of the state authorities in his role as a professional journalist.
Pete Murray, who is himself a Glasgow-based journalist, said ‘’We believe that deporting Charles Atangana to Cameroon, where he could face arrest, detention and worse would be a grave abuse of his human rights. Charles Atangana belongs to Glasgow. Charles must stay.”
Brendan Barber, TUC General Secretary said “Charles Atangana is a brave journalist and trade unionist who should not be sent back to face continuing persecution in Cameroon.”
While in Glasgow, Charles has played a significant role in the local community both as a volunteer with the Citizens Advice Bureau in Parkhead, as an active member of the National Union of Journalists and an activist with the Maryhill Integration Network. His family has prominent historical links with the opposition movement in Cameroon and it is feared he would be subjected to violence and likely detention if he was forced to return.
Charles Atangana is a well respected journalist, specialising in economics and current affairs.  He has lived in the UK since 2004, his journalistic activities having forced him to flee Cameroon following harassment, detention and torture by the regime and continuing threats against members of his family who have to remain in Cameroon. Charles has also faced continued death threats while he has been in exile.
Last month, the Home Office accepted a last-minute order to prevent Charles’ forcible repatriation to Cameroon, but now, he has been served with a further deportation order, which gives the UK Borders Agency authority to deport him on Monday 2nd August. Charles is currently detained at the Colnbrook Home Office detention centre outside London.
Judicial Review
We’ve lodged an application for a Judicial Review of Charles’ case, challenging the deportation order, because we believe it is based on an incomplete appeals procedure and that it has not taken account of substantial changes in circumstances in Cameroon, nor has it treated with any compassion Charles’ immense contribution to the NUJ network and other communities in Glasgow. To put it it simply: Charles belongs to Glasgow.  His friends, NUJ colleagues and the people of Glasgow he has tirelessly supported through his work as a volunteer advisor at the Citizens Advice Bureau want him back home.
Cameroon is not safe for journalists

Following a visit to the country in May this year, the Federation of African Journalists described Cameroon as “one of the worst jailers of journalists in Africa“.
A number of prominent journalists are currently held in shocking conditions in prisons in the country.  They were detained in the capital, Yaounde, following an investigation into allegations of corruption at the state-owned oil company.  Tragically, one of them, Bibi Ngota, the editor of the bi-monthly Cameroun Express died in custody last April.
We believe that given the Cameroonian regime’s appalling record of detaining journalists, the detention and torture Charles has already suffered and the death threats Charles has continued to receive while he has continued his journalistic activities in exile, his life will be in grave danger, should he be deported.
IFJ letter to Theresa May
Federation of African Journalists report on Cameroon
What you can do

We are asking all NUJ members, campaign groups and supporters to attend the protest on Monday and also to contact their local MP, MSP and Members of the European Parliament to demand they intervene urgently and call on the Home Secretary not to enforce the removal order until there is a full Judicial Review of Charles Atangana’s case.
Contact your elected representatives via www.writetothem.com .
A model letter which you can use is here. Please feel free to adapt it, to use your own words as you wish and to send it to colleagues and supporters, urging them to contact their own elected representatives, but please send a letter or email to your local MP about Charles’ case now.
Letter from Brendan Barber TUC General Secretary to Theresa May
Letter from NUJ BBC World Service Branch to Theresa May
Contact the Home Secretary
Contact the Home Secretary, Theresa May, appealing to her not to enforce this deportation order. Charles’ Home Office reference number is A1227296
Rt. Hon. Theresa May MP Secretary of State for the Home Office
Fax: 020 8760 3132 (00 44 20 8760 3132              00 44 20 8760 3132
Email: mayt@parliament.uk or Privateoffice.external@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk
Please visit Charles

We’re also asking branches, chapels and individuals to visit Charles, to provide him with some much-needed moral support. Visits need to be arranged in advance with Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre. They can be contacted on 020 8607 5200  Details of visiting times and other visiting restrictions can be found on the centre’s website .
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Iraqi pupil to be deported over age dispute

July 31, 2010 by Webmaster · Leave a Comment 


By Jerome Taylor

An Iraqi refugee who is studying for his GCSEs has been told he will be made homeless and deported because social workers have decided that he is 20 years old.

Rabar Hamad came to Britain two years ago hidden in the wheel arch of a truck, after his parents were killed by unknown assailants in a bomb attack on their home in Iraqi Kurdistan.

He was initially assessed by social workers as an adult and forced to live in a hostel. But following a tribunal hearing he was “re-evaluated” by a doctor who decided that his age was somewhere between 13 and 16. Rabar himself claims to be 16 and says he has official documents which prove his age. But the originals have been lost and photocopies cannot be accepted under Home Office guidelines.

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High Court quashes policy of speedy deportations

July 26, 2010 by Webmaster · Leave a Comment 


Reuters report that the High Court has quashed a Home Office policy which allows for the swift deportation of foreign nationals refused permission to remain Britain, saying it is unlawful.

The court ruled that the policy, introduced in 2007 but widened earlier this year, meant those affected had “little or no notice” of removal and so were deprived of access to justice.

The Border Agency’s general policy allows 72 hours notice of removal but this can be reduced to little or none at all for people in certain categories, such as those believed to be at risk of self-harm or unaccompanied children who might abscond because they cannot be detained.

The case was brought by Medical Justice, a body which provides independent medical and legal advice to detainees in immigration removal centres.

It argued that this “exceptions policy” was being used to swoop late at night and escort people to flights leaving only a few hours later, depriving them of the ability to contact lawyers and launch a last-ditch challenge.

The Home Office argued that its policy was “sufficiently flexible” to ensure there were no human rights breaches and that detainees were given as much notice as possible while safeguards had also been put in place.

But judge Justice Silber rejected that argument, the Press Association reported.

“The policy is unlawful and must be quashed,” he said.

However, he did allow the Home Office permission to appeal against his decision, saying the case raised issues of general public importance, including the constitutional right of access to justice.

A Home Office spokesman said they were disappointed with the verdict and would appeal.

“The policy of making limited exceptions in special circumstances to 72-hour notification of immigration removal has been an important element of our management of removals,” he said.

“The government remains committed to removing individuals with no right to be in the UK as quickly as possible.”

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Precious ‘victory’ as coalition ends detention of child asylum seekers

July 22, 2010 by Webmaster · Leave a Comment 


By David Maddox

DETENTION for child asylum seekers is to be brought to an end in the UK, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has revealed.

Mr Clegg said the family unit at Yarl’s Wood detention centre will be shut down.

The centre in London is where children are transferred to after child detention was earlier ended at Dungavel in Scotland – one of the first acts of the new coalition government.

The announcement was described as a victory for ten-year-old Precious Mhango who faces the threat of being deported back to Malawi with her mother Florence.

Precious’s story came to prominence after her journals of her time spent in Dungavel and Yarl’s Wood were revealed.

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Details Revealed of Secret Removal of UK Asylum Seekers

July 8, 2010 by Webmaster · Leave a Comment 


Refugees who have been refused stay in the U.K. are flown out secretly in planeloads accompanied by escorts pressured by pay incentives to get the job done quickly, according to an investigation in The Independent newspaper.

The U.K. Border Agency (UKBA) is using chartered flights more frequently and using excessive force to restrain detainees appears to be commonplace, according to the details published on Monday.

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Abused, humiliated and abandoned

July 5, 2010 by Webmaster · Leave a Comment 


By Billy Kenber

On a sunny April morning earlier this year, a plane took off from Heathrow’s northern runway at a little after 6.30am and turned towards the South coast. Unlike other flights, this one didn’t appear on any of the airport’s departure boards. Nor were those on board holidaymakers or businessmen.

Instead, this secret flight carried 15 failed asylum-seekers, who were being forcibly removed from the United Kingdom by 45 private security guards. One of those on board was Yves Yitgna Njitchoua, a 34-year-old from Cameroon. “People were screaming and crying because they feared for their lives,” he said in an interview with The Independent. Mr Njitchoua says his wrists and legs were handcuffed for the whole flight. He was allowed to go to the toilet only with the door open and four guards standing outside.

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Hundreds of children deported alone under EU rules

June 22, 2010 by Webmaster · Leave a Comment 


By Neil Puffett

Hundreds of children seeking asylum in the UK have been deported unaccompanied to other European Union (EU) nations without due consideration given to their welfare or rights, CYP Now has learned.

The government’s use of European regulations has been criticised by organisations seeking to ensure the safety and wellbeing of asylum-seeking children.

Under the so-called Dublin Regulation, the UK can remove asylum seekers to their first entry point into Europe, provided it is an EU member, without the need for a formal assessment of their needs or of any asylum claim made in this country. In total, 445 children have been removed under these powers since 2004, 334 of whom were unaccompanied according to figures released in Parliament.

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New hope Leicester Tigers star Tuigali

June 17, 2010 by Webmaster · Leave a Comment 


There is fresh hope that a rising Leicester Tigers star fighting deportation may be able to stay in Britain.

Immigration officials have now called Manu Tuigali’s lawyer and told the Mercury they were “keen to achieve a solution” for the teenager.

On Monday, it was reported that Manu had his application to stay in the UK turned down by the Home Office, meaning he faces being sent back to his native Samoa.

It was a major blow for the 19-year-old, who was about to be offered a professional contract at Welford Road after rising through the ranks at the Tigers academy.

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