Corruption & Slavery Mentality:

RWANDA trades Asylum Seekers’ freedom in Britain for  £120million cash payment, turns African country into deportation haven 

… ‘If you are a Refugee seeking applicant, Asylum person or you came into United Kingdom illegally by boat, train or plane, you will be issued a-one-way ticket and be deported to Rwanda’, says Boris Johnson, British Prime Minister

*Immigrants have no statutory right to appeal deportation while in Britain, once inside the plane undocumented immigrants becomes the responsibility of Rwandan government

*“Migrants are subject to Rwandan immigration rules as soon as they land. These people will be encouraged to apply for refugee status, and will have no immediate right to return to the UK. Anyone the Rwandan authorities decide to deport-such as people who commit a crime-can be sent to the first ‘safe’ country or their country of origin. Asylum seekers will stay in a hostel while their claims are processed. This is expected to take about three months”-Rwandan government 

*“We believe that plans to send those claiming asylum to offshore centres would breach three articles of the European convention on human rights and three of the articles of the refugee convention. It could also be challenged under discrimination legislation if, for example, Ukrainians are seen to be exempt”-Senior counsels in London

*BY GEORGE ELIJAH OTUMU/AMERICAN Senior Investigative Journalist

HOPE for a better life for immigrants coming to United Kingdom, UK, has been dashed by the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson after entering a multi-million pounds deal with the Rwandan government where a princely sum of One hundred and twenty one million pounds cash payment exchanged hands (£120million) wired transferred into the African country to keep refugees and asylum seekers away. Rwanda has now become the refuse dump for deportees from Britain. 

The government’s plan to force people seeking refuge in the UK to leave with a one-way ticket to Rwanda has surprised many, has few precedents, and has been condemned as cruel and unworkable. Any adult who comes into the UK without authorisation-via train, boat or plane- could be considered for relocation to Rwanda. There will be an assessment stage, where the strength of each individual’s asylum claim will be taken into account, officials said, as well as the way they arrived in the country.

UK officials say it is “the strength of their claim”, but details so far are scarce, partly because they do not want to tip off people coming to the UK. Rwanda has said it will only accept adults without a criminal record.

Johnson has said the agreement is “uncapped” and that Rwanda will have the “capacity to resettle tens of thousands of people in the years ahead”. But officials believe it will take weeks, if not months, for the scheme to actually begin sending people to Rwanda. Those seeking asylum from Rwanda are not expected to be sent back there, regardless of how they entered the UK.

Once someone is told they are going to be removed, they are given five days’ notice and are able to make representations during that period. Officials say most people in that period have access to legal advice. However, there is no statutory right to appeal.

While in the UK, they are, officials say. But once placed on a plane, they would be the responsibility of the Rwandan government.

Migrants are subject to Rwandan immigration rules as soon as they land. The Rwandan government says they will be encouraged to apply for refugee status, and will have no immediate right to return to the UK.

Anyone the Rwandan authorities decide to deport – such as people who commit a crime – can be sent to the first “safe” country or their country of origin. Asylum seekers will stay in a hostel while their claims are processed. This is expected to take about three months. They will be allowed to move around freely and leave the property, Rwandan officials say.

The taxpayer will foot the bill, including for the cost of chartering flights to remove detainees, but ministers are not saying how much the programme will cost. Britain has promised Rwanda an initial £120m as part of an “economic transformation and integration fund”, but the UK will be paying for operational costs too.

The Home Office said a set amount of funding will be provided for each relocated person. But it declined to say how much, other than to say it will be comparable to current processing costs in the UK and cover case workers, legal advice, translators, accommodation, food and healthcare.

The agreement struck with Rwanda also says the UK will resettle “a portion of Rwanda‘s most vulnerable refugees” in the UK.

No, a similar agreement was signed with Israel that lasted from 2014 to 2017. Hundreds of detainees swiftly left the country. Reports claimed many returned to Europe. The Danish government has been in talks with the Rwandan government and held a series of high-profile meetings regarding returning migrants last summer.

Almost certainly. Senior counsels believe that plans to send those claiming asylum to offshore centres would breach three articles of the European convention on human rights and three of the articles of the refugee convention. It could also be challenged under discrimination legislation if, for example, Ukrainians are seen to be exempt.

This is an idea that has been years in the making, as the numbers of people travelling to the UK by small boats has soared. It follows a series of other outlandish plans such as pushing back boats with wave machines – which have never happened. But the idea that the UK may send refugees in large numbers to Rwanda remains so outlandish that staff in the Home Office, Border Force guards and human rights lawyers are unsure whether it will actually ever happen.

However, it is certainly a distraction from Boris Johnson’s recent fine for breaking Covid rules, and is hugely popular among a cohort of backbench MPs who hold the fate of Johnson and Patel in their hands.

UK Plan to Ship Asylum Seekers to Rwanda is Cruelty Itself

Government Continues to Rip Up its Duties to Asylum Seekers:

Shirking its obligations to persons seeking asylum at its shores, the UK government has today signed an agreement with Rwanda to send asylum seekers crossing the English Channel there.

Under the new Asylum Partnership Arrangement, people arriving in the UK irregularly or who arrived irregularly since January 1, 2022 may be sent to Rwanda on a one-way ticket to have their asylum claim processed and, if recognized as refugees, to be granted refugee status there.

The UK is arguing that offshoring asylum seekers to Rwanda complies with its international legal obligations. However, offshore processing is not only cruel and ineffective, but also very likely to be unlawful. It creates a two-tiered refugee system that discriminates against one group based on their mode of arrival, despite refugee status being grounded solely on the threat of persecution or serious harm and international standards recognizing that asylum seekers are often compelled to cross borders irregularly to seek protection.

We have seen severe abuses resulting from offshore processing. Australia’s offshore detention regime on Nauru and Manus Island, Papua New Guinea, caused more than eight years of immense human suffering. Twelve people have died since the policy began in 2013. Me, women and children  have suffered inhumane treatment and medical neglect, and years of indefinite detention led to suicides and an epidemic of self-harm. The costs were also exorbitant. Detaining a single asylum seeker on Papua New Guinea or Nauru cost around AUD $3.4million (GBP£1.8 million) annually.

Furthermore, Rwanda’s appalling human rights record is well documented. In 2018, Rwandan security forces shot dead at least 12 refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo when they protested a cut to food rations. Authorities then arrested and prosecuted over 60 of them on charges including rebellion and “spreading false information with intent to create a hostile international opinion against the Rwandan state.” Rwanda has a known track record of extrajudicial killings, suspicious deaths in custody, unlawful or arbitrary detention, torture, and abusive prosecutions, particularly targeting critics and dissidents. In fact, the UK directly raised its concerns about respect for human rights with Rwanda, and grants asylum to Rwandans who have fled the country, including four just last year. 

At a time when the people of the UK have opened their hearts and homes to Ukrainians, the government is choosing to act with cruelty and rip up their obligations to others fleeing war and persecution.

CERTAINLY, Good journalism costs a lot of money. Without doubt, only good journalism can ensure the possibility of a good society, an accountable democracy, and a transparent government. We are ready to hold every corrupt government accountable to the citizens. To continually enjoy free access to the best investigative journalism in Nigeria, we are requesting of you to consider making a modest support to this noble endeavor.”

By contributing to NAIJA STANDARD NEWSPAPER, you are helping to sustain a journalism of relevance and ensuring it remains free and available to all without fear or favor.

Your donation is voluntary — please decide how much and how often you want to give. For offline donation, email: letters@nigeriastandardnewspaper.com or call +2348037128048 (Nigeria) or +16825834890 (United States of America)

[pff-paystack id=