Meet at 11.45am Monday at North Shields Metro to join in protesting against this injustice
People like Alex are due to be removed from thr safety of their UK home to danger in Afghanistan.
In response to this there will be a protest at 12 noon outside of the UKBA Reporting Centre in North Shields, Tyne and Wear.
Charter flights are unjust
Charter flights are a numbers driven exercise to remove as many people as possible.
They are conducted under a veil of secrecy which denies deportees access to justice. At least one deportee has been unable to find legal assistance since being detained, only being offered an appointment by the detention centre contracted solicitors for the day after their removal. With the secrecy surrounding charter flights it is impossible to know how many other deportees on this, and other flights have been similarly denied access to justice. The UK asylum determination system is structured towards denying as many applications as possible. Because of this, people who are in need of sanctuary are refused status, made destitute and subjected to violent enforcement procedures. In this context, charter flights such as this one and forced removals in general must be stopped.
Afghanistan is not safe
With regard to Afghanistan, just 2 weeks ago, Human Rights Watch reported: ‘Conflict-related violence remains a daily reality in many parts of the country.
[Human Rights Watch – Afghanistan: A decade of Missed Opportunities 4 Dec 2011 ]
The United Nations also has also raised concerns about conditions for people returned to Afghanistan:
‘The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that a significant number of all returnees (potentially 40 per cent) are still in need of reintegration support and that many (potentially 28 per cent) are in dire need of humanitarian assistance.’
[UN, The situation in Afghanistan and its implications for international peace and security, 09/03/2011.]
Yet the UK Border Agency ignore these reports in favour of out of date country evidence which supports their claim that Afghanistan is a safe place.
Stop Deportations
Forced removals such as this are an illustration of the violence and indifference that are essential components of the UK’s dehumanising migration regime. The vast majority of deportations have been to countries devastated by wars and armed conflicts such as Afghanistan, Iraq, DR Congo, Nigeria, Jamaica, Sri Lanka. After being forcibly deported, many have been kidnapped, imprisoned, tortured and killed. Others have had to change their identities or move again to avoid persecution. Forcible deportations tear apart people’s lives as they are split from their families and communities and their right to freedom of movement is denied.
Meet at 11.45am Monday at North Shields Metro to join in protesting against this injustice