People fleeing persecution in pursuit of sanctuary and human dignity deserve compassion.
The uprooting and forced displacement of people leads to a vicious cycle of vulnerability
and human suffering compounded by perilous journeys and other activities that are often
dehumanising.
The Government’s proposal to send people who have been subjected to such levels of
cruelty to a country that, at least in their minds, would in many ways encapsulate the very
essence of their displacement, exacerbates the cruelty and inhumanity they have fled from.
The proposal will perpetuate the vulnerability of men, women, and children. It will
exacerbate the effects of forced displacement in terms of trauma, abuse, exploitation,
precarious living, destitution, homelessness, existing in limbo, deterioration of physical
health and possibly death. As legal routes for migration becomes ever more constrained,
the government is creating the conditions for the forms of exploitation it claims to be
against. All forced migrants are seeking is the opportunity to be human, to rebuild their lives
and thrive again. Britain’s obligations to those seeking protection must not be offshored to
other countries.
The Government’s immigration policies must be based on core principles of compassion,
kindness, dignity, solidarity, human rights, and justice. They must also align with the broader
pursuit of genuine global peace and security, and economic justice. The Rwanda plan, and
the broader plan for immigration of which it is a part, represent the opposite.
Migrant Action remains committed to welcoming and supporting migrants find sanctuary,
hope and justice as they rebuild their lives. More importantly, we are resolute in the pursuit
of a fair, just and humane immigration system.
Fidelis Chebe
Director, Migrant Action
