The situation of the six Iranian asylum seekers currently on day 24 of their hunger strike has become more urgent.
The six Iranian pro-democracy activists have been holding a protest against their deportation by camping outside Lunar House, the Home Office building in Croydon, and outside Amnesty International Offices in Clerkenwell, central London.
BACKGROUND:
The men have experienced brutal torture in Iran for their part in resistance to the authoritarian rulers of that country. While we all know that the Home Office barely glances over asylum applications, what is especially appalling about this case is that not only have the men been subjected to severe personal ill-treatment (as required to be considered a refugee); but they came to the UK with substantial (and often difficult to produce) evidence that was completely disregarded: torture wounds over their bodies, newspaper articles with their photos in identifying them as activists, etc.
Some of the men were then screwed over by an unscrupulous immigration lawyer, who failed to even translate and submit key evidence.
CURRENT SITUATION:
Not having eaten for 24 days has made them ill, and one of them (a 17-year old), is seriously ill and may suffer long term kidney damage, according to a nurse who visited them.
They have refused to go to hospital; the men in Croydon called paramedics when they were unwell but became anxious and mistrustful of medical staff and did not want to get into the ambulance.
The Croydon protesters were also the target of racist abuse, when a man set fire to one of their sleeping bags and ripped up their publicity.
No Borders and Iranian Green Movement activists and other sympathisers have visited and stayed out with them.
This video shows their current situation and gives some background to their cases:
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/europe/04/28/uk.iran.hunger.strike/
These guys have risked their lives to fight oppressive rule in Iran, and have suffered serious consequences as a result. They have been neglected by the government here and ignored by NGOs - it is critical that they get support from grassroots campaigners.
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
Raise the profile of their case:
- They have specifically asked that people sign their petition:
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/save-6-uk-hunger-strikers-from-deportation.html
- Contact the Home Secretary (more details about their names and cases via the link above)
Rt. Hon Theresa May, MP
Secretary of State for the Home Office,
2 Marsham St
London SW1 4DF
Fax: 020 7035 4745
Emails:
mayt@parliament.uk
Emails: Privateoffice.external@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk
UKBApublicenquiries@UKBA.gsi.gov.uk
- Contact the media
- Share it on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Support-the-Iranian-Hunger-Strikers/206206719410578
- Ask Amnesty to take on their case
- Join the demo in support of the hunger strikers on Friday May 6th, 12 noon at the Home Office, 2 Marsham Street, Victoria, London.
http://iranianhungerstrikers.blogspot.com/
Monday, 2 May 2011
Sunday, 1 May 2011
Villawood/Australia Update
The rooftop protest at Australia's Villawood detention centre has ended after 11 days. The riot and protests at Villawood and other Australian detention centres have been accompanied by a number of Serco whistleblowers hitting the airwaves [1, 2, 3], alongside news that 70% of refused asylum seekers have had a decision not to grant them a visa overturned upon appeal. There have also been regular protests by detainee supporters which included a rooftop protest at Immigration Minister Bowen's own constituency office.
News Digest
Here are some recent migration/racism-related news stories of note that we haven't been able to cover in more detail:
'Eastern European migrants 'add £5bn' to Britain's GDP' from the BBC [unfortunately the FT article on the same subject is behind a paywall and we have been unable to review it so far - it being Sunday, the local Library is closed]. Pity they trotted out that tired old one man pressure group Andrew Green for a comment.
'UN asked to investigate death of Angolan deportee Jimmy Mubenga: Campaigners are pressing for an examination of Jimmy Mubenga's death during removal on Heathrow flight' - hopefully this wont be yet another death in custody that will be swept under the carpet, though we wont be holding our breath.
'Immigration officials have turned HIV patients into prisoners, claims hospital: NHS consultants say that the UK Border Agency's security measures have turned Hillingdon hospital into a prison' - no surprise here given the long history of prisoners receiving cancer treatment or giving birth whilst still handcuffed between two prison officers or the way Jimmy Mubenga was 'restrained' on his deportation flight.
Whilst we haven't been blogging much recently, the North African refugee crisis and the antics of Tweedledum and Tweedledee [Sarkozy and Berlusconi] have not escaped up and the blatant racism underpinning their Dumb and Dumber actions/policy pronouncements on the subject. [For example: 1, 2, 3, 4]
Equally unpleasant has been the donkey caravan of fellow European politicians backing their calls to introduce increased border restrictions within the Schengen zone:
'France and Italy get backing for changes to EU border rules'
'Athens backs calls for stricter EU border controls'
'National interest comes first' - a review of some news comment across the EU on the same subject
Fortunately, saner voices can be heard off stage:
'Sarkozy-Berlusconi: A border control farce'
'Another project in trouble: First the euro, now Schengen. Europe’s grandest integration projects seem to be suffering' - the Economist's Charlemagne blog
'Reforming Schengen, an absurd gesture' - Berliner Zeitung
'Agnès Poirier: Both leaders are prisoners of a resurgent right wing'
'Fortress Europe? There is a better way'
And for a little bit of light relief, the Daily Flail's view:
'The French mocked Britain for warning that tearing up EU borders would be a disaster. Look who's whingeing now!'
'Eastern European migrants 'add £5bn' to Britain's GDP' from the BBC [unfortunately the FT article on the same subject is behind a paywall and we have been unable to review it so far - it being Sunday, the local Library is closed]. Pity they trotted out that tired old one man pressure group Andrew Green for a comment.
'UN asked to investigate death of Angolan deportee Jimmy Mubenga: Campaigners are pressing for an examination of Jimmy Mubenga's death during removal on Heathrow flight' - hopefully this wont be yet another death in custody that will be swept under the carpet, though we wont be holding our breath.
'Immigration officials have turned HIV patients into prisoners, claims hospital: NHS consultants say that the UK Border Agency's security measures have turned Hillingdon hospital into a prison' - no surprise here given the long history of prisoners receiving cancer treatment or giving birth whilst still handcuffed between two prison officers or the way Jimmy Mubenga was 'restrained' on his deportation flight.
Whilst we haven't been blogging much recently, the North African refugee crisis and the antics of Tweedledum and Tweedledee [Sarkozy and Berlusconi] have not escaped up and the blatant racism underpinning their Dumb and Dumber actions/policy pronouncements on the subject. [For example: 1, 2, 3, 4]
Equally unpleasant has been the donkey caravan of fellow European politicians backing their calls to introduce increased border restrictions within the Schengen zone:
'France and Italy get backing for changes to EU border rules'
'Athens backs calls for stricter EU border controls'
'National interest comes first' - a review of some news comment across the EU on the same subject
Fortunately, saner voices can be heard off stage:
'Sarkozy-Berlusconi: A border control farce'
'Another project in trouble: First the euro, now Schengen. Europe’s grandest integration projects seem to be suffering' - the Economist's Charlemagne blog
'Reforming Schengen, an absurd gesture' - Berliner Zeitung
'Agnès Poirier: Both leaders are prisoners of a resurgent right wing'
'Fortress Europe? There is a better way'
And for a little bit of light relief, the Daily Flail's view:
'The French mocked Britain for warning that tearing up EU borders would be a disaster. Look who's whingeing now!'
Thursday, 28 April 2011
Australia: An Immigration System In Crisis
What started out as a rooftop protest by 13 detainees (three Kurds, two Iranians and eight Afghans - all having been held for between 13-19 months), three of whom were beginning a hunger strike in protest against the Australian authorities continued refusal to grant them temporary visas, over a week ago quickly escalated into a mass riot that left large sections of Sydney's Serco-run Villawood detention centre in ruins. It also marked the latest episode in an escalating crisis that is afflicting Australia's grossly dysfunctional immigration system, one that unlike say Britain, automatically locks up all asylum seekers and clandestine migrants that arrive in the country without a valid visa until their cases have been determined. And, given the grossly overstretched system, that can mean years spent in limbo, in overcrowded and often temporary accommodation not knowing if your application is going to be granted or not. Is it any wonder that a tidal wave of self-harm, suicide bids and riots is sweeping the Australian detention estate?
The 20 April appears to have been sparked by the assault of at least one of the detainees by Serco security officers in the early stages of the rooftop protest. It quickly escalated to involve more than 25% of the 400 Villawood detainees, most of whom had already had their visa applications rejected at least once and some still with appeal hearing in the pipeline and therefore with much still to loose. Fires were set and much has been made in the Australian press of roof tiles having being thrown at fire crews attending the blazes but the protesters claim that only one of their number was doing this (possibly believing that they were going to turn their hoses on the rooftop protesters) and he soon grew tired left the roof. Whatever the case, the rebellion left 9 buildings gutted, including a computer room, kitchens and the medical centre.
Opposition politicians were not slow in trotting out the inevitable knee-jerk calls for the rioters to be sent back to Christmas Island, for their claims to be suspended for them to be sent to back of queue or even deported. More measure responses came from the likes of the Greens immigration spokeswoman Sarah Hanson-Young who said, "Long-term detention, indefinite detention, a lack of time limit on detention is... pushing them to breaking point." David Manne, executive director of the Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre, was also quoted as saying that "...what we're seeing unfolding at the moment is a very serious situation which was highlighted and indeed the concerns expressed by these independent experts, including the Commonwealth ombudsmen, about the enormous distress and pressure that people are being placed under, being left incarcerated indefinitely for prolonged periods, does have consequences. It's enormously damaging to people and it's something that in fact this government, two years ago, promised to bring an end to. It's this government that said it was going to fundamentally reform detention policy, as it said, the practice was dehumanising, very harmful, and not an effective or civilised way of treating people. And in fact that people would only be locked up in detention as a measure of last resort, only if it was necessary and only for the shortest possible time."
The two days after the riot, 22 supposed 'ringleaders' were dragged off to the maximum security section of Sydney's Silverwater prison, where they have been held without charge ever since, despite regular complaints to the Commonwealth ombudsman over their treatment. The same day an anonymous ex-Serco guard told the ABC's Lateline program that the privatised detention system was in crisis, and that the security company was largely at fault for throwing poorly trained new recruits in to a volatile job at the deep end.
Whilst the clean-up at Villawood continues and immigration officials tried to talk the 3 hunger strikers down from the detention centre's roof, solidarity demonstrations were taking place outside the fence at Villawood, with 16 protesters being arrest on 24 April, and outside the Curtin detention centre in Western Australia. The following day disturbances broke out at the Christmas Island and Curtin detention centre. At Curtin activists claimed that 150 detainees were taking part in protests and 100 had gone on hunger strike, whilst the Immigration Department confirmed that about 30 asylum seekers at Curtin had received on-site medical treatment because of the food refusal. Refugee supporters also tried to get in to Curtin to see the detainees, but 16 were arrested. On Christmas Island a number of detainees had sewn their lips together as part of the protest and outside Melbourne's Maribyrnong detention centre police pepper sprayed a demonstration of 250 protesters.
Meanwhile, the Gillard government upped their rhetoric, with the immigration Minister Chris Bowen outlining plans to toughen up the immigration character test, allowing him to refuse visas to anyone convicted of any criminal conduct while in immigration detention. The following day (26) Bowen upped the ante further by announcing a return to the Howard-era policy of temporary protection visas. The Council of Civil Liberties also announced that it had filed a complaint with the Human Rights Commission outlining their dissatisfaction with the Immigration Department’s rationale for holding the Villawood protesters in prison. 25 asylum seekers had collapsed during a hunger strike at the Curtin detention centre and eight Christmas Island detainees began their own rooftop protest.
On the 27th Christmas Island detainees announced a new hunger strike and the Villawood hunger strikers continued their protests in the face of the government's refusal to countenance any granting of visas to the men.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"There is something about taking people who have committed no criminal offence and keeping them confined and under the control of other people that eventually breaks them... I think almost all of us, if every part of our day was regulated by some arbitrary authority and we face the threat of being returned to a country where we feared for our lives, we just progressively break down." - University of New South Wales clinical psychologist Dr Zachary Steel, who specialises in refugee mental health.
All these events are taking place against a backdrop of 6 deaths in Australian detention centres in the last 6 months (5 suicides), continued calls for the closure of the Christmas island detention facilities and concerns over the high rates of attempted suicides and self-harm behaviours in detention facilities as voiced by the Australian Human Rights Commission [see for example 1, 2, as well as an interesting article by Dr Tanveer Ahmed], and the December Christmas Island boat tragedy, alongside concerns over the $15 million upgrade to a former army barracks in Pontville, Tasmania to house up to 400 male asylum-seekers.
And the most rational recent response to this crisis? Certainly not the Gillard government or Tony Abbott's opposition tub-thumping; it has been a R.I.S.E. press release laying out the blatant racism backgrounding the long and unsavoury history of Australia's system of mandatory detention for asylum seekers.
Also highly recommended is the Asylum & Refugee Law Project's excellent Frequently Quoted Inaccuracies series, which put the whole 'boat people' question in context and lay bear the inherent racism underlying the whole debate. For example, their table showing the relatively small number of 'unauthorised arrivals' compared to the numbers of visa 'overstayers' who enter the country 'legally':
The 20 April appears to have been sparked by the assault of at least one of the detainees by Serco security officers in the early stages of the rooftop protest. It quickly escalated to involve more than 25% of the 400 Villawood detainees, most of whom had already had their visa applications rejected at least once and some still with appeal hearing in the pipeline and therefore with much still to loose. Fires were set and much has been made in the Australian press of roof tiles having being thrown at fire crews attending the blazes but the protesters claim that only one of their number was doing this (possibly believing that they were going to turn their hoses on the rooftop protesters) and he soon grew tired left the roof. Whatever the case, the rebellion left 9 buildings gutted, including a computer room, kitchens and the medical centre.
Opposition politicians were not slow in trotting out the inevitable knee-jerk calls for the rioters to be sent back to Christmas Island, for their claims to be suspended for them to be sent to back of queue or even deported. More measure responses came from the likes of the Greens immigration spokeswoman Sarah Hanson-Young who said, "Long-term detention, indefinite detention, a lack of time limit on detention is... pushing them to breaking point." David Manne, executive director of the Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre, was also quoted as saying that "...what we're seeing unfolding at the moment is a very serious situation which was highlighted and indeed the concerns expressed by these independent experts, including the Commonwealth ombudsmen, about the enormous distress and pressure that people are being placed under, being left incarcerated indefinitely for prolonged periods, does have consequences. It's enormously damaging to people and it's something that in fact this government, two years ago, promised to bring an end to. It's this government that said it was going to fundamentally reform detention policy, as it said, the practice was dehumanising, very harmful, and not an effective or civilised way of treating people. And in fact that people would only be locked up in detention as a measure of last resort, only if it was necessary and only for the shortest possible time."
The two days after the riot, 22 supposed 'ringleaders' were dragged off to the maximum security section of Sydney's Silverwater prison, where they have been held without charge ever since, despite regular complaints to the Commonwealth ombudsman over their treatment. The same day an anonymous ex-Serco guard told the ABC's Lateline program that the privatised detention system was in crisis, and that the security company was largely at fault for throwing poorly trained new recruits in to a volatile job at the deep end.
Whilst the clean-up at Villawood continues and immigration officials tried to talk the 3 hunger strikers down from the detention centre's roof, solidarity demonstrations were taking place outside the fence at Villawood, with 16 protesters being arrest on 24 April, and outside the Curtin detention centre in Western Australia. The following day disturbances broke out at the Christmas Island and Curtin detention centre. At Curtin activists claimed that 150 detainees were taking part in protests and 100 had gone on hunger strike, whilst the Immigration Department confirmed that about 30 asylum seekers at Curtin had received on-site medical treatment because of the food refusal. Refugee supporters also tried to get in to Curtin to see the detainees, but 16 were arrested. On Christmas Island a number of detainees had sewn their lips together as part of the protest and outside Melbourne's Maribyrnong detention centre police pepper sprayed a demonstration of 250 protesters.
Meanwhile, the Gillard government upped their rhetoric, with the immigration Minister Chris Bowen outlining plans to toughen up the immigration character test, allowing him to refuse visas to anyone convicted of any criminal conduct while in immigration detention. The following day (26) Bowen upped the ante further by announcing a return to the Howard-era policy of temporary protection visas. The Council of Civil Liberties also announced that it had filed a complaint with the Human Rights Commission outlining their dissatisfaction with the Immigration Department’s rationale for holding the Villawood protesters in prison. 25 asylum seekers had collapsed during a hunger strike at the Curtin detention centre and eight Christmas Island detainees began their own rooftop protest.
On the 27th Christmas Island detainees announced a new hunger strike and the Villawood hunger strikers continued their protests in the face of the government's refusal to countenance any granting of visas to the men.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"There is something about taking people who have committed no criminal offence and keeping them confined and under the control of other people that eventually breaks them... I think almost all of us, if every part of our day was regulated by some arbitrary authority and we face the threat of being returned to a country where we feared for our lives, we just progressively break down." - University of New South Wales clinical psychologist Dr Zachary Steel, who specialises in refugee mental health.
All these events are taking place against a backdrop of 6 deaths in Australian detention centres in the last 6 months (5 suicides), continued calls for the closure of the Christmas island detention facilities and concerns over the high rates of attempted suicides and self-harm behaviours in detention facilities as voiced by the Australian Human Rights Commission [see for example 1, 2, as well as an interesting article by Dr Tanveer Ahmed], and the December Christmas Island boat tragedy, alongside concerns over the $15 million upgrade to a former army barracks in Pontville, Tasmania to house up to 400 male asylum-seekers.
And the most rational recent response to this crisis? Certainly not the Gillard government or Tony Abbott's opposition tub-thumping; it has been a R.I.S.E. press release laying out the blatant racism backgrounding the long and unsavoury history of Australia's system of mandatory detention for asylum seekers.
Also highly recommended is the Asylum & Refugee Law Project's excellent Frequently Quoted Inaccuracies series, which put the whole 'boat people' question in context and lay bear the inherent racism underlying the whole debate. For example, their table showing the relatively small number of 'unauthorised arrivals' compared to the numbers of visa 'overstayers' who enter the country 'legally':
Monday, 25 April 2011
Calais - The Police Response To The "Videos Of Shame": Still More Violence.
PRESS RELEASE
April 22, 2011
The Police Response To The "Videos Of Shame": Still More Violence.
Yesterday morning (Thursday, April 21 at 9), during a brutal police raid at the Africa House (Rue Descartes) three activists No Border filming and acting as observers were violently arrested and are to be prosecuted in court. More than 20 Sudanese refugees, mainly living in the squat were arrested. The police physically abused the militants. They destroyed one of their cameras and deleted the videos on the second.
"It looked above all like revenge for the publication of the No Border videos on the Rue 89 and Inrockcuptibles websites denouncing police harassment at Calais," said Martin, an Noborder activist.
Three activists were arrested. Two of them who were filming the raid were caught and thrown violently to the ground by the PAF and the CRS*. They spent nine hours in custody and they have several charges against them: illegal occupation, violent resistance in a meeting ... The trial will take place on July 12 in Boulogne sur Mer.
"Once again, this trial is just a strategy of manipulation to destroy the public image of No Border and to try and scare us, discourage us from contining to film and witness the reality Calais and its repressive system. But we are not afraid, we are ready to go to court to seize the opportunity to win this new political trial, "said Marine an activist.
Two weeks ago NoBorder released several videos that showed violence, sexual harassment, verbal abuse, destruction of cameras. In a video that was widely viewed it showed PAF officers arriving at Africa House in the morning to wake migrants with "Sunday in Bamako."
"The movies are published are the tip of an iceberg of daily harassment by the police in Calais. This violence is systematic and is part of an overall strategy against migrants in this city," said Martin. "Apart from the videos we have many other documents that are ready to be published or used as evidence in legal action against the police. We will not be intimidated by the violent reaction of the authorities, we will stick to our convictions. In Calais repression is the law. "
[* PAF - Border Police / CRS - Paramilitary Riot Police]
Notes to Editors
1) No Borders Calais have maintained a constant presence in Calais since June 2009. The work consists mainly of activists conducting surveillance against police violence and to show concrete support with the migrant communities.
2) The Africa House is an old disused factory in the Rue Descartes, Calais, where a hundred migrant Sudanese, Eritreans, Afghans have sought refuge.
3) The videos are on:
http://www.rue89.com/tag/calais
http://www.lesinrocks.com/inrockstv/inrockstv-article/t/62975/date/2011-04-10/article/a-calais-la-police-et-les-no-border-jouent-au-chat-et-a-la-souris/
see also:
http://www.wat.tv/video/police-sous-objectif-no-border-3lo5r_2exyh_.html
http://media.radiofrance-podcast.net/podcast09/11714-14.04.2011-ITEMA_20279885-0.mp3
April 22, 2011
The Police Response To The "Videos Of Shame": Still More Violence.
Yesterday morning (Thursday, April 21 at 9), during a brutal police raid at the Africa House (Rue Descartes) three activists No Border filming and acting as observers were violently arrested and are to be prosecuted in court. More than 20 Sudanese refugees, mainly living in the squat were arrested. The police physically abused the militants. They destroyed one of their cameras and deleted the videos on the second.
"It looked above all like revenge for the publication of the No Border videos on the Rue 89 and Inrockcuptibles websites denouncing police harassment at Calais," said Martin, an Noborder activist.
Three activists were arrested. Two of them who were filming the raid were caught and thrown violently to the ground by the PAF and the CRS*. They spent nine hours in custody and they have several charges against them: illegal occupation, violent resistance in a meeting ... The trial will take place on July 12 in Boulogne sur Mer.
"Once again, this trial is just a strategy of manipulation to destroy the public image of No Border and to try and scare us, discourage us from contining to film and witness the reality Calais and its repressive system. But we are not afraid, we are ready to go to court to seize the opportunity to win this new political trial, "said Marine an activist.
Two weeks ago NoBorder released several videos that showed violence, sexual harassment, verbal abuse, destruction of cameras. In a video that was widely viewed it showed PAF officers arriving at Africa House in the morning to wake migrants with "Sunday in Bamako."
"The movies are published are the tip of an iceberg of daily harassment by the police in Calais. This violence is systematic and is part of an overall strategy against migrants in this city," said Martin. "Apart from the videos we have many other documents that are ready to be published or used as evidence in legal action against the police. We will not be intimidated by the violent reaction of the authorities, we will stick to our convictions. In Calais repression is the law. "
[* PAF - Border Police / CRS - Paramilitary Riot Police]
Notes to Editors
1) No Borders Calais have maintained a constant presence in Calais since June 2009. The work consists mainly of activists conducting surveillance against police violence and to show concrete support with the migrant communities.
2) The Africa House is an old disused factory in the Rue Descartes, Calais, where a hundred migrant Sudanese, Eritreans, Afghans have sought refuge.
3) The videos are on:
http://www.rue89.com/tag/calais
http://www.lesinrocks.com/inrockstv/inrockstv-article/t/62975/date/2011-04-10/article/a-calais-la-police-et-les-no-border-jouent-au-chat-et-a-la-souris/
see also:
http://www.wat.tv/video/police-sous-objectif-no-border-3lo5r_2exyh_.html
http://media.radiofrance-podcast.net/podcast09/11714-14.04.2011-ITEMA_20279885-0.mp3
Thursday, 21 April 2011
Barnado's Telethon 26/04/11
Phone the UK's latest prison profiteers! Ring them on Tuesday 26th April to protest against their involvement in detention and deportation!
In March 2011 Barnado's announced that they will run the play facilities at the UKBA's new "pre-departure accommodation centre" in Pease Pottage, near Gatwick. We call on Barnado's to stop cashing in on others' misery and have chosen Tuesday 26th April as the day to contact them. Below are the contact numbers for all the regional offices:
London & South East - 020 8551 0011
South West - 0117 937 5500
Yorkshire - 0113 393 3200
Midlands - 0121 550 5271
North West - 0151 488 1100
Scotland - 0131 334 9893
Wales - 0292 049 3387
North East - 0191 240 4800
Northern Ireland - 0289 067 2366
For more info about the pre-departure accommodation see:
http://nobordersbrighton.blogspot.com/search?q=pre-departure+accommodation
In March 2011 Barnado's announced that they will run the play facilities at the UKBA's new "pre-departure accommodation centre" in Pease Pottage, near Gatwick. We call on Barnado's to stop cashing in on others' misery and have chosen Tuesday 26th April as the day to contact them. Below are the contact numbers for all the regional offices:
London & South East - 020 8551 0011
South West - 0117 937 5500
Yorkshire - 0113 393 3200
Midlands - 0121 550 5271
North West - 0151 488 1100
Scotland - 0131 334 9893
Wales - 0292 049 3387
North East - 0191 240 4800
Northern Ireland - 0289 067 2366
For more info about the pre-departure accommodation see:
http://nobordersbrighton.blogspot.com/search?q=pre-departure+accommodation
Saturday, 9 April 2011
You Legitimise Child Detention, We Disrupt You
On 9 March, Barnardo's announced that it had agreed with the UKBA to provide staff and children's activities for the proposed new immigration prison for up to nine families at Pease Pottage, Crawley Forest.
A group of activists from groups including London No Borders, All African Women's Group, and SOAS detainee support swarmed in to the Museum of childhood during Barnardo's fundraising initiatives panel this afternoon to ask, 'How charitable is it to collude with the UKBA in locking up children?' and 'Why fund that of all things during the crisis?'. Despite some protestations from the crowd, many looked thoughtful and kept quiet during the proceedings. After some leafleting and general interruption the group moved to the front of the museum where banners were laid out and discussions with passers-by took place- all in all a successful stunt.
Watch the video of the protest here.
A group of activists from groups including London No Borders, All African Women's Group, and SOAS detainee support swarmed in to the Museum of childhood during Barnardo's fundraising initiatives panel this afternoon to ask, 'How charitable is it to collude with the UKBA in locking up children?' and 'Why fund that of all things during the crisis?'. Despite some protestations from the crowd, many looked thoughtful and kept quiet during the proceedings. After some leafleting and general interruption the group moved to the front of the museum where banners were laid out and discussions with passers-by took place- all in all a successful stunt.
Watch the video of the protest here.
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