UK asylum seekers flee to Ireland amid Rwanda deportation threat

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: The Guardian
7 May 2024 16:17
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Charities express growing concerns over the heightened risks faced by refugees, including the possibilities of destitution and exploitation, as many individuals are reported missing.

Protesters prevented Metropolitan police officers from transferring asylum seekers from a London hotel to the Bibby Stockholm barge on May 2, 2024. (AFP via Getty Images)

The Home Office is grappling with the escalating aftermath of its widely publicized crackdown on asylum seekers earmarked for deportation to Rwanda, The Guardian reported on Tuesday.

Some individuals have gone underground, while others have fled across the border to Ireland. The roundup of asylum seekers for the Rwanda plan commenced a week ago, leading to at least one person going on a hunger strike and another contemplating suicide, as per the report.

Despite the government's extensive communication regarding the detention of individuals bound for Rwanda, it remains uncertain whether officials foresaw the possibility of asylum seekers going into hiding or seeking refuge in Ireland.

Lou Calvey, the director of the charity Asylum Matters, said as quoted by The Guardian, “Frontline asylum charities report people leaving their asylum accommodation in order to avoid arrest. They are raising the alarm about the increasing risks of destitution and exploitation.”

Asylum seekers who regularly attend reporting sessions at various centers across the UK have remarked on the unusually subdued atmosphere, noting that they have never experienced such quietness before.

A Belarusian man, who has been residing in the UK for over ten years, expressed his apprehension regarding potential arrest by the Home Office, despite not being included in the initial group slated for deportation — individuals who arrived between January 2022 and June 2023.

He said as quoted by The Guardian, “I walked right in and didn’t have to queue at all. In all the years I’ve been reporting I’ve never seen it so deserted.”

Another asylum seeker who has been served a notice of intent for deportation to Rwanda but has not yet been detained revealed that he has been receiving numerous calls from acquaintances within his community, advising him to go into hiding.

A refugee from Syria stated that he is advising asylum-seeker friends who are facing the threat of being sent to Rwanda to conceal themselves.

“I was an asylum seeker in 2020 when the Home Office was trying to deport as many asylum seekers as possible to European countries they had passed through before Brexit started. Some asylum seekers went into hiding then and I can see that it is happening again because of Rwanda,” he added.

Refugees still increasing

During the first week of asylum seeker roundups for deportation to Rwanda, the government's intended deterrent effect on small boat crossings did not materialize, as evidenced by a significant increase in crossings. Over the past seven days leading up to Sunday, 1,420 individuals made the journey, including a record-breaking daily total of 711 crossings last Wednesday.

Meanwhile, in Ireland, shortly after authorities dismantled a tent city housing asylum seekers near Dublin's International Protection Accommodation Services center, the tents have reappeared in close proximity to their previous location. Along both sides of the city's Grand Canal, approximately 70 blue tarpaulin tents provided by charities accommodate asylum seekers from various countries, such as Nigeria and Afghanistan.

Recently, newly appointed Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris emphasized in the Dail that the proliferation of makeshift shantytowns is not acceptable in Ireland. Dublin authorities are anticipated to offer additional accommodation later this week to address the surging numbers of individuals seeking international protection, including some arriving from the UK.

Justice Minister Helen McEntee disclosed that a significant majority, initially estimated at 80%, and later revised to approximately 90%, of these arrivals have crossed the border from Northern Ireland.

Northern Ireland Justice Minister Naomi Long later said, “Those are figures we in Northern Ireland don’t recognize.”

A Kurdish man from Iran, who arrived in the UK 14 years ago, expressed confusion over the concept of sending refugees to a country they have no connection to.

“Originally I’m not coming from Rwanda. How can you send me to Rwanda? I don’t want to go to Rwanda,” he said as quoted by The Guardian. “Tell me how, what’s the reason?”