Hannah Marwood, legal access manager for the Care4Calais refugee crisis charity, urges support for the campaign against government plans to offload refugees to Rwanda
At Care4Calais, we know from the refugees who we have worked with over the last seven years that people arriving in the UK have experienced some of the worst things imaginable – war, torture, slavery, and human rights abuses.
That’s why we argue that the government’s Rwanda policy is brutal and cruel. The idea that the UK would forcibly remove refugees to Rwanda, outsourcing our responsibilities under international law to offer sanctuary, is shocking. That they choose to do so when more humane and compassionate options are available, is a scandal.
Together with the PCS union, Detention Action and eight lead clients affected by the Rwanda policy, Care4Calais were in the High Court in September to challenge the policy.
On the first day, more than 600 trade unionists, politicians and campaigners gathered outside the court to protest against the policy. Inside, our lawyers presented comprehensive evidence that government officials had warned ministers about human rights abuses in Rwanda before it launched the scheme, and that the Foreign Office advised against the deal, citing extrajudicial killings, deaths in custody, enforced disappearances, torture and using refugees to conduct armed operations in neighbouring countries.
We do not anticipate a ruling on our case until later in the year. The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) interim measure should prevent flights taking off before the final outcome of the case, however every day my team is contacted by more people who have received new Rwanda notices and are very scared.
All of us at Care4Calais appreciate the support and solidarity shown by the FBU and its members. I hope you will continue to support us at this crucial juncture in the campaign by visiting care4calais.org/stop-rwanda
