“All migrants will be removed from the plane and flights to Rwanda will not take off as scheduled tonight,” according to the British PA Media News Agency.
However, on the night when the plane was expected to depart, a European court ruled a series of cases of the last asylum seekers detained in Rwanda and ordered the British government not to take them away.
“BREAKING: The last ticket has been cancelled,” Care4Calais tweeted in congratulations. “No one is going to Rwanda.”
London Mayor Sadiq Khan also tweeted, “Tonight’s inhumane deportation of asylum seekers to #Rwanda was thwarted by the ECtHR minutes before their departure. It’s cold. It’s now illegal. There is a possibility. “
This development is a dramatic backlash for the British government after Foreign Minister Liz Truss said deportation flights would depart regardless of the number of passengers.
Truss said a flight was needed “to start breaking the model of these horrifying traffickers, the business model, where we establish the principles and make dire transactions.” ..
CNN has contacted the UK Home Office and Downing Street on a canceled flight, but has not responded so far.
“Rwanda is a brave country recovering from the catastrophic genocide. Our Christian heritage treats asylum seekers with compassion, justice and justice, as we have for centuries. Because it should inspire us like that, “reads the letter.
“Many are desperate people who escape indescribable horror. Many are Iranians, Eritreas, Sudanese, and have an asylum permit rate of at least 88 percent,” he continued. “We cannot provide asylum to all, but we must not outsource our ethical responsibilities or revoke international law that protects our right to claim asylum.”
In response, Truss told Sky News that Rwanda’s flight policy is “fully moral” and critics “need to propose a successful alternative policy.”
“Incredibly dangerous” journey
According to data from the UK Home Office, 28,526 people arrived in the UK in 2021 by small boat. The majority of the 23,655 are men, with nearly two-thirds coming from four countries: Iran (7,874) and Iraq (5,414). ), Eritrea (2,829) and Syria (2,260).
Also, the trip to Curry is “incredibly dangerous” and “many families do not endanger the safety of their daughters on their trip to Europe. I hope the fleeing men will help their safety. I will. “
Almost everyone on a small boat (98% off those arriving in 2020) has filed for asylum.
The refugee council said that most people arriving by small boat across the strait are likely to be real refugees fleeing persecution.
According to Interior Ministry statistics, people arriving in the United Kingdom from Iran (88%), Eritrea (97%) and Syria (98%) are generally more likely to be granted asylum.
The likelihood of Iraqi people is significantly lower, with only 48% of the decisions made in 2021 being positive.
Overall, the refugee council said that about 75% of the first asylum decisions made during the year to March 2022 were positive, and about half of those rejected were granted asylum appeals. ..
Recently, more and more people are getting on small boats. According to the Ministry of Interior, 4,540 people arrived in the first three months of the year, more than three times the same three months in 2021.
The number of people arriving was boosted by a much larger number of people coming from Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover last summer.
According to the Ministry of Interior, 1,094 Afghan citizens arrived in the UK in the first quarter of 2022. This is about the same as those who arrived throughout 2021.
Average £ 183,000 per flight
The UK has stated that it will pay Rwanda £ 120m ($ 145m) over the next five years to finance the program. In addition, the UK is committed to paying for the processing and integration of each relocated person, covering the costs of legal counseling, caseworkers, translators, accommodation, food and medical care.
According to a parliamentary investigation report, the British government said they expect these to be similar to UK asylum costs, at around £ 12,000 per person.
The UK has refused to disclose the cost of chartered flights to transport deportees to Rwanda. The Home Office said in its latest annual report that it paid £ 8.6 million to charter 47 deportation flights carrying 883 people in 2020. The cost of individual flights varies by destination, but the numbers average £ 9,700 per flight or per person, which means the Home Office spent £ 183,000.
Due to the unlimited number of immigrants, thousands of people could flow into the capital Kigali within the first five years of the plan.
“We are doing this for the right reason.”
The Rwandan government said it was ready to accept asylum seekers from the United Kingdom prior to the previously scheduled departure of the aircraft and would do its best “to ensure the care of immigrants.”
A spokeswoman for the Rwandan government, Yolande Makoro, said at a press conference in Kigali on Tuesday, “I want to give this program a chance.”
“I don’t think it’s immoral to provide a home to people. We’ve been here for over 30 years,” Makoro said in response to criticism from Anglican leaders.
“Where we came from, we are doing this for the right reason. We want this to be a cozy place, immigrants are taken care of and they can build I will do my best to live here, “she added.
Rwanda has offered to support the resettlement of migrants to third countries by providing travel transportation if migrants are able to obtain a legal place of residence, but “the main purpose is. [of the scheme] It is to fully integrate them into Rwandan society. ” Doris Uwiceza Picard, Chief Adviser of the Minister of Justice, said.
“There is a legitimate path to citizenship, provided that migrant workers and refugees are eligible for citizenship,” she added.
The plan will last for five years, but Rwanda intends to turn it into a binding treaty at a later stage, Picard said.
Bethlehem Feleke, Nada Bashir, and Chris Liakos of CNN contributed to this report.
Source: www.cnn.com
