Rishi Sunsk, the British Prime Minister, on Tuesday, secured the consent of Parliament for a controversial plan to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda.
Nevertheless, some legal disputes, however, are looming large on the horizon and may pose as a serious obstacle to it.
Sunak had worked hard for several months in order to stop small boats crossing from France, and with determination he pledged that this season would be transporting refugees to Rwanda. Unfortunately, his attempts were thwarted by legal objections and House of Lords’ members refused to pass necessary laws.
On Tuesday morning after a long legislative deadlock, there was an agreement reached by the Lords allowing for passing the bill later in the week.
“Today marks progress as this landmark law is enacted: but beyond mere progress it signifies a paradigm shift on global migration,” said Mr Sunak on Tuesday. “Now we are just concentrating on launching flights and nothing will stand in our way because we’re looking at saving lives.”
It remains unclear how long it will take before the first group can be deported back home to Rwanda where their cases will be reviewed.yo
The PM said on Monday that it might take about three months before the whole process is fully implemented. Many refugee aid agencies have also expressed their intention to challenge this legislation in court, which may see them appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.
Amnesty International, Freedom from Torture and Liberty, speaking collectively, issued a statement which described this as ‘disgraceful legislation’, arguing that by doing so there is an assault on both constitutional and international laws, endangering victims of torture and other asylum seekers’ future in Rwanda.
Three UN Special Rapporteurs focusing on human trafficking, human rights and torture warned airlines against getting involved with such projects; “Airlines and aviation authorities that enforce state decisions infringing human rights must be held accountable.”
Despite opposition, Mr. Sunak persists in his commitment to ending maritime crossings which was one of the main vows he made when he came into power.
“The Rwanda Bill has been introduced to deter vulnerable immigrants from embarking on perilous voyages and break up the networks of criminals that exploit them,” he told journalists at a media conference on Monday. “Once this law passes, we will have accomplished this aim and made it clear that entering illegally will not lead to residency.”
On April 23, people thought to be migrants were observed stepping off a UK Border Force vessel at Dover Port (Source: Reuters, Toby Melville).
The influx of asylum seekers crossing the English Channel has always been difficult for the British government to manage.
Over 29,000 migrants from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and other parts of the Middle East made their dangerous journey in the past year according to Home Office statistics compared with an annual figure more than three times higher than that registered in 2020. This year alone over 5000 crossings have been conducted across the channel, which is a 43% increase compared to last year’s same duration.
Several hundred lives have been lost at sea recently according to charities with many others being saved by coastguards in Great Britain and France.
In 2022, UK forged a refugee pact with Rwanda to deport thousands of illegal immigrants to the African country for them to claim asylum. UK government has pledged support towards the implementation of this program despite the legal impediments that bar any deportations with funding outlays nearing £370 million ($626m).
After all the judges agreed that it was illegal as Rwanda was not a safe place, Mr.Sunak brought in the Rwanda Bill last autumn on grounds of a British Supreme Court decision.