IRR News’ original investigations into the incidence of suicide by asylum seekers was long-listed twice over for the Paul Foot award for campaigning journalism 2007.
The research, undertaken by IRR News editor, Harmit Athwal, published as a series of documents on IRR News (Driven to desperate measures, ‘Roll call of deaths of asylum seekers and undocumented migrants’, 1989-2001, 2002-2004, 2005 onwards) made it on to the judges’ long-list, as was a long feature in the London Review of Books on 16 November 2006 written by Melanie MacFadyean entitled, ‘£ … per incident’ which was based on Harmit’s Driven to desperate measures.
‘I am just pleased that the scandal of asylum seeker deaths has had more exposure’, Harmit told IRR News. A. Sivanandan, IRR’s director, commented: ‘Given Paul Foot’s own work on racist immigration laws and miscarriages of justice, it was apt that this part of IRR’s work should be recognised.’
The Guardian‘s exposé of bribery and corruption in Britain’s arms trade (By David Leigh and Rob Evans) and Doncaster Free Press‘ uncovering of corruption in the failure of Doncaster’s education city project (by Deborah Wain) jointly won the main award.
Related links
Download the IRR’s report on the deaths of asylum seekers and undocumented migrants Driven to desperate measures (pdf file, 401kb)
Read the IRR’s Factfile on the Roll call of deaths of asylum seekers and undocumented migrants, 2005 onward’s
Melanie MacFadyean’s London Review of Books article: ‘£ . . . per incident’