The International Federation of Iraqi Refugees (IFIR) has launched a campaign against the planned deportation of Iraqi asylum seekers from the UK, saying that the general climate of instability in Iraq, along with the lack of basic services, makes it dangerous to force Iraqis to return. The Home Office has announced that it plans to
News Service
How independent is independent?
For Black and Minority Ethnic communities, the lack of independent scrutiny of the handling of complaints against the police, has been one of the most contentious issues. Will the new Independent Police Complaints Commission be able to win back confidence? On 1 April, the new Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) will begin work handling complaints
Xenoracism reaches Russia
Foreigners and ethnic minorities in Russia are facing a barrage of racially motivated violence encouraged by extreme-Right political groups, Russia’s ‘war against terrorism’ and official indifference to racist crime. She was knifed eleven times while her father was beaten senseless with baseball bats, chains and knuckle-dusters. Nine-year-old Khurshida Sultanova, from Tajikstan, was the latest victim
Home from Home
Save the Children and Salusbury WORLD, a refugee children’s project based in Brent, London, have produced this guidance and resource pack for the welcome and inclusion of asylum-seeker and refugee children and families in schools. Around 4.5 per cent of school children in Greater London come from a refugee or asylum-seeker background. The policy of
Slovakia’s bankruptcy
In just a few weeks, Slovakia will join the European Union. But already, with rioting in the impoverished Roma communities of eastern Slovakia, the country is reeling from the effects of ‘restructuring’. Good news for the Slovak government. South Korean car manufacturer Hyundai has announced that it will build its first European factory in Zilina,
Racial harassment on the rise in Scotland
Asylum seekers, refugees and settled migrants in Scotland have experienced a 75 per cent increase in racial harassment since April 2003. According to a report by Positive Action in Housing (PAIH), a Scottish housing charity, 28 per cent of its clients have suffered racial harassment. This represents an increase of 75 per cent on last
Roma are not safe in Bulgaria
A judgement from the European Court of Human Rights on 26 February, which found Bulgaria guilty of deprivation of life of two Roma, is due to have wide repercussions. It makes a mockery of Bulgaria being considered a safe country where human rights is concerned. Bulgaria is currently on the UK’s White List of countries
Asylum: a guide to recent legislation
The Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association has produced a valuable, easy-to-read new guide to recent legislation on asylum as at 1 December 2003. The document is not intended to equip readers with the knowledge to offer immigration advice, but to inform non-specialist lay readers, who need to supplement existing knowledge about potential implications of asylum law
Concern at spate of jail deaths
In one eight-day period in February, three young Asian men died while in the custody of British prisons. And all three deaths were, apparently, self-inflicted. Are these deaths signs of a growing crisis of British Asians in the prison system? First, on 20 February, Sajjad Hussein, 20, was found hanged in his cell at Lancaster
Somali asylum seekers: Home Office gets it wrong two times out of five
The Home Office refuses to publish figures on what proportion of initial asylum decisions are eventually overturned on appeal. But IRR News estimates that, for some nationalities, two out of every five initial decisions are proven to be wrong on appeal: a shocking indictment of the Home Office’s decision-making process. A case in point is