Campaigners are desperately trying to raise the necessary funds to send the body of 27-year-old Osman Rasul Mohammed, an Iraqi Kurdish asylum seeker who jumped from the seventh floor of a Nottingham tower block, back home. On Sunday 25 July 2010, according to the Guardian police officers talked to Osman as he was perched by
Theme: Education
Court rules against unauthorised police surveillance
Last week, at Inner London Crown Court, three activists were cleared of charges of obstructing the police as they attempted to film and photograph those attending two London NoBorders meetings in south London in June 2008. The three campaigners were arrested after protesting at the surveillance being carried out by police officers from the Forward
Two men suffer injuries after immigration raid
This week, two men thought to be Pakistani, suffered injuries and were taken to hospital following an immigration raid by the UK Border Agency (UKBA) in Balham, South London. A UKBA spokesperson told IRR News: ‘During a UKBA enforcement operation on Balham High Road, two individuals attempted to escape and suffered minor injuries’. The Fire
Metro v Metr0
Associated Newspapers started legal proceedings last Friday as campaigners flooded London streets with a spoof edition of the Metro newspaper. Associated Newspapers obtained an emergency injunction to stop the distribution of the spoof paper. The injunction lasted till Monday 5 July, when Associated Newspapers was to return to court. Tens of thousands of copies of
Supreme Court upholds asylum rights for gays
An important legal ruling has clarified refugee law and should provide better protection for those claiming asylum on the basis of their sexuality. On 7 July, the Supreme Court, the UK’s highest court, ruled that gays who are forced to conceal their sexuality to avoid being persecuted in their home countries should be recognised as
Fighting ghosts: an interview with Husein Al-Samamara
Below we publish an interview with Husein Al-Samamara, currently subjected to draconian immigration bail conditions in the UK as he fights against his deportation to Jordan, where he was imprisoned and tortured. Husein Al-Samamara was interviewed by Frances Webber in October 2009, but legal issues prevented publication. He recently decided to ‘go public’ about his
Child detention review: the challenge for NGOs
How should the voluntary sector respond to the government’s review of children’s detention? The review (the terms of which were published on 10 June, allowing consultation till 1 July) will examine the way the UK Border Agency (UKBA) deals with asylum applications from families, including contact arrangements and access to legal representation; current arrangements for
Asylum health project expands provision
The free healthcare advocacy programme, Project: London, is to open its doors one Saturday of every month to accommodate the rising numbers of users. Run by the charity Doctors of the World UK, Project: London has been working since 2006 with the aim of helping the most vulnerable get access to medical treatment and advice.
Migreurop at the Istanbul crossroads
Author, Matt Carr, describes a recent conference to coordinate pan-European campaigning on migration and detention. On 27-29 May more than sixty researchers, human rights activists and NGO representatives attended an international meeting of the Migreurop network at Istanbul’s Mimar Sinan Fina Arts University to share experiences of local campaigns and initiatives and coordinate future strategies
Darfuri asylum seeker failed by the system
Kirsten Heaven, barrister at Garden Court Chambers, writes about the deaths of foreign nationals in custody and the critical verdict in the recent inquest into the self-inflicted death of a young Darfuri in HMP Chelmsford. The existence of foreign national prisoners (FNPs) languishing in British jails and being released without consideration of deportation was brought