UK Home Secretary Priti Patel announced her 'New Immigration Plan' after landing in Kigali on April 13, 2022. PA
UK Home Secretary Priti Patel announced her 'New Immigration Plan' after landing in Kigali on April 13, 2022. PA
UK Home Secretary Priti Patel announced her 'New Immigration Plan' after landing in Kigali on April 13, 2022. PA
UK Home Secretary Priti Patel announced her 'New Immigration Plan' after landing in Kigali on April 13, 2022. PA


Britain's refugees are not Rwanda's problem


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April 15, 2022

On Wednesday morning, the UK Border Force vessel Searcher pulled into harbour at Dover, on Britain’s south coast, with its latest find, a group of more than 30 migrants seeking to settle in the UK. Earlier that day, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), a charity, had already rescued 55 others. It was a record day for Channel crossings this year, after a record month in March.

The next morning, the UK’s Home Secretary, Priti Patel, announced her proposed solution, the so-called “New Immigration Plan”, as she stepped off an airplane, to great bemusement back home, in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda.

Under Ms Patel’s plan, single male migrants, including asylum seekers, arriving in Britain illegally will be flown to Rwanda, where they will have their claims processed, but where they will also be encouraged to settle down for good. The £120 million ($157m) idea is fraught with problems. The opposition Labour Party has already begun to question the cost and practicality of the scheme, and humanitarian organisations have questioned its legality. Restricting the plan to single men raises its own questions – what makes the conditions in Rwanda safe for them, but not for families?

The timing of the plan is also suspicious – Boris Johnson, the UK Prime Minister, is embroiled in scandal after being fined for attending an illegal birthday party while the country was under coronavirus restrictions. A wild plan to send migrants to Rwanda is certainly a convenient headline-grabber.

Restricting the plan to single men raises its own questions - what makes the conditions in Rwanda safe for them, but not for families?

But a humanitarian agenda has not been part of the British government’s attitudes to immigration for many years. Another brainchild of Ms Patel’s, the Nationality and Borders Bill, would see any migrants who knowingly enter Britain illegally charged with a criminal offence. Ms Patel argues that refugees who want to avoid being criminals (or being sent to Rwanda) they must stick to Britain’s “safe and legal routes”.

The problem is that such legal routes are largely unavailable. Britain offers no formal way to apply for humanitarian visas. Even one-off schemes, such as a plan announced last year to resettle Afghans fleeing the Taliban, cannot manage to get off the ground. While many of those arriving by sea are deported, some are allowed to stay because their grounds for asylum are reasonable. Seeking Britain’s protection may be a right under international law, particularly as the UK is signatory to the 1951 refugee convention, but for most people the only way to get it is to break British law.

It is not easy to deal with the waves of migrants heading to Britain’s shores. But the government’s long-time deterrence-based strategy, to create a “hostile environment” that aims to make life as difficult for non-permanent migrants as the law allows, has not worked. Last year, Channel crossings reached record numbers.

There is little reason to think that the prospect of being sent to Rwanda will make a difference either. If anything, it may worsen the human trafficking Ms Patel claims her plan will fight, by incentivising single men to bring women and children with them.

In truth, there is no quick fix to Britain’s migrant crisis. The best solution is to navigate it for now, by managing it compassionately in co-operation with other European countries (notably France, where Channel crossings begin), to work with UNHCR on legal resettlement plans and to invest, over time, in stabilising the places refugees flee. Countries in the developing world that bear most of the global refugee burden, such as Turkey, Pakistan and Iran, need earnest support to make conditions liveable for those who are there.

To get to a place where such solutions are possible, politics must mature to the point where countries like Britain stop viewing their refugee woes as one-off crises, criminal threats or the domain of charity. The refugee problem, like climate change, is a global challenge. Solving it requires a sense of collective responsibility.

Wenger's Arsenal reign in numbers

1,228 - games at the helm, ahead of Sunday's Premier League fixture against West Ham United.
704 - wins to date as Arsenal manager.
3 - Premier League title wins, the last during an unbeaten Invincibles campaign of 2003/04.
1,549 - goals scored in Premier League matches by Wenger's teams.
10 - major trophies won.
473 - Premier League victories.
7 - FA Cup triumphs, with three of those having come the last four seasons.
151 - Premier League losses.
21 - full seasons in charge.
49 - games unbeaten in the Premier League from May 2003 to October 2004.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

Tips to stay safe during hot weather
  • Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
  • Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
  • Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
  • Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
  • Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
  • Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
  • Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
RESULT

Arsenal 2

Sokratis Papastathopoulos 45 4'

Eddie Ntkeiah 51'

Portsmouth 0

 

Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Updated: April 17, 2022, 6:14 AM`