Political situation

1) Who is a refugee or asylum seeker?

The phrase Asylum seeker refers to those who people who are currently in the process of waiting to be acknowledged as a refugee by the government.In international law the term ‘refugee’ has a very specific meaning, taken from the 1951 United Nations ’Refugee Convention’, and refers to:

Someone who has a well founded fear of persecution based on at least one of the following: race,religion,nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. Is outside the country that they normally live or belong to and who is unable/unwilling to return for fear of the persecution.

Originally drawn up in the aftermath of post-war Europe, the above protocol was eventually expanded by the UN to encompass people from the entire world. The UK was among 130 signatories, and in 1993 incorporated the convention into domestic law. What this means is that anyone may apply for asylum in the UK and during the application procedure is allowed to stay until a final decision is made. In 2001 the commitment was reaffirmed in Geneva.

2) Bogus or illegal asylum seekers/refugees

Certain sections of the media have, of late, been fond of prefixing the term ‘asylum seeker’ or `refugee’ with such colourful extras as ‘bogus’ and ‘illegal’. In October 2003, the Press Complaints Commission published guidance concerning the way the press discussed the issue of asylum. One of the points mentioned was that there was no such thing as an‘illegal’ or ‘bogus’ asylum seeker or refugee.

It is perhaps arguable that the adjectives are in reference to the fact that some asylum seekers have to resort to entering the country illegally or without proper documentation. Such a point is not enough however to nullify the credibility of someone’s case; it is often the case that in order to flee persecution, one may have to rely on such documentation. In recognition of this fact, the 1951 Refugee Convention includes an article (31) that forbids governments from penalising refugees who use false documents.

3) Which nationalities seek asylum in the UK and why do they flee?

As one would expect, the nationalities of those coming to Britain tend to reflect the international situation at the time. In 2003, the main countries applying for asylum included Somalia, Iraq, China, Zimbabwe, Iran, Turkey comprising a total of 49,000 applications. Of which approximately 42% of these claims were successful. It is not difficult to see that many of these countries are currently in a state of political unrest.

4) Britain is a soft touch

Another misconception touted by some sections of the press is the view that Britain is a soft touch on topics concerning asylum. In general Europe is one of the more difficult places to claim asylum, as many countries here introduce tougher and tougher immigration controls. Combining this with the affluence required to get anywhere means that most people have little choice about where they go. In fact, Europe hosts only 25% of the world’s refugee population; in contrast Africa hosts 30%.*Britain ranked in 9th in terms of applications per capita in the EU last year*. In terms of numbers Iran last yeartook 100 times more refugees than the UK!

Dispelling the myth further, in 2001 Canada accepted 97% of asylum applications from Afghan applicants, 92% of Somali applicants were accepted. In soft touch Britain we could only managed 19% and 34% respectively.

5) The Land of Milk and Honey

In 1999, the home office moved asylum seekers off the Welfare Benefit system, setting up a new National Asylum Support Service. In Britain Asylum seekers can apply for a weekly stipend worth 70% of income support and housing support. Somehow, the land of milk and honey metaphor seems less convincing when it expects some of those within its borders to live below the poverty line. The current figures are:

Qualifying couple: £61.11

Lone parent aged 18 or over: £38.96

Single person aged 25 or over: £38.96

Single person aged 18 to 25: £30.84

1. to 18 year olds: £33.50

Under 16: £42.27

As of the moment, asylum seekers are not allowed to seek paid employment, and children are lucky to receive even a few hours of education a week. Given that many have valuable skills, 53% of refugees have academic qualifications and almost two thirds can speak more than one language, it seems strange that their talents are being ignored. It should be noted also that the weekly stipend is not guaranteed and for those failing to provide a convincing case, they are pretty much left with no option except to work illegally or starve.

In January 2003 however, even this basic support was refused to many asylum seekers, only being reinstated in June 2004 when an appeal court judge pointed out that the policy breached the rights of asylum seekers.

6) Asylum and crime

Anyone who takes a cursory glance at the news or papers will notice many media outlets connecting asylum issues to crime or terrorism. Asylum seekers are often portrayed as criminals, but are more likely to be targeted by criminals given their extremely vulnerable nature of their situation. According to reports by the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Mayor of London, there were links between community tensions, violence and hostility to Asylum seekers and negative media attention.

Under current legislation, asylum seekers are not allowed to work. It is a Catch 22 situation that while many perceive asylum seekers as scrounging benefits, those who want to transcend this stereotype must break the law by working. Since this is illegal,they are committing a crime and either way they cannot win

It is ironic that many link refugees with terrorists,given that many fleeing their countries are usually trying to escape from those regimesthey are purported to represent. Statistics aside, one need only ask if a terrorist really planned to bomb the UK, why would they come through immigration and send an asylum application to the government? It would be much more likely that such people would pose as holiday makers or not come through immigration control at all.

Finally, it should be clarified that asylum seekers are not illegal immigrants. As already mentioned article 31 of the Refugee convention ensures the legal right for anyone to come to Britain and apply for asylum from persecution, remaining in the UK until their decision is made.

7) Why do people come to the UK?

The picture the media portrays is that many Asylum seekers have some sort of option as to where they will go to apply for asylum. In 2002 the Home office conducted a survey into what factors determine the choice of destination and discovered that for many,choosing was not a luxury many could afford. For those fleeing persecution, the main objective was to flee their country rather than worry about where to go. Others are limited to what they can pay for (which is not usually very much) or where those that smuggle them decide.

For those that did have a choice, the three reasons they gave were: Having family or a community in their desired destination.

Their belief that Britain is a bastion of freedom,democracy and tolerance

The fact that they could speak (or where willing to learn) English

Economic considerations were few, and of these few know much about the benefits system in the UK.

Mark Wong