Children chant “freedom” and wave their arms behind wire fences to attract the attention of those on the other side in southeast England. A young girl throws a bottle containing a note. “We need your assistance. Please assist us, with the notice requests.
The toddlers are among the thousands of individuals being kept in dangerously congested conditions at a closed airport functioning as a processing facility for migrants who have just arrived on British shores after crossing the English Channel in small boats. A contentious discussion regarding how the Conservative U.K. government handles asylum seekers has been rekindled in light of the situation there.
The center in Kent was built as a temporary processing facility, housing roughly 1,600 newcomers, and is situated on the site of a former British air force post that briefly served as the civilian Manston Airport. At one point this week, more than 4,000 people were residing there; some of them had apparently been held illegitimately for a month or longer.
According to independent government inspectors, they observed families snoozing on floors in situations akin to prisons that posed fire and health risks. After incidents of scabies, diphtheria, and other illnesses were discovered, the inspectors issued a warning about the possibility of outbreaks.
The Metro newspaper carried a headline that read, “Welcome to the U.K.,” along with a close-up picture of young children looking out from behind metal barriers.
Suella Braverman, the U.K. Home Secretary, responded to criticism of the situation by defending the government’s actions and referring to the growing number of migrants entering over the English Channel as “an invasion on our southern shore.” Her remark was widely criticized.
The conditions at the Manston center have drawn attention to larger issues with Britain’s asylum system, which is unable to handle an unprecedented number of small boat crossings at a time when border officers are attempting to process a substantial backlog of refugee claims.
According to Jonathan Ellis, the policy and public affairs lead at the British Refugee Council, “We’ve got this kind of perfect storm of more people coming in, about which the government was warned, and added to the mix we have this huge waiting list of around 100,000 individuals who have sought asylum.” “Political will, political emphasis, and consequently (a lack of) the associated resources to really handle this issue, are lacking.”
In dinghies and other unreliable boats, approximately 40,000 individuals from nations such as Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Albania have so far this year traversed one of the busiest shipping lanes from northern France in an effort to establish new lives in the U.K.
The number is unprecedented and has increased dramatically since 2018 when only 299 migrants were found coming into England illegally in small boats, according to official data. There were 28,536 last year.
Numerous people have perished while trying to make the journey, including 27 when a crowded smuggling boat capsized in November 2021.
Braverman, who is renowned for her unyielding stance on immigration, has accused gangs of assisting the crossings and placed emphasis on what she has called false claims made by some of those seeking asylum.
She urged MPs to “stop pretending that they are all refugees in distress” this week in Parliament. She has come under fire for her blunt language, even from members of the ruling Conservative Party. Some detractors charge Braverman with inciting hatred against immigrants.
Since I’ve been here, the government’s rhetoric has scapegoated immigrants, holding us responsible for the nation’s issues. But things have significantly worsened since I left Syria in 2012 to seek asylum in the UK, according to Hassan Akkad, a documentary filmmaker.
“When a home secretary compares asylum-seekers to an invading enemy, you are giving the public permission to attack them,” continued Akkad, a representative of the refugee aid organization Choose Love.
This week, hundreds of individuals were transferred from another neighboring immigration processing center that had been attacked with gasoline bombs, causing the overcrowding at the Manston site to reach a breaking point. According to police, the attacker on October 30 who later killed himself was probably motivated by a “hate-filled grievance.”
Additionally, Braverman was accused of ignoring legal counsel and blocking hotel reservations for asylum seekers in an effort to reduce crowding at Manston. She rejected the charges.
According to critics, government failures to manage the country’s asylum system go beyond Manston and began before Braverman was appointed interior minister in September. Only 4% of asylum claims from small boat arrivals, according to the opposition Labor Party, were handled in 2017. This means that more than 100,000 people are still waiting for their applications for protection to be reviewed.
For immigrants who understand English or have family ties to the U.K., it is a popular choice across Europe. Many attempted to cross from northern France before the coronavirus outbreak by concealing in freight trucks passing via the Channel Tunnel. Travel limitations related to COVID-19 and increased security along the route make the perilous maritime voyage a more realistic means of entry into the U.K.
But despite the record number of persons arriving in small boats, the U.K. receives significantly fewer asylum-seekers than several other European nations, notably France, Germany, and Italy. Last year, 48,540 persons filed for British asylum, compared to 148,200 applicants in Germany and more than 103,000 in France.
A controversial contract the U.K. government reached with Rwanda in April added to its reputation of not being the friendliest. According to the deal, some asylum seekers will be sent to the African nation for processing before being granted permission to remain in Rwanda. Although no one has been deported as a result of legal challenges to the program to date, the scheme was designed to discourage foreigners from entering the UK unlawfully.
To thwart the Channel crossings, U.K. police have also tried to cooperate with their French counterparts. The two sides argued a lot about it last year, but once Liz Truss and her successor Rishi Sunak were elected prime minister, things seemed to get better.
Sunak stated that the U.K. and France were “committed to extending our relationship to stop fatal journeys over the Channel that benefit organized criminals” in a phone conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron last week.
According to Ellis of the Refugee Council, authorities ultimately will need to place less emphasis on hostile rhetoric and deterrent and more emphasis on safer channels for genuinely needy people to ask for asylum.
He remarked, “We need to confront this political rhetoric that says individuals should only enter this nation legally.” On the surface, that makes sense, but where are people who are escaping the Horn of Africa supposed to go? Which safe routes are those? There aren’t any.
