By Le Figaro with AFP
Published
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Speaking from Kigali on Saturday, British Home Secretary Suella Braverman defended the project to deport asylum seekers who have illegally arrived in the United Kingdom to Rwanda, assuring that it “humanitarian” and “compassionate“. The British Conservatives have made the fight against illegal immigration one of the pledges of theBrexitone of their priorities.
But never before have so many migrants crossed the Channel in small boats to reach the UK. More than 45,000 arrived on English shores in 2022, compared to 28,526 in 2021 and already 3,150 in 2023. Hoping to discourage crossings, the government had struck an agreement with Kigali that provided for deportations to Rwanda.
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«I sincerely believe that this world-leading partnership between two allies and two friends, the United Kingdom and Rwanda, will pave the way for a solution that is both humanitarian and compassionate.“, declared to the press Suella Braverman, together with Vincent Biruta, Rwandan foreign minister. The patroness of theHome office“added that a”global migration crisis».
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This project “will not only help dismantle criminal networks of human trafficking, but also save lives“, Vincent Biruta assured his side. In December, the High Court in London gave the green light to this highly controversial project that the Conservative government of Rishi Sunak wants to deploy as soon as possible, the unit ruled.legalBut the British judiciary accepted in January to look into the government project on appeal.
A first flight scheduled for June was canceled following a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) calling for a major overhaul of this policy. Rwanda, ruled with an iron hand by Paul Kagame since the end of the 1994 genocide, which killed 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus according to the UN, has been regularly accused by NGOs of suppressing freedom of expression, criticism and political opposition.
On Saturday, several thousand people demonstrated in several UK cities, such as London, Glasgow and Cardiff, against the Conservatives’ desire to tighten laws against illegal immigration, particularly on the application of asylum law. Some carried the sign “Safe passage, not Rwanda» («Safe passage, not RwandaSeveral British media, including the Guardian and the BBC, were not invited to report on the Home Secretary’s visit to Rwanda.