Almost 1000 refugees rescued from the Channel this month
Early this morning we were out a food distribution in Calais when I noticed a group of Sudanese refugees looking very subdued and downcast. I was a bit worried about them, so decided to see if everything was ok. As I got closer, I realised that all their clothes were wet. Not just caught-in-the-rain wet, they looked as if they’d been completely soaked from head to foot. When I asked what had happened to them, they explained there had been “a problem with the boat” and made plunging signs with their hands. I understood; they had experienced something that has …
Government U Turn on Albanian Asylum Seekers
At the end of August Priti Patel, the former Home Secretary, announced new plans for Albanian asylum seekers who cross the English Channel to seek safety in the UK. She said that their asylum claims would be ‘fast tracked’ with the aim of immediate removal, and suggested that these asylum claims were ‘spurious ’. It was brutal, lacking in compassion and unfair. Worse, it was potentially illegal. Recent figures show that 53 per cent of asylum claims made by Albanians in the UK are accepted, meaning they most definitely are genuine, and in any case asylum claims must be …
Yesterday, something truly inspiring happened…
…Outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, and around the country, hundreds of ordinary people came out to stand up for what they believe in. It was a truly special moment and we were incredibly proud. The Rwanda policy has split our country in a way reminiscent of Brexit. Feelings are running high, and it takes courage to speak out. The counter protest was tiny – less than ten people – they were simply loud and unpleasant. We were the many; they were the few. What we witnessed yesterday was so many of you who were willing to stand …
Little Amal says #StopRwanda
Today we will be in court to challenge the Government’s Rwanda Policy. It’s a momentous day for us, and for the thousands of refugees whose lives will be affected by the outcome. So it seems incredibly fitting that this morning Little Amal, the puppet who has become a figurehead for refugees all over the world, is publicly supporting our #StopRwanda campaign. Little Amal is a ten year old Syrian girl. The name Amal is Arabic for “hope”. Last year, in The Walk project, she travelled from the Syria-Turkey border to the UK, meeting crowds and dignitaries including the Pope …
Rwanda Update
In just two weeks we will be back in court to challenge the lawfulness of the Government’s cruel Rwanda policy. To have any chance of stopping this, the time to act is now. We’ve recently learned that the Foreign Office warned Priti Patel that refugees should not be sent to Rwanda due to human rights concerns, including that they could be forced to join the country’s army and sent to fight in neighbouring states. Following this disclosure, the Government has been ordered by the court to deliver more documents next week that had previously been redacted. What else could they …
Imelda Staunton says #StopRwanda
Yas queen! Today we’re royally proud to proclaim that the wonderful Imelda Staunton is supporting our #StopRwanda campaign. Imelda is not only one of our most distinguished actors, she’s also a British icon – a CBE and OBE, and soon to appear on our TV screens as the Queen in Season Five of The Crown. With national icons such as this denouncing the Rwanda Plan, you really know it isn’t wanted. Imelda has dozens of major stage and film credits to her name, including her lead role as Vera Drake, and as Dolores Umbridge in two Harry Potter films – …
Juliet Stevenson says #StopRwanda
We’re truly, madly, deeply excited to see actress and refugee champion Juliet Stevenson pledging her support for #StopRwanda this morning! As well as being an incredibly distinguished actor, Juliet is is a passionate and high-profile defender of refugees around the world. Her support shows people are realising just how significant the fight against the Government’s cruel Rwanda policy is. Juliet is best known for her role in Truly, Madly, Deeply back in 1991, but she has starred in dozens of other films and stage productions including Bend It Like Beckham and Mona Lisa Smile. She has also campaigned on behalf …
Jonas’s Story
Trigger warning: r*pe Libya is like hell for African men, but for women it is worse than hell. It is a living, never-ending nightmare they cannot escape from. You never hear their stories. Because they never escape. In Libya I lost the woman who took care of me when my own mother died. Even when I had nothing, she made sure I had something to eat and she sacrificed herself for me. I’m from Eritrea but I left when I was five or six. My family were Christians so life in Eritrea was so hard. My father died when I …
More refugees greeted at Dungeness
Since the end of June we’ve welcomed 107 refugees who’ve come ashore in three boats at Dungeness on the Kent coast. Many of these people were from Kuwait, Syria, Libya, Egypt and Ethiopia. The first boat, which arrived at 4.45am on 29 June, had 40 people on board, including five women and five children aged 8-10; the second (10.50pm, 6 July) carried 22 men, and the last (8.15pm, 11 July) was carrying 45 people, including families with 14 kids in total, some of them did not look even a year old. It was incredibly moving to see such young children …
Care4Calais FC’s adventure at the Refugee World Cup
Refugees are often incredibly resourceful and inspiring people, and when you support them as a volunteer with Care4Calais, you can find yourself doing amazing things that you probably wouldn’t have otherwise tried. That’s how our group in Manchester came to set up a football team and enter the Refugee World Cup! It started when we began running social afternoons at a hotel housing asylum seekers in the city. We began supporting a couple of people who were struggling with their mental health, and one Sunday afternoon we decided to take along some footballs and snacks to see if that helped. …
