In defence of asylum
Guardian
Saturday June 15, 2002

While claiming to abhor Le Pen and extreme right parties, European governments are increasingly adopting their policies (UK plan for asylum crackdown, June 13). The immigration, nationality and asylum bill introduces an unprecedented apartheid system.

The proposed induction, accommodation and removal centres impose imprisonment without trial on people who have committed no crime. Accused of "swamping schools", children seeking asylum would be given a segregated education. Forced dispersal would continue, denying people access to independent legal advice, health care, family and community support; as would having to survive on 30% less than poverty-line benefits. ID cards are now planned.

Fast-tracking reduces appeal rights, making it harder to claim protection. The hated one-year rule which traps immigrant women in violent marriages, and which the government claimed to have abolished, is being expanded to two years.

The US and European arms trade profits from wars and dictatorships which cause the impoverishment and displacement of millions of people. Those who try to escape devastation by emigrating or seeking asylum are then accused of flooding Europe, detained and sent back. Recent leaks indicate that the military is to be used to deport people en masse. Aid is to be withheld from countries unless they take back nationals who fled in fear of their lives. Germany even wants to sell asylum seekers to third world governments, their own nationals as well as others - a new slave trade.

There is such a thing as society

 See full list of signatories

Full letter before Guardian edits (shown underlined)

While claiming to abhor Le Pen and extreme right parties, European governments are increasingly adopting their policies.  The immigration, nationality and asylum bill now in Parliament introduces an unprecedented apartheid system (in Britain) for asylum seekers and immigrants.

The proposed induction, accommodation and removal centres impose imprisonment without trial on people who have committed no crime. Accused of "swamping schools", children seeking asylum would lose the protection of the Children Act and be given a segregated education. Forced dispersal would continue, denying people access to independent legal advice, health care, churches, family and community support; as would the scandal of having to survive on 30% less than poverty-line benefits. And measures like ID cards first imposed on asylum seekers are now planned for everyone. 

While it is widely recognized that victims of rape and other torture need time to be able to speak about their experiences and gather evidence,  “fast-tracking” reduces appeal rights, making it harder for survivors to claim the protection they are entitled to. The hated one-year rule which traps immigrant women in violent marriages, and which the government claimed to have abolished, is being expanded to two years.

The US and European arms trade profits from wars and dictatorships which cause the impoverishment and displacement of millions of people worldwide. Those who try to escape devastation by emigrating or seeking asylum are then accused of flooding Europe, detained and sent back. Recent leaks indicate that the military is to be used to deport people en masse. “Aid” is to be withheld from countries unless they take back nationals who fled in fear of their lives. Germany even wants to sell asylum seekers to third world governments, their own nationals as well as others - a new trafficking or slave trade.

Condemnation of these policies has been minimal among prominent human rights organisations. Many have accepted funding to implement previous repressive legislation. The government now plans to use them to carry out deportations - labelled compulsory return schemes. We urge everyone to reconsider such present and future collaboration and reaffirm that there is such a thing as society.  

Signatories as of 16 June 2002

Legal Action for Women
Black Women's Rape Action Project

And the following organisations and prominent individuals:
Asian Women Unit
Association Of Refugees And Asylum Seekers In Ireland – ARASI
Asylum from Rape Initiative - Women Against Rape
Bangla 2000
Barbed Wire Britain
Black Community Forum Ltd, Sheffield
Black Racial Attacks Independent Network
Black Women for Wages for Housework
Brighton & Hove TUC Unemployed Workers Centre
Brighton & Hove District Trades Union Council
Brighton & Hove UNISON - Local Government
British Somali Community Cultural Council
Cambridgeshire Against Refugee Detention
Campaign To Stop Arbitrary Detention At Yarl's Wood
Catholic Association for Racial Justice
Centro de Defensa y Estudio de Derechos Humanos - CEDEHU (Madrid, Spain),
Hugo Charlton, Home Affairs Speaker for the Green Party
Louise Christian, human rights lawyer
CGIL Regione Toscana Sezione Immigrati (Italy)
Churches' Commission for Racial Justice
Close Campsfield Campaign
Close Down Harmondsworth
Steve Cohen, Barrister
Collectif Anti-Expulsions d'Ile de France (France)
Colombia Solidarity Campaign, Columban Faith and Justice Team
Comitato sardo di solidarietà con il popolo del Kurdistan (Sardenia, Italy),
Committee to Defend Asylum Seekers
Coordination Nationale des Sans-Papiers (France),
Day-Mer Turkish and Kurdish Solidarity Community Centre
Freedom and Equal Rights Voice (Germany) 
Glasgow Campaign to Welcome Refugees 
Jeremy Hardy, writer and broadcaster
Haringey Campaign to Defend Asylum Seekers
High Cross United Reformed Church, Tottenham
Horn of Africa Women's Association
Colin Hutchinson, barrister
Incapacity Action
International Federation of Iranian Refugees – IFIR
International Wages for Housework Campaign
International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination & Racism (Japan)
Jewish Anti Racist Anti Fascist Group of the Jewish Socialists' Group
Kurdish Women Action against Honour Killing
Kurdistan Solidarity Ireland
Kurdistan Solidarity Committee and Peace in Kurdistan Campaign
Jennifer Langer, Director, Exiled Writers Ink!
Revd Dr Kennneth Leech, theologian
Ian Macdonald, QC
Merseyside Against Detention
Miscarriages of Justice UK
Sonali Naik, Barrister
NASC The Irish Immigrant Support Centre, Cork
National Coalition of Anti-Deportation Campaigns
National Union of Domestic Employees (Trinidad & Tobago)
National Union of Students Women's Campaign
Notre Dame Refugee Centre
Olho Vivo - Associacao para a Defesa do Patrimonio Ambiente Direito
Humanos (Portugal)
One World Refugee Action Group
Papeles para Todas/os - Papers for All (Barcelona, Spain)
Payday
Peace and Human Rights Trust
People Not Profit
John Pilger, journalist and broadcaster
Pilton Community Health Project, Edinburgh
Positive Action in Housing
Refugee Development Project, Diocese of Brentwood
Refugee Women's Association
Religious of the Assumption, England/Scotland
Renaissance Project, Liverpool
Romanian Human Rights Project
Jeremy Seabrook, writer and journalist
Sheffield Positive Training Action Consortium
Sikh Refugee Support Group
SOS Racismo (Portugal)
South East Asia Solidarity
SPI CGIL Area Lavorosocietà (Italy)
Universal Embassy (Belgium)
The Voice Africa Forum (Jena, Germany)
Wages for Housework Campaign (Galway, Ireland)
Wages for Housework Campaign (Barcelona, Spain)
Francis Webber, barrister
West Midlands Anti-Deportation Campaign
Women's Action Group (Galway, Ireland)
Women's Committee of Left Unity in Iran
Women's Welfare Centre (Pune, India)
Women In Media & Entertainment (Galway, Ireland)
Youth Coalition Gogledd Cymru

We are still collecting endorsements.
If your organisation wishes to add its name, please contact:

Legal Action for Women
c/o Crossroads Women’s Centre
PO Box 287 London NW6 5QU.
Tel 020 7482 2496  Fax 020 209 4761
law@crossroadswomen.net

All Women Count