LONDON – The British government reached an agreement with Rwanda on April 14 to send …
some asylum seekers to the African country, a move that opposition politicians and refugee groups have condemned, calling it “inhumane.”
Britain’s home secretary, Priti Patel, will on Thursday announce details of what the U.K. government calls a “partnership for economic development.” Media reports say the government’s plan would see some of the men, who arrive in Britain across the English Channel in small boats, return to Rwanda while their asylum claims are processed. Simon Hart, government minister for Wales, said the deal would cost Britain about £120 million, adding that the goal is to “end” the business model of criminal gangs of human traffickers.
“[If] we have an agreement with the Rwandan government for the fair and humane treatment of these people, the criminal gangs will realize that their potential source of income will run out,” Hart said. Steve Valdez-Symonds, refugee director for Amnesty International U.K., said that “the government’s ill-conceived idea will inflict more suffering while wasting huge amounts of public money.” The CEO of the U.K.-based organization Refugee Council, Enver Solomon, called it a “cruel and bad decision” and estimated that the move would not stop the criminal activities of human trafficking gangs.
A speech by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the issue is scheduled for Thursday, April 14. According to the PM’s office, Johnson will announce that action is needed to stop “the vile people smugglers [who] are abusing the vulnerable and turning the English Channel into a maritime graveyard, where men, women and children drown in unseaworthy boats.”
Migrants have long used northern France as a starting point to reach Britain, either by hiding in trucks or ferries, often in cold storage where they freeze to death, or by sea, aboard inflatable boats and small boats. More than 28,000 people entered the U.K. by sea last year, compared to 8,500 in 2020 and only 300 in 2018.
The governments in London and Paris have been cooperating for years to stop cross-Channel travel, but have been unsuccessful, even frequently exchanging accusations about responsibility for the failure of their measures. In 2021, the UK agreed to hand over £54 million to France to help Paris double the number of police patrolling French coastal areas.
The conservative wing of the British executive has launched other proposals, including building a wave machine in the English Channel to bring back boats, as well as sending migrants to third countries. Several locations are those suggested, including Ascension Island, Albania and Gibraltar. However, these have consistently rejected the proposal with some resentment. Labor Party lawmaker Lucy Powell said the Rwanda plan might appeal to some conservative supporters “and it would certainly attract headlines because it’s very controversial and contestable. But in reality it’s impractical, expensive and unethical.”