ZA News Page |
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Friday 12 Feb 2010
Recent
coverage of the Zimbabwe Association in The Zimbabwean
Friday 30 October
2009
Press Release: Please
click here
to find Zimbabwe Association response to yesterday's statement
by minister Phil Woolas regarding returns of Zimbabweans to Zimbabwe.
PLEASE DO NOT PANIC! Nothing is to happen immediately. Stay calm
and email us with your concerns at [email protected]
.
Friday 27 February
2009
AFTER THE RN RULING: WHAT NEXT FOR ZIMBABWEAN
ASYLUM SEEKERS?
Many Zimbabwean asylum seekers in the UK are in a state of
confusion. When the UKBA
decided in December not to appeal against the RN ruling (November
2008) people were hopeful that their asylum cases might be settled
at last.
The setting up of the government of national unity in Zimbabwe
earlier this month has left people fearful and uncertain.
Zimbabwean asylum seekers should note the
following:
1. The situation in Zimbabwe will not stabilise
immediately. Activists are
still detained, peaceful protestors are still being beaten, and
the rule of law does not seem to be functioning. There are disputes
and disagreements regarding control of the Reserve Bank and there
is a humanitarian disaster unfolding with cholera and hunger
spreading throughout the land.
2. There has been no change in the British
government's policy regarding returning asylum seekers to Zimbabwe.
In other words, they are NOT forcibly removing Zimbabwean asylum
seekers to Zimbabwe at this time.
3. 'Failed asylum seekers' must pursue
their cases. They should seek
legal advice; it may be possible for them to put in fresh claims
under the RN ruling; if they have a fresh claim lodged they may
be able to seek Section 4 support.
4. People putting in fresh claims may be
able to apply for accommodation under
NASS.
5. Zimbabweans should make contact with
their MPs, Human rights groups, and community organisations
to update them about the ongoing problems in Zimbabwe.
6. People should continue with their activities
in the UK; if they have been going to meetings, demonstrations,
vigils and other events to spread awareness about the situation
in Zimbabwe they should carry on
7. People can access vocational training
courses by going to local voluntary offices and asking
about such courses
WHAT is UKBA doing about ZIMBABWEAN ASYLUM
SEEKERS?
Following the RN ruling, the UK Border Agency has started
a review of all outstanding Zimbabwean asylum cases which
have not yet been concluded.
The review process will:
* consider the decisions made on cases in the past taking
into account the new findings in RN
* the review will be done by case-owners and Home Office presenting
officers
* they will use as guidance their most recent Operational
Guidance Note on Zimbabwe which is available on the Home
Office website (Please look for more information on the recent
Zimbabwe judgment on ILPA website, www.ilpa.org.uk
under the heading Infoservice which also gives a direct link
to the Operational Guidance Note)
* there are over 10,000 backlogged Zimbabwean cases to consider
At the time UKBA changed their policy following
RN, many cases were in the appeals system and at the higher courts.
* Appeals at the Tribunal will be allowed to continue
* Decisions made prior to RN will be reviewed and leave will
be granted where appropriate
* Cases at the Higher Courts will be treated differently - people
will be asked to sign consent orders allowing the cases to be
withdrawn from the Higher Courts so that a new decision can be
made
WHAT is ZA hearing from asylum seekers
in the UK?
* Many people are letting us know that they
have been granted 5 years leave to remain
* Large numbers of people have been asked to send in their passport
photos - in the past, this has been a good sign
* Others are being interviewed by accommodation providers round
the UK
* Disputed nationals are still liable to be detained
__________________________________________________________
Tuesday 18 November
2008
IAS Case Update
IAS wins test case - 17 Nov 2008
'Victory at last for Zimbabwean asylum
seekers'
In a decision long awaited by approximately
7,500 'failed' Zimbabwean
asylum seekers in the U.K, the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal
has
decided in a test-case that all those unable to demonstrate loyalty
to Zimbabwe's ruling regime will be at risk of persecution if
removed
back to their country.
In allowing the appeal of 'RN', an asylum
seeker represented by the
Immigration Advisory Service, the Tribunal found that:
"On being identified as someone not able
to demonstrate loyalty to
the ruling party she may find herself taken to one of the camps
established by the militias where there is a real risk she would
be
detained and molested, physically and sexually. She may face
physical
ill treatment in the course of being displaced from her home
area and
similar treatment in any other area, urban or rural, in which
she
seeks to re-establish herself. There is no reason to suppose
that she
would fare any better than her sister who fled with her family
to
South Africa to avoid the adverse attention of Zanu-PF supporters".
Many of the 7,500 Zimbabweans already refused
asylum in the U.K.
should be able to benefit from this decision, as will many hundreds
more whose cases await a decision from the UK Border Agency.
IAS'
Julian Bild, RN's solicitor, says;
"The Tribunal's recognition that it is
too dangerous for Zimbabweans
to return home will mean that many Zimbabweans in the U.K. will
now
be entitled to stay here as refugees recognised by the 1951 Refugee
Convention. Many of those who have spent years in the U.K. with
no
rights and left effectively destitute will now be able to work
to
support themselves until it is safe for them to return home".
Immigration
Advisory Service
17 November 2008
__________________________________________________________
Saturday 6 September
2008
AA and HS Cases
Update
AA AND OTHERS
The Cases of AA and 2 Others were due to be heard during the
week starting 1 September, and were to be a Country Guidance
Case for Zimbabwe.
However, Treasury Solicitors (for the Home Office) withdrew the
case of AA and one other, before the court hearing. This meant
that AA was no longer a Country Guidance Case, and could not
cover other Zimbabwean cases as it had done in the past. AA and
the Other Case were both given leave to remain. (AA was granted
on account of his political activities within the UK.)
The remaining case was heard from 1 September to 5 September.
It is not yet known whether it will be designated as a Country
Guidance Case. It has a strict Anonymity Order on it, which is
why there will be very little publicity about it. The Judges
said that the ruling would be delivered "reasonably quickly".
HS CASE
This case is still waiting on a House of Lords case which is
expected to be heard sometime in October. There shouldn't be
any removals of asylum seekers until HS is fully resolved, unless
of course something really dramatic happens.
CASES LINKED TO AA AND WAITING AT HIGH
COURT
ZA will be following up with lawyers to identify what can
be done about these cases. (It may be necessary to wait for the
ruling of the case heard between 1-5 September.)
People who were found credible by Immigration Judges, and whose
appeals were allowed, before the Home Office appealed against
the Judge's decision and are now in the High Court queue, should
get in touch with us at the ZA office.
Zimbabwean independence day
Friday 18 April is Zimbabwean independence day - and
it is also the deadline for signing the BZS petition to No 10
Downing Street against the deportation of Zimbabwean asylum seekers:
http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/ZimbabweHSruling
or via the BZS website http://www.britain-zimbabwe.org.uk
Despite the extraordinarily dangerous and uncertain situation
in Zimbabwe since the 29 March elections, there has recently
been a noticeable increase in attempted deportations. This is
understandably causing great fear and anxiety in the refugee
community. Zimbabweans continue to be held in detention centres
from where they can be easily deported at any time.
One week before the deadline, there were just over 1,500 signatures
to the petition. Please help to get this up to 2,000 plus by
the deadline by signing the petition if you haven't already done
so, and encouraging all you know to do likewise. It only takes
a minute or two.
HS Case - Update
28 March 2008
1. The Court of Appeal has refused permission to appeal (on the
papers) for the HS case.
2. The Refugee Legal Centre is now exploring further legal avenues
to ensure protection for Zimbabwean asylum seekers in the UK.
3. There has been no formal announcement from the Border and
Immigration Agency about resuming enforced removals of asylum
seekers to Zimbabwe.
BRITAIN'S REFUGEE SHAME - Government sends back hundreds
of asylum-seekers to Mugabe's Zimbabwe
(The Independent on Sunday, 16 March 2008)
The Zimbabwe Association has condemned letters sent out by the
Border and Immigration Agency to Zimbabwean asylum seekers located
in the north-west of England, and warned of widespread panic
and distress in the Zimbabwean community. The letters tell asylum
seekers that their claims for asylum have been refused and say
the BIA is expecting shortly to be able to enforce returns to
Zimbabwe, and asylum seekers should prepare to go home voluntarily.
The ZA is concerned at the casual and careless way in which such
letters have been sent out to vulnerable people at a volatile
and dangerous time in Zimbabwe, with parliamentary and presidential
elections scheduled for 29 March. Recent press releases from
MISA-Zimbabwe have indicated that civil society organisations
fear "reprisals and retributions in the post-election period"
will take place in the event of a Zanu PF election victory following
a rigged election. The threats of army commander General Chiwenga
and Police Commissioner Chihuri who have stated that they will
not accept a change of government in the event of a Zanu PF defeat,
add to the instability of the situation.
The ZA notes:
1. litigation concerning the country guidance case for Zimbabwe
(HS) is ongoing; the Court of Appeal has not yet responded to
the Refugee Legal Centre's application for permission to appeal
the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal's ruling re HS. (Until the
litigation is concluded the Home Office had agreed to defer the
enforced removal of asylum seekers to Zimbabwe.)
2. During the last resumption of enforced removals to Zimbabwe
(November 2004 to July 2005) a significant proportion of those
forcibly returned - of whom anything was known - suffered persecution,
mistreatment and imprisonment.
3. A recent case of enforced removal of a Zimbabwean asylum seeker
from a European country to Zimbabwe has resulted in his imprisonment
on return.
4. Letters have been sent to people who have ongoing individual
cases for asylum and to people who fall into the risk categories
identified by cases such as SM and Others, AA 2006 and HS 2007
(namely teachers, lowlevel political activists, those with military
backgrounds or outstanding arrest warrants and civil society
activists)
The ZA welcomes the comments of MPs Chris Huhne, Kate Hoey
and Diane Abbot deploring the proposed deportations, and urges
them to sign Early Day Motion 660 and the petition at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/ZimbabweHSruling
in support of Zimbabwean asylum seekers.
The ZA wholeheartedly supports the suggestion of Donna Covey
(Refugee Council) to offer Zimbabweans a form of temporary status
allowing them to work and retain their skills so they are fully
equipped to help in the rebuilding of Zimbabwe when the situation
stabilises.
New Asylum Model (NAM)
14 April 2007 From March 2007, the Home Office aims to process
all new asylum seekers through the New Asylum Model (NAM), a
major change to the asylum system. NAM's main objective is to
decide asylum cases within 6 months leading to either integration
or removal. This will be done through segmentation, faster processing
and case ownership.
Segmentation means asylum claimants will be divided into five
groups. These groups will determine such issues as how fast an
asylum claim is processed, and whether claimants have to live
in detention centres or are electronically tagged.
Faster processing will be achieved by removing the Statement
of Evidence form (SEF) process in adult cases, greatly reducing
the time taken for an initial asylum decision. In general cases
the asylum decision will be given within 20 working days. Other
groups including those detained may have a decision within 3
- 4 days.
Case Ownership involves a Home Office official being responsible
for the asylum seeker's case throughout the process and ensuring
the claim is dealt with promptly. Case Owner responsibilities
include deciding whether status should be granted, handling any
appeal, dealing with support issues, arranging reporting conditions,
and dealing with removal if the claim is unsuccessful.
Only new asylum cases will come under NAM. Old cases (an estimated
450,000) will be known as Legacy Cases and dealt with by the
Legacy Directorate. Legacy cases will be sent a questionnaire
to update information presently held by the Home Office, who
can then decide what action to take. People in receipt of Section
4 support will be the first to receive these questionnaires.
It is essential that anyone thinking of claiming asylum has all
the necessary evidence to support their claim before making it.
They must also take competent legal advice about the merits of
their case before approaching the Home Office. Under NAM the
time scale is very, very short. All the relevant information
about what has happened to make the person seek asylum including
such sensitive issues as torture and rape, needs to be presented
right from the beginning of the claim. Holding back will only
result in a refusal of asylum.
More detailed information on NAM should be available from the
Refugee Council website, www.refugeecouncil.org.uk,
or from the ILPA information service www.ilpa.org.uk/infoservice.html.
Refugee Legal Centre press release Tuesday 6th March 2007
The Refugee Legal Centre welcomes today's Court of Appeal
decision to order the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal to reconsider
whether Zimbabweans who have claimed asylum in the UK are at
risk of human rights abuse if returned to Zimbabwe. The Court
of Appeal considered that the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal
had failed to properly scrutinise the evidence in the case. That
evidence showed that failed asylum seekers risked being subjected
to serious violence by agents of the Zimbabwean Government's
Central Intelligence Organisation stationed at Harare airport.
Thea Rogers, Deputy Chief Executive of the Refugee Legal Centre,
said:
"We are delighted that the Court of Appeal considers that
this test case must be looked at again by the Asylum and Immigration
Tribunal The Refugee Legal Centre represents the applicant in
this case and maintained that there were serious concerns about
the way in which the Asylum Immigration Tribunal considered the
matter. The Government has put a great deal of time, money and
effort into defending this test case, but in our view the evidence
reveals a risk that Zimababweans who exercise their right to
claim asylum in the UK are at risk of serious violence if returned
to Harare Airport. The Government should not just maintain its
ban on forcibly removing Zimbabweans asylum seekers from the
UK to Harare Airport, but should also grant them protection in
the UK until the situation in Zimbabwe improves, allowing them
to work and support themselves."
For a full listing of papers and press releases from the Refugee
Legal Centre, click here.
ZA News Update 06 March 2007
AA CASE:
The AA appeal was allowed (on ground 1) on 6 March 2007 at the
Royal Courts of Justice. The judges ordered reconsideration by
the same panel at the Tribunal so the case will be remitted to
the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal, where part of it will be
reheard.
Until the AA case is fully determined there will be no forcible
removals of Zimbabwean asylum seekers which means there should
be no detentions.
More information will follow when we have gone through the judgment
carefully.
Zimbabwe update
September 2006
This briefing provides information about the situation of Zimbabwean
asylum seekers who think they may be affected by recent legal
judgements.
The Current Legal Position : The AIT ruling in August
On 2nd August 2006, in the case of AA Zimbabwe CG [2006] UKAIT
000061, the AIT ruled that "a failed asylum seeker returned
involuntarily to Zimbabwe does not face on return a real risk
of being subjected to persecution or serious ill treatment on
that account alone."
The AIT did however identify three types of case where there
may be a continuing risk of persecution and hence a need for
protection:
1. Those whose military history discloses issues that will lead
to further investigation by the security services upon return
to Harare airport.
2. Those who have outstanding and unresolved criminal issues.
3. Those who have a political profile (possibly at a low level)
considered adverse to the regime
The first two of these categories are new.
AA's solicitors have made an application to the Court of Appeal
against the determination.
Following this decision the Home Office announced its intention
to resume forced removals of failed Zimbabwean asylum seekers
immediately nevertheless. This has been subject to judicial review.
Administrative Court ruling 26th September 2006 - removal of
Zimbabwean cases suspended once more.
In a case anonomised as J his representatives sought to prevent
his removal pending the outcome of the Court of Appeal hearing
in AA. It was argued that the Home Office policy in relation
to Zimbabwean cases, and in particular the fact that individual
judicial reviews were having to be lodged in each case in order
to obtain stays, was unreasonable and a waste of public funds.
The judge indicated his view that any court would inevitably
grant a stay on such a removal and asked the Home Office if they
were in a position to agree to suspend such removals until the
Court of Appeal gave judgment in AA.
At the end of the hearing, the Home Office confirmed in open
court that removals of failed Zimbabwean asylum seekers would
be suspended again until AA was decided by the Court of Appeal.
Information for Zimbabweans who think they might be affected
by these judgments
Get legal advice - if your solicitor is still dealing with your
case, seek advice about your current position. If your solicitor
is no longer dealing with your case then you should get hold
of your file from your previous solicitors. You can make copies
of the papers and leave them with a friend, in case the worst
happens and you are detained. Any new solicitor will need all
your papers. Detentions should cease pending the outcome of the
AA appeal. However if you are detained you are entitled to make
a phone call. You may want to agree an action plan in advance
with a friend so that you can call them if you are detained and
they can start taking action on your behalf. If you are detained
you are entitled to apply for bail. If you have a solicitor ask
them about making a bail application. You might find it difficult
to find a solicitor to act for you but you can apply for bail
yourself using the "Bail Notebooks for Detainees" written
by Bail for Immigration Detainees (BID) and available free online
at http://www.biduk.org/obtaining/notebook.htm
Copies of the BID notebooks on bail are available in all detention/removal
centre libraries.
Background to the AIT rulinghttp://www.biduk.org/obtaining/notebook.htm
On 16th November 2004, the Government announced that, despite
continuing concerns about the human rights situation in Zimbabwe,
it was resuming enforced removals to the country. This policy
was challenged in the courts on 14th July 2005 when the High
Court ordered that, in the light of new evidence about the situation
in Zimbabwe, the case of AA be heard again before the Asylum
and Immigration Tribunal (AIT). The Government agreed to suspend
all removals pending the outcome of the hearing.
The case of AA was heard before the AIT in October 2005. The
AIT held that a Zimbabwean failed asylum seeker, if forced to
return to Zimbabwe from the U.K, would face a "real risk
of being subjected to persecutory ill treatment at the hand of
the authorities simply because he would be seen to be a person
who was being returned after having an unsuccessful asylum claim"
The Home Office appealed against this judgement before the High
Court in April 2006 and th e Court ordered that the AIT hear
the case afresh. This AIT hearing took place in the first week
of July 2006 and was made public on 2nd August 2006. The AIT
ruled that: "a failed asylum seeker returned involuntarily
to Zimbabwe does not face on return a real risk of being subjected
to persecution or serious ill treatment on that account alone"
AA's solicitors have appealed against this determination to the
Court of Appeal.
Additional information and next steps:
1. The Government announced its intention to recommence involuntary
removals to Zimbabwe but this was successfully challenged in
the Administrative Court on 26th September 2006 (see above).
2. AA's solicitors have applied to the Court of Appeal. How long
this will take is unknown but is likely to be a few weeks.
3. The Home Office still has an obligation to consider any fresh
claims submitted based on AA. It is possible, however, that these
cases may be fast tracked.
4. If AA's present appeal is unsuccessful, it will mean that
appeals that were successful on the basis of the original October
2005 decision in AA, but where the Home Office applied for a
reconsideration, are likely to be reconsidered by the AIT.
5. At the hearing in October 2005, the AIT suggested that the
Home Office needed to devise a mechanism to monitor those Zimbabweans
it returned. To this end the Government has been negotiating
a Memorandum of Understanding with the International Organisation
for Migration (IOM). At the latest AIT hearing, IOM stated that
it conducts "extensive monitoring and evaluation of returned
Zimbabweans who avail themselves of reintegration assistance".
However the AIT also concluded that "the purpose of the
project is not to monitor the safety of the returnee or to assist
with his passage through the airport" and "the IOM
is not in a position to intervene to prevent such abuse should
it occur".
6. Assisted voluntary returns to Zimbabwe have been operating
throughout this period. The Voluntary Assisted Return and Reintegration
Programme (VARRP) is run by IOM on behalf of the Home Office.
It offers reintegration assistance to the value of £1,000
or £3,000 (dependent on eligibility conditions). Information
on assisted voluntary return is available at: www.refugeecouncil.org.uk/voluntaryreturns
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and a Company Limited by Guarantee,
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