UK-based human rights group, comprising over 175 civil society organizations, on Wednesday called on the country's parliament to influence the withdrawal of the Illegal Migration Bill which it says "attacks" core human rights and "separates" people into categories of deserving and undeserving of being granted asylum
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th May, 2023) UK-based human rights group, comprising over 175 civil society organizations, on Wednesday called on the country's parliament to influence the withdrawal of the Illegal Migration Bill which it says "attacks" core human rights and "separates" people into categories of deserving and undeserving of being granted asylum.
"As a coalition of 176 civil society organisations representing the human rights, migrant, refugee, asylum, anti-slavery and trafficking, children's, violence against women and girls ... and other sectors, we call on Parliamentarians to urge the Government to immediately withdraw the 'Illegal Migration Bill'," UK advocacy group Liberty said in a statement.
The bill "attacks the very core of human rights" and "separates people into categories of 'deserving' and 'undeserving' of human rights," the statement emphasized.
"The Bill deliberately and unacceptably excludes an entire category of people from the protections guaranteed under our domestic laws and international obligations. It will almost certainly breach multiple international conventions and agreements, including the UN Refugee Convention, the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), and the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (ECAT)," the statement also said.
Liberty added that the UK government has acknowledged that it could not guarantee the bill would "be compatible with the ECHR, a legally binding instrument."
Illegal migration has been a pressing issue for the UK for years and only intensified after the country left the European Union in 2020. In April 2022, the UK and Rwanda signed a migration agreement, stipulating that people recognized by the UK government as illegal migrants or asylum seekers will be deported to Rwanda for the processing of their documents, obtaining asylum, and relocation.
In March, UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman presented a bill that seeks to relocate migrants who came to the UK illegally by boats across the English Channel to a "safe third country" like Rwanda. Asylum in the UK will only be granted in exceptional cases and within a yearly quota. Later in the month, the UK and Rwanda signed an updated version of the migration agreement, preparing for the implementation of Braverman's plan.
The idea has faced serious criticism from both the UK opposition and various human rights organizations, with many people arguing that forced relocation will not be effective in preventing illegal migration to the UK and others saying the bill violates human rights.
