At least 17 people seeking asylum in the United Kingdom have launched legal actions to prevent them from being deported after entering the country illegally, The Guardian newspaper reported on Tuesday
LONDON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th August, 2020) At least 17 people seeking asylum in the United Kingdom have launched legal actions to prevent them from being deported after entering the country illegally, The Guardian newspaper reported on Tuesday.
According to the paper, up to 20 people are due to be flown out of the UK on a charter flight on Wednesday, but 17 of them lodged the so-called pre-action protocols on Monday, which is the first phase in the judicial review process.
The asylum seekers challenging in court the deportation orders from the Home Office come from countries including Afghanistan, Iran, Kuwait and Yemen, The Guardian added, claiming also that some of them had suffered torture and persecution in their home countries.
"All the clients we represent have strong claims for international protection. They are, by definition, refugees. They also have very strong reasons as to why their claims ought to be processed in the UK," Toufique Hossain, one of the solicitors challenging the deportation orders, said, as cited by the paper.
The news outlet said at least five people initially scheduled to be flown out of the UK on Wednesday have allegedly been removed from the list, and cited a Home Office spokesperson who had complained of activist lawyers abusing the current legal framework to hinder the government's efforts regarding illegal immigration.
In the wake of the recent surge in migrants trying to cross the English Channel to reach the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson advocated on Monday for toughening immigration laws to prevent illegal migrants from staying in the country.
"We need to look at the legal frame that we have, all the panoply of laws that an illegal immigrant has at his or her disposal that allow them to stay here, and we need to look at what we can do to change that," Johnson said.
According to UK media, around 3,950 migrants this year have ventured across the perilous waters separating England's southernmost coast from the French region of Calais on rubber boats and small dinghies.
