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The following is a press release issued by protesting detainees at Campsfield House.
UNLAWFUL DETENTION OF DETAINEES
147 detainees have are staging a protest by refusing meals at Campsfield Immigration Removal Centre. The protest erupted as a result of the treatment of detainees in detention centres especially for people who have been detained for a long period of time. We continue to refuse meals indefinitely for our voices to be heard.
Some of us detainees have been detained for over 3 years with no prospect of removal or any evidence of future release. There is no justification whatsoever for detaining us for such period of time. Our lives incidentally have been stalled without any hope of living a life, having a family or any future. More often than not, we are been detained even when our family (wife and children) are resident in the United Kingdom, depriving us of having a life with our family. We the detainees are also humans.
In certain cases, some of us are tortured and even face death or mental distress. On 14 April 2010, a detainee of Kenya national Eliud Nyenze died at Oakington IRC due to negligence. Mr. Nyenze, age 40, had a heart attack, requested for painkillers, repeatedly and kept crawling around the floor in pain before he died.
Detainees are currently undergoing mental stress with some of us developing mental problems on a monthly basis. We are issued removal directions without given enough time for an appeal.
It has become a habit by the UK Border Agency to use force in enforcing removal of detainees who have a pending Judicial Review without given appropriate time or consideration to our case and forcing our removal before our cases are concluded. In some situations we are not given enough time to appeal against the decision which breaches our rights under Article 6 of the ECHR. Our liberty and security has been taking away.
We as foreign nationals are often been criminalised for the purpose of detention and removal as the law under the European Convention of Human Rights permits the removal of foreigners who have established there lives in the United Kingdom and are a treat to national security. Foreign nationals are now been sent to prison for 12 months custodial sentence or more prompting the deportation of such individual. Removals are enforced on specially chartered flights with security personnel who abuse and torture detainees in the process. Detainees are restrained, strapped, beating and forced on the airplane.
On 26 July 2010, one of the detainee at Campsfield attempted suicide due to the level of treatment received at the detention centre.
The Amnesty International has also reported that our detention breaches the internationally recognised human rights.
On a regular basis, we are tortured, restrained, strapped like animals and beating to effect removal. This cannot be lawful given that there is provision within the ECHR convention that prohibits torture both mentally and physically.
We painfully ask that the government, the house of parliament, the House of Commons, the parliamentarians and all concerned to rise to our aid and address these issues that affects not only our lives and our future but the lives and future of the thousands of our families who are constantly under pain and torture.
Detainees - Campsfield House
Two Iraqis have won a judicial review against the Home Office in a test case which may benefit many others who could not and cannot be deported or removed to Iraq. Pierce Glynn News.
An asylum seeker from South Tyneside is back in the borough as she fights to stay in the country - but she's been booted out of her home. Shields Gazette.
Most of the desperate mothers who are held at Yarl's Wood are quickly deported: now four of them are taking the Home Office to court, citing violations of their human rights amid nightmarish conditions. Guardian.
Britain is in breach of its legal obligations. The Independent.
A ruling in February that the continuing detention of one of the thirty-four Iraqi Kurds deported to Baghdad and refused admission to Iraq was unlawful, should benefit others held for deportation for years with no prospect of speedy return. IRR News.
A high-profile conference about 'policing' the UK borders on Tuesday was disrupted by campaigners protesting against a 'fortress Europe'. Brighton NoBorders.
Phil Woolas's defence of the inhumane Yarl's Wood removal centre reflects Labour's shift to the right on asylum. Guardian.
Report on immigration centre reveals heavy-handed treatment of young detainees. Independent.
A disabled athlete who has won five gold medals for Britain is to be deported to Nigeria tonight after the Government refused his 11th-hour plea for clemency. Independent.
General Medical Council hears complaints over poor care at immigration detention centre. Guardian.
The hunger striking women of Yarl's Wood have announced a temporary suspension of their strike in order to give the authorities time to respond to their demands. Text of Announcement.
Public Interest Lawyers said: 'Today's report by Baroness O'Loan adds to the growing evidence of the prevailing culture of abuse inside Britain's immigration detention centres, particularly at Yarl's Wood. WorkersRevolutionaryParty.
Charities say reports of abuse being routinely ignored is a 'systemic and increasing problem'. Guardian.
Ministers are to review the use of force against asylum-seekers by British security guards after a report found serious injuries suffered by detainees who had been handcuffed or physically restrained. The Independent.
A small group of campaigners from the Campaign To Close Campsfield leafleted workers as they came to work today. Serco, the multinational which runs Yarl's Wood IRC have an office in the park. They demanded 'Serco Out Of Yarl's Wood!' or 'Serco Out Of Culham!'. Leaflet.
Close all Detention Centres! Solidarity with the Hunger Strikers! Demonstrators called for the end of all migrant detention at a Yarl's Wood solidarity demonstration today. Details.
It has been five weeks since a group of about 40 women at Yarl's Wood immigration centre began a hunger strike. BBC Article.
Victims of torture seeking sanctuary in Britain are being denied vital healthcare in detention centres and the community, the Equality and Human Rights Commission has found. Independent Article.
Three people who plunged to their deaths from a multi-storey flat in Glasgow were a Russian family seeking asylum in the UK, the BBC understands. BBC Article.
With the Yarlswood hunger strike in its 5th week, detainees at Harmondsworth have now been without food for 4 days. Statement. Second Statement.
Criticism of immigration officers and private security guards expected to be made by former police ombudsman. Independent Article.
A Church of Scotland minister has spoken out after two five-year-old boys were taken to the Dungavel detention centre in their school uniforms. BBC News.
With 38 women still on hunger strike, 60 protestors (+ Salsa band) braving the cold and the wind, gathered for a noisy demonstration outside Holloway prison, where several of the original striking women are now being held. People were asked to send messages of support and get their MP to sign Early Day Motion 919 on YW hunger strike. Details.
To those familiar with our detention centres, a hunger strike comes as no surprise. Independent On Sunday Article.
Centre breaching human rights, say lawyers. Guardian Article.
THIRTY-EIGHT Jamaican women are on hunger strike in holding facilities in the United Kingdom, in protest of their imminent deportation to Jamaica. Jamaican Observer Article.
MPs investigate claims that women in Yarl's Wood detention centre were abused during hunger strike. Guardian Article. Guardian Images.
Interviews with some of the hunger strikers. NoOneIsIllegal Video.
Friday's protest outside the UK Border Agency in Cardiff was the largest one to date with over 200 people, mostly refugees. NoBorders Report.
Hundreds of refugee women are being shoved through a system where they don't have enough time to make a proper case. Guardian Article.
Two people, including a MULE editor, were detained by anti-terror police at Heathrow Airport on January 6 after they raised objections to a deportation taking place on their flight. Manchester Mule Article.
Today, February 24 2010, the European Commission through its Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom, has proposed a new Regulation to strengthen Frontex. FrontexWatch.
Immigration lawyers criticise UK detention of asylum seekers under fast-track system they say leads to rushed decisions. Guardian Article.
Denise McNeil, one of the detainees at Yarl's Wood, explains why she has been on hunger strike for the last two weeks. Guardian Article.
About 20 detainees are protesting over indefinite detention and alleged racial and physical abuse. Guardian Article.
The Children's Commissioner has called for an end to the detention of youngsters in immigration removal centres. Times Online Article.
The children's commissioner has today issued a report on the treatment of children at an immigration detention centre, in which he says it is "no place for children". InTheNews Article.
Hundreds of failed immigrants are held in UK detention centres for years. The inmates of one are now on hunger strike. The Independent Article.
Four women taking part in a hunger strike at an immigration centre in Bedfordshire have been transferred to prison, the Home Office said. BBC News Article.
Eighty four Northwest activists will take part in a 24-hour fast this Friday 12 February in support of the 84 detainees on hunger strike in the Yarl's Wood immigration detention centre in Bedfordshire. Manchester Mule Article.
'We are not criminals; we are ordinary people who are being locked up and threatened', says hunger striker at Yarl's Wood. Guardian Article.
I am one of the ladies on hunger strike at Yarl's wood center. Full Statement.
Immigration minister Phil Woolas has admitted millions of pounds is being paid in compensation to migrants who have been detained in removal centres. BBC World Service Article.
Alistair Burt on the floor of house of commons. Parliament.uk.
A group of up to 80 mothers detained at an immigration centre have gone in hunger strike in protest at being separated from their children, it has emerged. Telegraph Article.
Report by Women Against Rape.
A group of up to 80 mothers detained at an immigration centre have gone in hunger strike in protest at being separated from their children, it has emerged. Telegraph Article.
Statement by Hunger Striking Women in Yarlswood IRC. Full Statement.
A Nigerian prince who fled to Britain after being tortured in a tribal dispute over his family's claim to a royal throne has now begged the Home Office to send him home. Independent Article.
Hillingdon & Uxbridge Times Article.
Claims that asylum seekers are mistreated, tricked and humiliated by staff working for the UK Border Agency are to be investigated in parliament. Guardian Article.
A DESPERATE refugee has been on hunger strike for nearly two weeks because she is terrified of being tortured and killed if she is forced to return to Iran. Times Article.
A REFUGEE who was falsely imprisoned with her children at Oakington immigration removal centre has won a £100,000 payout. Cambridge City News Article.
Plans to convert a hotel near Gatwick Airport into an immigration detention and removal centre have been refused. BBC Article.
NoBorders Demo Outside Eurostar. Video.
With recent press coverage shedding light on the devastating impact of detention on children, and the public outrage that followed, it was no surprise that a meeting on the detention of mothers and other vulnerable people in the House of Commons 14 January, was packed with over 150 people squeezed into all corners of the room. WomenAgainstRape Report.
What kind of country drags vulnerable children from their beds at daybreak, puts them behind bars and fills them with terror? Paul Vallely meets a family who have endured this horror - in Britain. And they're not alone. Independent Article.
Today Monday 11th Janaury a group of 10 people from Brighton No Borders took part in a peaceful protest at the Mercure Hotel, Povey Cross Road, Crawley, demonstrating against Arora Hotels International Ltd.'s plans to turn the 254-bed four-star Mercure hotel into the third immigration detention centre in the Gatwick area. No Borders Report.
It claims to act in the 'best interests' of the children of asylum seekers, yet its actions reveal a very different story. Guardian Article.
Nine-year-old terrified by almost three-hour incarceration while mother in hospital, say relatives. Guardian Article.
Immigration authorities are the real danger to the children of foreign nationals, says Anna Morvern Forth Article.
Chief inspector of prisons slams conditions at privately run Tinsley House, including the use of force on two children. Guardian Article.
Comment on Phil Woolas' recent justifications for the detention of children. Article.
Detainees first began to refuse food on 10th. Involving nearly all detainees, reportedly. 'They demand an end to their arbitrary detention, claims to be dealt with - people have been waiting for 6 or 8 months and why are they imprisoned in the meantime? Conditions in the centre and the way they are treated are also issues they are complaining about. The majority of detainees are from Afghanistan but many Africans are involved in the strike too.
Medical Justice on child prisons at Yarlswood. Article.
Speaking in House of Commons. Parliament website.
The police were called on the patron saint of children and the imprisoned today, as he tried to deliver Christmas gifts to children at Yarl's Wood detention centre. Article.
Since it opened earlier this year, the UK's newest and biggest immigration prison has barely had a day without trouble. However, Corporate Watch has learnt that things have become "much worse" lately, both for the detainees and for their visitors. Meanwhile, the G4S management is apparently recruiting new security guards as staff shortages have led many detainees to repeatedly miss doctors' and court appointments. Corporate Watch Article.
'Too many children being held at detention centres for too long.', says home affairs select committee. Guardian Article.
Campaigners from Coventry, Warwick, London and Oxford gathered to commemorate the opening of the 'Not Fit For Purpose' immigrant detention centre. 2 choirs sang protest songs, supported by a Samba band. The police kept an uncharacteristic low profile. One former detainee spoke of his ordeal. Representatives from the NoBorders network, the Liberal Democrats, Oxford Student Action For Refugees and Coventry Trades Council all called for its immediate closure.
Recent developments, like the use of captive labour in Campsfield, and the plans for the new 800 bed detention in nearby Bicester were also raised. The many protests over the year by detainees were hailed. The demonstration moved to the back of the complex, where it was easier for detainees to see and hear the protestors. Many joined in the chanting, and waved makeshift flags from behind barred windows.
An open meeting of the Barbed Wire Britain Network was held after the demonstration.
...Refugee welfare groups said the fall in asylum numbers was not necessarily a matter of celebration but raised fears that the tightening up of Britain's borders was denying sanctuary to those who needed protection... Guardian on recent figures from Office for National Statistics.
A 10-year-old asylum seeker and her mother who were due to be flown back to Malawi have been granted a reprieve. BBC Article.
2,000 asylum seekers' kids a year are locked up, and the only beneficiaries seem to be firms running centres like Yarl's Wood. Guardian.
The Home Office has paid over £100,000 damages to a Nigerian family of four - including two young children and their mentally ill mother - who were arrested in a dawn raid and spent seven weeks at a detention centre. Telegraph Article.
Video of Parliamentary Question.
More than 1,300 children were held at UK immigration removal centres during a 15-month period, the government says. BBC Coverage.
BBC Coverage of the release of Adeoti Ogunsola and her mother from Tinsley House.
BBC Coverage of Court of Appeal Decision.
There have been several articles in the Guardian over the last week on the effects of detaining children. This culminated in an open letter to the government and UK Borders agency demanding an end to child detention.
Wed 28 Oct - Open Letter: Stop Detention of Asylum Children.
Fri 23 Oct - End Child Detention!
Wed 21 Oct - Detained Nigerian girl found trying to strangle herself.
Wed 14 Oct - Detention for children can never be justified.
Tue 13 Oct - Children made 'sick with fear' in UK immigration detention centres.
A magistrates judge has ruled that police acted unlawfully when arresting six anti-deportation campaigners who were blockading Colnbrook detention centre, near Heathrow airport, on 12th May, 2009, to try and prevent Iraqi refugees from being forcibly deported to Iraqi Kurdistan on a specially chartered flight. Full Story on stopdeportation.net.
Pictures of protest on NCADC website.
Guardian article.
Indymedia coverage of London NoBorders' occupation of the Arora International Hotel.
Times' coverage of the imprisonment of a mother for deceiving the Home Office.
Article by FreeMovement.
Crawley Observer on new planning submission to convert a hotel into a detention centre. Full Article.
Scotsman reports on G4S yearly profits, assisted by new UKBA contracts.
A sting operation by News of The World journalists has lead to the incarceration of as many as 14 people from Bangladesh. The journalists pretended to be employers, conned the workers to get on a coach and then drove them to Oakington. Article.
British Refugee Council press release calls for people to respond to the July report 'Out of Sight, Out of Mind: Experiences of Immigration Detention in the UK' from BID, by writing to their MPS. Report and action letter available here.
NCADC report large rise in numbers of detainees resorting to self abuse.
Oxford & District Trades Union Council condemns GEO's practice of employing detainees for 5 pounds a day. Full Statement
The Daily Star's take on the issue of detainee's working for slave wages competing with other workers. Full Article
Read report in Belfast Telegraph.
An Iranian asylum seeker has sewn his face up and is on hunger strike in protest at his 'inhumane treatment' in immigration detention. Fariat Mohammadi, an Iranian asylum seeker who fought against the Islamic regime in Iran, has been held in detention since his arrival in the UK eleven months ago. Currently held in Colnbrook immigration removal centre, he started to refuse food and stitched his eyes and mouth closed seven days ago. Read more ..
'Like many IRCs, Dover is dealing with a more challenging and varied population, including a high proportion of ex-prisoners. It was nevertheless disappointing that there had been slippage in a number of areas and that the regime and approach was tending to revert to that of a prison, rather than an IRC.' Read summary and full report on NCADC website. Also BBC Report.
Anti-deportation campaigners are currently demonstrating outside Yarl's Wood detention centre in Bedfordshire in an attempt to stop a specially charted flight deporting families and children to Nigeria. Full Story
A mass hunger strike by families detained at Yarl's Wood refugee detention centre in Bedfordshire has been met with violent assaults on men, women and children by security guards working for Serco - who manage the prison on behalf of the UK Border Agency. The detainees started the hunger strike on Monday and since Tuesday prison managers have stopped detainees from speaking to visitors and reporters, and denied them internet access. Full Story
Students have taken action after nine cleaners,
who campaigned for a 'living wage' whilst working at a top London university,
were detained in a dawn raid by immigration officers dressed in full riot gear.
Full Story
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