Hamed, 32, from Yemen, was dealing with multiple traumas by that point. He had been jailed and tortured by Houthi fighters in his home country after he refused their efforts to forcibly conscript him.
“The Houthis imprisoned me naked for one week and deprived me of sleep,” he said, describing various tortures he was put through, including having to sleep under a blanket smeared with excrement and threatened with rape. Hamed escaped to Saudi Arabia...
Hurrah, a Muslim country, he'll be safe th...
Oh.
...where he was subjected to labour exploitation and given only a fraction of the wages to which he was entitled from working as a salesperson. Once again he fled, paying smugglers to help him cross from Turkey to Greece.
Oh, well, Greece has a hot climate, right? I guess he'll feel at home th...
Wait.
When Hamed reached the UK...
Illegally, of course.
Many of the asylum seekers who have ended up at these sites have fled from the risk of torture, persecution and death in their countries of origin.
So they say. But people genuinely fleeing those things are usually happy just to get to a safe country. Not these 'asylum seekers', though.
The genuine ones are grateful to be rescued.Not these, though:
Matin, 26, from Iran, said mental health among Napier residents was so poor that there had been multiple suicide and self-harm attempts.
“The first impression I had was it looked like a prison. There were fences, security guards walking around, I was really depressed,” he said.
“There is no support for mental wellbeing. We have one nurse on site, in case you get a cold or flu. People are getting more and more frustrated.”
What 'support for mental wellbeing' did you have in Iran, Matin?
“It’s true we have a roof above our heads … but this is what many animals have,” Matin said. “We really need reassurance and safety. The Home Office do not provide this.”
Well, no. That's not their purpose. Their purpose is to defend this country from invaders and criminals. A job that, under Priti Patel, as under so many recent Home Secretaries, they are failing in every single day.
Another asylum seeker, Mohamed, ...said one of the worst things about Penally was the flashbacks and nightmares it triggered about the situation from which he had fled in a war-torn country in the Middle East.
“We are human beings, not terrorists. We came here because of war. I swear to God I would not leave my country if I could stay there safely.”
Why did you leave all the safe ones along your route to come here, then?
Mohamed was one of a group of asylum seekers who created a union at Penally – CROP, or Camp Residents of Penally.
“Home secretary Priti Patel said we should be grateful for the accommodation in the barracks,” he said. “How can we be grateful? The conditions here are against humanity.”
You aren't asylum seekers - you're economic migrants. Anyone can see that. Except, perhaps, 'Guardian' readers.
Send Them Back - No questions, just the first boat!
ReplyDeleteRewards only happen in life after hard work and lessons learnt. Nothing is given. Every little achievement should be appreciated.
ReplyDeleteThe sooner people understand this it will make their lives a lot easier.
They. Have. To. Go. Back.
ReplyDeleteEvery last one.
"Send Them Back - No questions, just the first boat!"
ReplyDeleteThere seems little chance of that...
"The sooner people understand this it will make their lives a lot easier."
Why should they 'understand it'? They know full well if you can scam your way into the country, it's not true.
"They. Have. To. Go. Back.
Every last one."
I'll be astonished if even a third are sent back...