Officials from the United Kingdom and Rwanda remain committed to their controversial deportation deal as support from Kigali cools due to delays.
The situation comes as Westminster has already paid the Rwandan government more than $170 million. However, nobody has been sent to the East African country just yet, as the first flight was initially scheduled for June 2022 but was canceled following legal challenges.
Controversial UK-Rwanda Deal
Officials from the United Kingdom and Rwanda remain committed to their controversial deal involving asylum seekers as support from Kigali cools.
The policy was ruled unlawful earlier this month by the UK Supreme Court, which said that there was a risk that asylum seekers could be returned to their home country. This would be in breach of UK and international human rights laws. However, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak insisted that the policy would continue.
The Foreign Office is believed to have been told by senior diplomats that Rwanda's commitment to the deal was at risk due to continuous flight delays. However, a government source said, "Negotiating a treaty involves finding mutually beneficial areas and working within agreed anticipated and understood parameters," as per The Guardian.
They added that while speculation exists about various points that suggest problems, the truth is that discussions are continuing with a partner country that is keen to work with them. The source noted that none of the speculation caused that position to change and that both parties are still interested in getting the process right and finalizing it as soon as possible for their benefit.
Whitehall sources also noted that they knew that Rwandan authorities were happy to move forward with negotiations. However, they are concerned that Rwanda President Paul Kagame's government has been "rubbished" by the ruling of the UK Supreme Court.
It is believed that Rwandan officials are exhausted from hearing that removing Rwandans from decision-making is the only way to make things fair and professional. The spokesperson for the Rwandan government, Yolande Makolo, said that their country is a safe and welcoming nation for asylum seekers and migrants.
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Sending Asylum Seekers to Rwanda
The situation comes after the Supreme Court issued a unanimous judgment that agreed with the Court Of Appeal. This is because there are substantial grounds for believing that asylum seekers sent to Rwanda could face ill-treatment, known as refoulement, according to Human Rights Watch.
The high court's decision vindicates what many have already said, which is that the deal is cruel and unlawful. The Supreme Court drew attention to Rwanda's poor human rights record, including various threats to Rwandans living in the UK.
There are also extrajudicial killings, deaths in custody, enforced disappearances, torture, and restrictions on media and political freedoms to worry about. When the UK-Rwanda agreement was announced last year, Human Rights Watch wrote to the UK Home Secretary. It expressed that the East African nation could not be considered a safe third country given ongoing human rights violations.
The UK's plan would involve sending more than 24,000 refugees to Rwanda. The Supreme Court's ruling on the deal greatly affected Sunak's much-touted migration policy. It could also fracture the ruling Conservative party ahead of the general election next year, said Aljazeera.
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