British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has beaten back criticism of his plan to send asylum-seekers to Rwanda, saying that efforts to block the flights were "abetting the work of criminal gangs" involved in smuggling people across borders, while the Church of England has called the deportations "immoral."
The UK government defended its controversial policy to send asylum seekers to Rwanda on Tuesday, even as the entire senior leadership of the Church of England branded it shameful and immoral.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss insisted the first flight to Kigali would take off no matter how many people were on board, after 23 of the 31 migrants had their tickets cancelled
Boris Johnson’s government reached an agreement with Rwanda in April to deport people who enter the UK illegally to Kigali in exchange for millions of pounds in development aid, starting with a initial down payment of £120 million (€150 million approx).
The government contends this will deter people from paying criminals to help them take the risky journey across the English Channel in small boats.
The policy has faced a series of legal challenges, but two British courts decided not to block the deportation flights, rejecting on Monday last-ditch appeals filed by immigration rights advocates and labor unions.
The first chartered flight is expected to take off on Tuesday night, though perhaps with only a handful of people aboard.
Things you can do! Pls keep targeting ALL the possible airlines - it’s not 100% certain to be privilege style - Wamos, Iberojet, HiFly are all still possible (4/10) pic.twitter.com/IGhkeOpKHe
— Movement for Justice (@followMFJ) June 14, 2022
Church of England slams deportations
Speaking before a cabinet meeting Johnson said: “I think that what the criminal gangs are doing, and what those who effectively are abetting the work of the criminal gangs are doing, is undermining people’s confidence in the safe and legal system, undermining people’s general acceptance of immigration."
Meanwhile, two senior-most clerics in the Church of England and 23 bishops have called the policy "immoral" and said it "shames Britain".
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell wrote in a letter to The Times newspaper: "They [migrants] are the vulnerable that the Old Testament calls us to value.
"We cannot offer asylum to everyone, but we must not outsource our ethical responsibilities, or discard international law - which protects the right to claim asylum."
At the weekend, it was reported that Queen Elizabeth II's heir, Prince Charles, had privately described the government's plan as "appalling".
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Deporting asylum seekers should shame us as a nation.
— Archbishop of Canterbury (@JustinWelby) June 14, 2022
Our Christian heritage should inspire us to treat vulnerable people with compassion, fairness and justice.
Read today’s letter in @thetimes from myself, @CottrellStephen and all the bishops who serve in @UKHouseofLords: pic.twitter.com/RwGis2feM4
Value for money and accomodation
Truss has hit back by saying: "The people who are immoral in this case are the people traffickers trading on human misery," adding that the government policy is completely legal and completely moral.
The charter flight from the UK to Rwanda has been estimated at approximately €290,000, which the foreign minister has insisted it "value for money" to reduce the long-term social cost of irregular migration.
"There will be people on the flights and if they're not on this flight, they will be on the next flight," she added.
Deported asylum seekers who make it to Kigali will be put up in the Hope Hostel, which was built in 2014 to give refuge to orphans from the 1994 genocide.
Some 20 orphans were living in the hostel when the partnership between Rwanda and Britain was signed.
They have since been evicted.
Hostel manager Ismael Bakina says up to 100 migrants can be accommodated and he will charge around €60 a day.
Under the agreement with Kigali, anyone landing in Britain illegally is liable to be given a one-way ticket for processing and resettlement in Rwanda.
The government of President Paul Kagame has said the deportations will begin slowly and rejected criticism that Rwanda is not a safe country.
Human Rights Watch, however, has warned that there are "serious human rights abuses" in Rwanda, including curbs on free speech, arbitrary detention, ill-treatment and torture.
