Priti Patel, Rwandan FM Tout Asylum Deal as 'Innovative' Response to 'Deadly' People-Smuggling Trade

The UK government’s newly-conceived immigration plan that presupposes deporting unauthorised asylum seekers to Rwanda has unleashed a torrent of criticism from the opposition and refugee organisations. The head of the Church of England, the Archbishop of Canterbury, emphasised in his Easter sermon that the measure posed "serious ethical questions".

The UK home secretary and the Rwandan foreign minister have defended the much-criticised new plan of the British government to send asylum-seekers to Rwanda as an innovative answer to the "deadly trade" of people-smuggling.

Priti Patel and Vincent Biruta emphasised in The Times that the global asylum system was "collapsing" under the strain of humanitarian crises and human trafficking.

“We are taking bold and innovative steps and it's surprising that those institutions that criticise the plans fail to offer their own solutions. Allowing this suffering to continue is no longer an option for any humanitarian nation", they wrote.

The new plan would "deter migrants from putting their lives at risk" by embarking upon perilous journeys, such as the one across the English Channel in small boats, Patel and Biruta added.

Weighing in on concerns voiced by critics regarding Rwanda's own human rights record, the two officials said that the East African country "ranks as one of the world's safest countries" and has already accommodated 130,000 refugees from multiple nations.

Costly Migrant-Deterrent Deal

Priti Patel signed the deal that presupposes an initial down-payment of £120m ($157 million) to the Rwandan government in Kigali, the country’s capital, last week.

In accordance with it, adult migrants who have arrived in the UK seeking sanctuary since January would be flown to Rwanda, with the rule not applicable to children and their parents.

After asylum claims have been processed within a period of three months, those successful would be able to stay in the East African country for at least five years. It was assured that they would be provided with a training and support package.

The first flight is expected to leave before the end of next month, according to sources cited by the Daily Mail.

Our new partnership with Rwanda shows we can no longer accept the status quo.

People are dying and the global migration crisis requires us to find new ways to work in partnership.

It will deal a major blow to the evil people smugglers.

This is what it means 👇🏽 pic.twitter.com/J5RAynuGu7

— Priti Patel (@pritipatel) April 14, 2022

The attempt by Priti Patel and Vincent Biruta to defend the new measure comes as a chorus of voices has denounced it as “unethical”, “inhuman”, and “unlawful”.

While the escalating migrant crisis has seen the number of arrivals in the UK surpass 5,000 this year, deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda does not “stand the judgment of God”, according to the Archbishop of Canterbury. In his Easter sermon on Sunday, the head of the Church of England said there were “serious ethical questions about sending asylum seekers overseas”.

The measure was also slammed as breaching the 1951 Geneva Convention on refugees and likely to be challenged in courts. It triggered even more outrage after The Observer reported that unaccompanied children were “highly likely” to be among those deported to Rwanda.

A “high proportion” of unaccompanied children arriving on small boats across the English Channel are classified as adults by Home Office officials, cited immigration experts stated.

The opposition, some Conservative MPs, and over 160 charities and campaign groups have urged scrapping the "shamefully cruel" plan.

Furthermore, it has been revealed that the Home Office's top official, Permanent Secretary Matthew Rycroft, warned in a letter to Patel on 13 April last year that the “costly” deal being mulled would only be value for money if it effectively slashed the number of Channel crossings and other illegal entries to the UK.

But the much-touted deterrent effect of the immigration plan was "highly uncertain", he stated in an exchange with Patel published by the Home Office. The home secretary replied it would be "imprudent" to let lack of modelling regarding the new scheme delay it.

Policemen stand guard next to truck queuing to board a ferry to Great Britain to prevent migrants to reach the UK illegally, on September 10, 2014 in the French port of Calais

© AFP 2023 / DENIS CHARLET

It has also been reported that the home secretary issued a rare "ministerial direction" to push the plan through, meaning she accepted personal responsibility for it.

Earlier, Prime Minister Boris Johnson acknowledged the possible legal challenges the Rwanda asylum deal entailed, saying:

"We are confident that our new migration partnership is fully compliant with our international legal obligations, but nevertheless we expect this will be challenged in the courts".

A spokesperson for the Home Office added that migrants flown to Rwanda would have “support and care”, including “safe and clean accommodation, food, healthcare and amenities”, along with translators and “legal support to appeal decisions in Rwanda’s courts”.