DUNGENESS, UK / Kigali April 14 (Reuters) – Britain on Thursday said tens of thousands of asylum seekers could be resettled in Rwanda, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson taking a tough stance on Thursday to crack down on trafficking networks and curb the flow of migrants. Channel.
Concerns about immigration were a major factor in the 2016 Brexit referendum, and Johnson was under pressure to deliver on his promise to “bring Britain’s borders back under control,” but his plan drew sharp criticism from the opposition and charities.
“We need to make sure the only way to get asylum in the UK is safe and legal,” Johnson said in a speech in Kent, in the southeastern UK, where thousands of migrants landed on Channel Beaches in small boats last year.
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“Those who try to jump the queue or abuse our systems will not find an automatic path to set them up in our country, but will be quickly and humanely removed to a safer third country or country of their birth,” the Conservative Prime Minister said.
Anyone who has been coming to Britain illegally since January 1 can now be transferred to Rwanda in East Africa, which would disrupt the business model of the smuggling gang, he said.
“The agreement we have made is unlimited and Rwanda will have the capacity to resettle tens of thousands of people in the coming years,” he said.
‘Dishonest’
The plan has drawn strong criticism from the opposition, with Yvette Cooper, a Labor party ally of Interior Minister Priti Patel, calling it costly, “unworkable and unethical”.
Concerns were also raised about human rights in Rwanda, which were cited by the British government last year.
Johnson said Rwanda was “one of the safest countries in the world”, but said the risk of ending up in the country would prove to be a “significant deterrent” over time.
Patel signed the partnership agreement in Kigali on Thursday, and he presented it at a joint press conference with Rwandan Foreign Minister Vincent Bruta.
Bruda said Rwanda’s recent history has provided “a profound connection to the plight of those seeking security and opportunity in the new land.” Rwanda has already accepted nearly 130,000 refugees from several countries, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, Afghanistan and Libya.
Rwandan opposition leader Victor Ingabir said the country was hospitable but needed to resolve its internal problems first.
Johnson said the plan would face legal challenges, but said the partnership was “fully compliant” with international legal obligations. The government will contribute an initial மில்லியன் 120 million ($ 158 million).
Ricketty boats
A government minister said the project was youth-centric. “It’s mainly about male economic migrants,” Wales’ Foreign Secretary Simon Hartz told Sky News. “There are different issues with women and children.”
Opposition lawmakers said they were trying to divert attention from renewed calls for Johnson to resign after he was fined by police on Tuesday for attending a rally for his birthday in June 2020, when all social mixing was banned under the COVID-19 rules introduced by his government. read more
Last year, more than 28,000 migrants and refugees arrived in Britain from the mainland of Europe. The arrival of migrants in dense boats caused tension between France and Britain, especially in November when 27 migrants drowned. read more
“About 600 people came across the channel yesterday. In a few weeks it will reach a thousand again a day,” Johnson said.
He said the new approach would see the Royal Navy take operational command from the border guards on the channel, and Greek-style shelters would open in the UK.
The head of the Refugee Advocacy Group said the plan violated the principle of providing a fair trial for asylum seekers on British soil.
“I think it’s very unusual for the government to exercise restraint instead of focusing on efficiency and compassion,” Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council, told BBC Radio.
($ 1 = 7 0.7617)
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Paul Sandil, written by Kylie McClellan and Michael Holden; Editing by Elaine Hardcase, Catherine Evans, Tomas Janowski and Gareth Jones
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