{"id":222129,"date":"2022-04-14T07:05:13","date_gmt":"2022-04-14T05:05:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/outsourcing-asylum-seekers-the-case-of-rwanda-and-the-uk\/"},"modified":"2022-04-14T07:05:13","modified_gmt":"2022-04-14T05:05:13","slug":"outsourcing-asylum-seekers-the-case-of-rwanda-and-the-uk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/outsourcing-asylum-seekers-the-case-of-rwanda-and-the-uk\/","title":{"rendered":"Outsourcing asylum seekers: the case of Rwanda and the UK"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The British media is awash with stories<\/a> that Boris Johnson\u2019s government wants to sign a deal with Rwanda to have asylum seekers processed there rather than in the UK. There is disagreement<\/a>, however, in Johnson\u2019s cabinet<\/a>. Previously there have also been media reports that the UK was considering Albania<\/a> and Ghana<\/a>. In the light of the debate, Cristiano d’Orsi, an expert on the law and asylum seekers, provides insights into why Rwanda.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Political asylum in the UK – why \u2018outsource\u2019 the process?<\/h2>\n

Refugees have made a massive cultural, social and economic contribution to life in the UK in the last 460 years, despite often negative government and popular responses. Many famous household names<\/a> are evidence of the presence of refugees, including Austrian-born neurologist Sigmund Freud<\/a> and Hungarian-born author and journalist Arthur Koestler<\/a> to name but a few. <\/p>\n

Asylum in Britain has always been granted at the discretion of the Home Office, and is therefore susceptible to the government of the day. Shifts in public opinion towards refugees can quickly result in new legislation and influence the implementation of asylum policy.<\/p>\n

The 20th century has justifiably been called the century of the refugee. There were major population displacements in Europe from the beginning of the century. One major displacement was precipitated by the First World War. The draconian measures introduced by Britain in response<\/a> shaped the future of its asylum practice up to the present.<\/p>\n

In 2021, the UK received<\/a> 48,540 asylum applications \u2013 63% more than the previous year and the highest number for almost two decades. When compared with the EU (and associated countries)<\/a> (known as EU+), the UK received the 4th largest number of applicants. This equates to 8% of the total asylum applicants across the EU+ and UK combined over that period, or the 18th largest intake when measured per head of population.<\/p>\n

The number of refugees admitted to the UK from Ukraine is a fraction<\/a> of those admitted to other European countries.<\/p>\n

A spurious distinction is sometimes made between illegal and legal asylum seekers. This is bogus. As an asylum-seeker, a person has entered into a legal process <\/a> of refugee status determination. Everybody has a right to seek asylum in another country. People who don\u2019t qualify for protection as refugees will not receive refugee status and may be deported. But just because someone doesn\u2019t receive refugee status doesn\u2019t mean they are a bogus asylum-seeker. <\/p>\n

There\u2019s also confusion sometimes between refugee and asylum seeker. Asylum seekers are not the same thing as refugees. Being an asylum-seeker is the precursor to applying for refugee status. Not all asylum-seekers will become refugees. <\/p>\n

In the UK most asylum-seekers don\u2019t have the right to work and so must rely on state support. Housing is provided, but options are limited. Cash support<\/a> is also available.<\/p>\n

The benefit of outsourcing the asylum procedures would be that the UK would receive less claims and, as such, admit fewer refugees onto British soil. The UK\u2019s Home Secretary\u2019s Priti Patel thinks that migrants may think twice<\/a> before crossing the Channel if they think they may end up in Rwanda.<\/p>\n

So what does \u201cprocessing\u201d involve?<\/p>\n

It means assessing asylum-seekers to see if they are entitled to be refugees according to international, regional, sub-regional and domestic legal instruments. In principle, refugee status is a transitory status. In principle a person can\u2019t be a \u201crefugee\u201d forever. The three solutions to end refugee status are: <\/p>\n