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https://theconversation.com/illegal-immigration-bill-does-more-than-push-the-boundaries-of-international-law-201332>
"The UK government has introduced its latest effort to deter small boat
migration, by vowing to remove all those who arrive in the UK illegally by any
route. The illegal migration bill, if enacted, will apply retrospectively,
meaning that those who arrived even before the bill’s passage will be subject
to detention and arbitrary removal without a legal remedy.
The home secretary, Suella Braverman, immediately recognised the bill was
likely to “push the boundaries of international law” and refused to make a
statement of compliance with the Human Rights Act 1998. On closer inspection,
it does not merely push the boundaries, it rides roughshod over domestic law,
common law and the UK’s international human rights obligations.
The government’s justification for turning people away from seeking asylum is
that people who have travelled by boat will have passed through other safe
countries, where they should have claimed asylum first.
This logic rests on a shaky interpretation of Article 31 of the Refugee
Convention, which states that refugees should not be penalised for their entry,
providing they come directly and show good cause.
The international right to seek and enjoy asylum was first established by the
the Universal Declaration on Human Rights in 1948, and developed in the Refugee
Convention of 1951. Crucially, these documents do not say that this right
depends on applying for protection in the first safe country.
International refugee law is difficult to enforce through legal mechanisms. It
relies instead on a sense of solidarity and surrogacy, whereby host states step
in to protect refugees who can no longer live safely in their country of
origin.
The UN refugee agency has emphasised this in a harsh critique of the bill,
saying that it would not only violate the refugee convention, but would
“undermine a longstanding, humanitarian tradition of which the British people
are rightly proud”.
Legal challenges are on the horizon for this bill should it receive royal
assent. Many of these fall under domestic legislation and fundamental
constitutional law principles, notably access to justice and the rule of law."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
