Protesters Want the Home Office to Stop Detaining Innocent People

The Home Office are still locking asylum seekers up in detention centres. If it wasn’t so appalling there would almost be a touch of tragicomedy about the whole situation – innocent people fleeing persecution in their home countries arriving in Britain to be instantly persecuted. But it’s clearly not funny at all; it's oppressive, extreme and the exact kind of thing I wouldn't be surprised to hear certain ministers criticise if it was happening in another country.

On Saturday, protesters gathered outside a centre in Harmondsworth – just down the road from Heathrow Airport – to call for an end to the detention and scapegoating of immigrants.

A number of current detainees were being held at the Harmondsworth detention centre under the fast-track immigration system, a process that aims to speed up the decision as to whether an asylum seeker has a right to stay in the UK. That might sound like a positive scheme, but having to present your life story in a couple of days, often without legal representation, while in prison-like accommodation isn’t exactly the fairest way of doing things. Thankfully, the system – in which 99 percent of claimants are rejected – was recently found unlawful by a High Court judge, leading to a Public Parliamentary Inquiry into immigration detention.

I headed to the protest on Saturday and spoke to activists, asylum seekers and ex-detainees about their thoughts on and experiences of the UK's detention centres.

Karen Doyle, organiser of Saturday's protest

VICE: Hi Karen. Why have you organised the protest here?
Karen: Behind me is Harmondsworth Detention Centre. Most people inside are on the fast-track system, which has just been ruled unlawful – but they’re still there. As we walk close you can hear people shouting from the courtyard.

What is it that makes the fast-track system unlawful?
The system is fundamentally unjust. It asks people to build a case in five days. You’ve got people in there who have experienced horrific things in their home countries who are effectively thrown into prison once they arrive. People can react badly to being in a detention centre; it’s not uncommon for refugees to have post-traumatic stress disorder. People who have committed no crime are living with the constant fear of deportation. But today is about the whole system of detention, which needs to stop.

What would be an alternative?
There are loads of different alternatives that European countries use. People could live in the community.

What are your thoughts on immigration generally?
Well, today we are saying we do not accept the scapegoating of immigrants. The current problems were created by the rich and powerful. Immigrants have played a really important part in every progressive movement in history. People come here escaping persecution, torture and abuse. They come with a view of Britain, and a determination that Britain should be a country of freedom, equality and justice..

Demonstrators on Saturday

What was your experience of detention?
An anonymous 23-year-old Nigerian woman seeking asylum: It was horrible. They told me to go to an interview on a Saturday to give an explanation about why I was seeking asylum. I went and waited for hours. They then told me I was going to another immigration office. They handcuffed me and took me to detention. I was feeling sick, almost at the point of death.

You must have been upset.
They didn’t tell me they were taking me to detention. It was a very bad experience.

Hi Julia. What made you leave Nigeria?
Someone tried to kill me, but they don’t want to believe it. I'm not yet free, which means they can easily put me in the detention centre. That’s why I’m here to fight against it. This should be for criminals. We here are not criminals. I’ve come here for refuge. Let us have freedom.

Were you put in the detention centre before?
Yes, it was like hell. It was shameful. There’s no freedom – guards are with you all the time. That is not good. They treat us like that because we are from another country.

Sarah (on the right)

Hi Sarah, what do you reckon an alternative to detention would look like?
I like freedom of movement. I think people should have the ability to move into the country and out of the country.

Do you reckon complete freedom of movement is a feasible idea?
Hmm, yeah. I have this crazy idea that we are capable of respecting human beings. We don’t have to kill people or make guns. We can just respect people because they are people. We have all this wealth and money that we just don’t use. Billionaires need to share it around a bit.

How would you persuade someone like, say, Nigel Farage that this is a good idea?
I’d like to put anyone who doesn’t think immigration is a good idea in a country where they don’t have that freedom.

Hi Samuel. Why are you here today?
Samuel: I’m protesting against detention centres, because in there they are trying to break people down.

What's your current situation?
I'm not yet free because I'm waiting for the decision to be made by the Home Office. I don't want to end up in a detention centre. I fled Uganda because I'm gay, but the Home Office want more evidence. All that I have is myself and what I have gone through.

Hi Isaac. Why have you decided to be part of this movement?
Isaac: I’ve seen many friends put in detention centres because of how or where they were born. Many people don’t know this is happening in Britain, so I’m here hopefully to raise a voice, because being put in detention is psychological torture.

What about the process do you think is unfair?
From the moment go they think you're guilty. In detention they isolate you to break you down.

What do you think the motive behind it is?
They want to deport you without a fight. If you're OK you'll continue to fight to stay in the UK. They want people to give up.

Hi Eva. What’s your experience with detention centres?
Eva (who wanted to remain anonymous): My sister who came from Uganda was taken to a detention centre even though she was pregnant.

How long was she there for?
She was in there for two weeks, which is not good. But you can be put in detention for six or seven months, and sometimes for as much as one or two years.

How did you sister describe her experience?
She said, in one day, about seven different people can question you. The more you get questioned, the more you get confused – and you go mental. It’s not necessary to put people in detention. It’s not a crime to be an asylum seeker.

@ChrilesGiles

More about immigration in the UK:

Hunting for Illegal Immigrants with the UK Border Police

We Asked an Expert What Would Happen if Every Immigrant Left the UK

WATCH – The Migrant Crisis in Calais: Britain's Border War