Children/Adults Entering/Leaving Detention Q2 April/May/June

Children Entering Detention
In the second quarter of 2013, 38 children entered detention. Of those children entering detention in the second quarter of 2013, 11 were detained at Cedars compared with 23 at Tinsley House, 1 at Campsfield House and 3 at Yarl's Wood. The numbers entering Cedars in the second quarter are the lowest full quarter figures since Cedars first opened.

81.5% Children Released Back To Their Communities
Of the 38 children leaving detention in the second quarter of 2013, seven were removed from the UK, one was granted leave to enter or remain and the remaining 30 were granted temporary admission or release. Of those leaving detention, 30 had been detained for less than three days, seven for between four and seven days and one had been detained, in Harmondsworth, for between 15 and 28 days.

Adults: Length of detention
As at the end of June 2013, 3,142 people were in detention, 5% higher than the number recorded at the end of June 2012 (2,993) and the highest figure since the series began in 2008.

Of the 7,613 leaving detention during the second quarter of 2013, 4,703 (62%) had been in detention for less than 29 days, 1,484 (19%) for between 29 days and two months and 975 (13%) for between two and four months. Of the 451 (6%) remaining, 60 had been in detention for between one and two years and 13 for two years or longer.

Of the 2,673 detained for seven days or less, 1,691 (63%) were removed and 902 (34%) were granted temporary admission or release. Of the 73 detained for 12 months or more, 26 (36%) were removed, 19 (26%) were granted temporary admission or release, 25 (34%) were bailed and 3 (4%) left for other reasons.

Top ten nationalities entering detention Q2 / 2013

Pakistan 1,342 - India 1,060 - Nigeria 454 - Afghanistan 393

China 339 - Bangladesh 711 - Albania 270 - Iran 256

Ghana 183 - Romania 148 - Brazil 134

Source: <>National Statistics

Project for the Registration of Children as British Citizens

Since the beginning of this year, we have been working on a project to register children as British.

The importance of citizenship for those who are able to obtain it is highlighted by the Secretary of State on page 6 of the MNl form guide, which points out that:

"Citizenship is a "significant life event". Apart from allowing a child to apply for a British Citizen passport, British citizenship gives them the opportunity to participate more fully in the life of their local community as they grow up." When a minor registers as a British citizen(s)he obtains all the advantages of citizenship, including access to housing and legal help, social benefits and the right to remain in Britain. S/he also enjoys all rights as a citizen of the European Union.

What it is: Many children are eligible to register as British citizens, but do not do so, for various reasons. We aim to support the increase in the number of children who register as British citizens.

Why do we do it: When a minor registers as a British citizen (s)he obtains all the advantages of citizenship, including access to housing and legal help, social benefits and the right to remain in Britain. At its worst, a child who is not registered is at risk of being deported, often to a country s/he has barely lived in and knows nothing about.

What we do:
* We run monthly surgery slots for legally more complex cases:

* We do legal casework which is carried out by the project's solicitor, Solange Valdez, who works for Ealing Law Centre (sponsor of the project);

* We support and refer cases to other firms of solicitors or advice agencies;

* We train those working with children such as Social Services, voluntary organizations and other agencies;

* We work to find means of addressing the affordability of the application registration fee which currently costs £673 pounds for one child.

* We work to get the word out about the possibility of registration for eligible children;

Who we are: The founder and supervising solicitor is Solange Valdez, and the project coordinator is Carol Bohmer, LL.M., Ph.D. The project is sponsored by Ealing Law Centre.

How are we funded: The project has no current funding and it operates entirely on a pro bono basis by the project coordinators and more recently with the support of Ealing Law Centre and other organizations working with children.

Why should you get involved: The work of the project is an important way to work for social change in Britain by integrating children into our society.

How you can help: By supporting the aims and objectives of the project, by referring possible cases to us for evaluation, and by giving a donation or by sponsoring a child's payment of the UKBA application registration fee.

If you wish to donate to the project: Cheques can be made payable to Ealing Law Centre and sent to Solange Valdez, PRCBC, c/o Ealing Law Centre, 210 Northfield Avenue, London W13 9SJ.

How to reach us:
Solange Valdez, Supervising Solicitor and Carol Bohmer
E-mail: prcbc2013@aol.com

1,000-Strong Buddhist Mob Burns Muslim Homes And Shops

Fresh sectarian violence struck north-western Burma yesterday when a 1,000-strong Buddhist mob burned down dozens of Muslim homes and shops following rumours that a young woman had been sexually assaulted by a Muslim man, the police said. A crowd surrounded the police station late on Saturday and then went on an hours-long rampage after authorities refused to hand over the assault suspect, a police officer from the area told the Associated Press. About 35 houses and 12 shops – most belonging to Muslims – were destroyed before calm was restored, he said. There were no reported injuries.
Read more: <>Indpendent, 25/08/13

Australia Must Release Refugees Subjected to 'Cruel' Treatment
Arbitrary and indefinite detention of 46 refugees amounts to Òcruel, inhuman and degrading treatmentÓ the United Nations Human Rights Committee has said, calling for their immediate release. The refugees, who have been held in detention for at least two and half years, had been recognized as asylum-seekers who could not return to their homes. However, the Australian Government refused to grant them visas on the grounds that they posed a security risk.

The 46 refugees Ð 42 Tamils from Sri Lanka, three Rohingya from Myanmar and a Kuwaiti Ðwere not told the reasons of why they were considered a security risk, and so could not mount a legal challenge to their indefinite detention.
Read more: < >UN News Centre 23/08/13

Removals and Voluntary Departures Q2 April/May/June 2013

In the year ending June 2013, there were 4,948 enforced removals who had sought asylum at some stage, down 9% from the previous 12-month period (5,416) and 58% lower than the 11,743 in 2004, the earliest available data in the time series. This long-term decrease in asylum cases departing can be viewed in the context of a generally decreasing trend in asylum applications since 2002; although the asylum applications have increased in recent years, they still remain low compared to the peak in 2002.

In the year ending June 2013, 9,114, or 65% of the total enforced removals, had not claimed asylum at any stage, down 6% from the previous 12-month period (9,694) and down 9% from the peak of 10,070 in 2008.

In the year ending June 2013, total voluntary departures are little changed at 29,265 as compared with the previous 12 months (29,234). 64% of those departing were categorised as other confirmed voluntary departures, 22% as notified voluntary departures and 13% as Assisted Voluntary Returns (AVRs). The largest category, other confirmed voluntary departures, are cases where a person has been identified as leaving when they no longer had the right to remain in the UK.

The highest number of enforced removals in the year ending June 2013 were for nationals of Pakistan (2,027), who also saw the highest increase since the year ending June 2012 (+271 nationals or +15%). Nationals of India were the second highest with 1,901 enforced removals.

During the second quarter of 2013, 1,177 foreign national offenders were removed, which represents an increase of 4% from the number of those removed in the second quarter of 2012 (1,131).

Enforced removals from the UK decreased by 7% to 14,062 in the year ending June 2013 as compared with the previous 12 months (15,110) and this represents the lowest figure since the series began in 2004.

Top Ten Nationalities Removed Q2/2013

Pakistan 538 - India 410 - Afghanistan 246 - Romania 188
Nigeria 186 - Bangladesh 169 - Albania 164
China 164 - Vietnam 126 - Jamaica 80

Source: <>National Statistics

Garden Court Chambers - Immigration Law Bulletin - Issue 338

Child Poverty in Britain is Causing 'Social Apartheid'
Britain risks "sleepwalking into a world where inequality becomes so entrenched that our children grow up in a state of social apartheid", according to a leading charity. In a damning report to be published next week, the National Children's Bureau finds that, in many respects, child poverty is now a bigger problem than during the 1960s, when it carried out a seminal study, Born to Fail?. The report compares aspects of children's lives today to data from the Born to Fail? cohort study of 11-year-olds, carried out in 1969. It finds that significantly more children are growing up in relative poverty today – 3.6 million compared with 2 million – and claims that these children suffer "devastating consequences throughout their lives". It adds: "Today, although there have been some improvements, overall the situation appears to be no better, and in some respects has got worse."
Read More: <> Guardian 24/08/13

Stop Child Labour
Many observers thought that child labour was a thing of the past in Europe. However, there are strong indications that child labour remains a serious problem and that it might be growing in the wake of the economic crisis. Governments need to monitor this situation and to use the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the European Social Charter as guidance for preventive and remedial action.

Vulnerable people are always disproportionately affected in times of economic down-turn. The link between declining economic growth and increasing child labour is therefore no surprise. With the recession many European countries have drastically cut social aid. As unemployment soars, many families have found no other solution than sending their children to work.

Read more: <>Nils Muiznieks, Commissioner for Human Rights

Court Rules Sudanese Family Can't be Removed To Irish Republic

A journalist who fled Sudan with her three children amid fears they would be killed due to her race and political views has won a legal challenge to being removed from Northern Ireland.

The woman, a non-Arab Darfuri who said she was subjected to genital mutilation aged five, was seeking to avoid being ordered to return to the Republic where they first claimed refugee status.

Quashing a UK Border Agency decision to send them back across the border, a High Court judge in Belfast yesterday ruled that it was in the family's best interests to remain in Northern Ireland.
Read more: <>   Belfast Telegraph, 15/08/13

Militants Kill 44 Worshippers at Nigeria Mosque
Suspected Islamic militants wearing army fatigues gunned down 44 people praying at a mosque in northeast Nigeria, while another 12 civilians died in an apparently simultaneous attack, security agents have said.

Sunday's attacks were the latest in a slew of violence blamed on religious extremists in this West African oil producer, where the radical Boko Haram group, which wants to oust the government and impose Islamic law, poses the greatest security threat in years.

It was not immediately clear why the Islamic Boko Haram would have killed worshipping Muslims, but the group has in the past attacked mosques whose clerics have spoken out against religious extremism. Boko Haram also has attacked Christians outside churches and teachers and schoolchildren, as well as government and military targets. Since 2010, the militants have been blamed for the killings of more than 1,700 people.
Read more:  <> Telegraph, 13/08/13