Bita was captured today, Friday 16th April, whilst reporting to UKBA, she is now in Yarl's Wood IRC and Removal Directions (RDs) have been served for Tuesday. Waiting for Campaign materials, will send to all ASP.

Save Bita Ghaedi from being returned to Iran!

"I feel my life is going to be finished. I'm so scared. I can't sleep during the night, I think immigration will come any time and take me away."  Bita Ghaedi

Bita Ghaedi of Whetstone, England is a refugee who has been on hunger strike for nearly two weeks because she is terrified of being tortured and killed if she is forced to return to Iran. She has been refused asylum by the British Government and told she would be deported within a fortnight.

Since originally arriving in London, she has endured the trauma of incarceration at Holloway prison for women prisoners, and has been held at Yarl's Wood detention center twice, while UK authorities assessed her asylum application.

The 34-year-old has endured beatings and mental torture at the hands of her family and could be hunted down and killed by her father, brother and uncle should she return. Read her story in her own words:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2010/02/445707.html

Petition to defend Bita Ghaedi:
We, the undersigned ask the UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband to personally intervene to ensure Bita Ghaedi is NOT forced to return to Iran, where it is certain she would be arrested and in physical danger under the current regime.
To add your signature to the petition go here:
http://www.gopetition.co.uk/online/33778/sign.html

Why are UKBA not granting protection to Iranian refugees?

Suspension of Voluntary Returns to Iran
The Iranian Government has placed moratorium on all repatriations of Iranians from Europe for the moment. And therefore the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) UK have suspended all voluntary returns to Iran.

[IOM are still accepting applications to return and keeping these on hold. This is important if the person wants to try and access Section 4 support on the grounds that they are taking all reasonable steps to return.]

We are further informed that, the feeling in IOM Teheran office is that  a reversal of this decision could be imminent but their Geneva head office firmly believes that it will not be lifted for the foreseeable future

Bita Ghaedi (image Steve Merrick)

End of Bulletin:

Source for this Message:
Indymedia/IAS/