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London: Clarke to bring back wrongly
deported Kurd
20.12.2005
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LONDON, Dec 20 (AFP)
- British officials are hunting for an Iraqi Kurd
wrongly deported to Iraq in order to bring him back
to Britain where he will have more time to appeal
against his removal, the Home Office said on Monday.
The facts emerged at a High Court hearing in London
where a senior judge also criticised the British
government's method of deporting at short notice
failed asylum seekers and other foreign nationals
with no right to remain.
The practice forces costly emergency, late-night
applications to judges for injunctions to block the
deportation, said the judge, Justice Collins.
In the case of the Iraqi Kurd, referred to as "Mr
A", the court was told how the 29-year-old had been
forced on to a plane soon after midnight on November
20 at Stansted Airport, just northeast of London.
He was among a group of 15 Iraqi Kurds flown to
Arbil in Iraqi Kurdistan after the whole country was
declared safe for their return. An earlier attempt
to fly out returnees failed in August after legal
challenges were mounted.
Lawyer Clive Lewis, appearing for the Home Office,
admitted there had been a breach of policy because
Mr A had not been given removal directions in time
for him to obtain legal advice.
The directions were not handed to the man because he
was considered to be at risk of self-harm or
suicide, said Lewis.
"A regrettable mistake was made, although for
understandable, humanitarian reasons," he told the
court.
Lewis added: "The Secretary of State (Home Secretary
Charles Clarke) has decided that, since we did not
follow the policy set out -- albeit for the best of
motives -- we shall use our best endeavours to find
him."
A Home Office spokesman later said that while
authorities still thought the man had no right to
remain in Britain, he should be allowed to seek
legal advice before being removed.
The enforced repatriation came to light after Mr A's
fiancee, a woman from Birmingham, central England,
turned to the Refugee Legal Centre for help.
A British citizen, she met Mr A in January this year
and started a relationship with him. They moved in
together in October and planned to marry.
His plea to remain in the country on the basis of
the relationship was rejected by Clarke on November
2.
Turning to the issue of short notice, late-night
removals, Justice Collins said they wasted a large
amount of public money and people's time.
"The Home Office must accept that in 99 cases out
100 the duty judge really has no option but to make
an order staying a return until the matter can be
brought to court," he said.
"The court is very concerned about this. This is
happening far too often."
Seats had to be booked on planes and escorts
provided so when flights were blocked by legal
challenges there was "a huge waste of public money
-- the unfortunate public is paying all ways round."
The spokesman said the Home Office had taken note of
the judge's comments.
"We will consult with the courts as we always do in
relation to any review of our practices," he said.
The spokesman also revealed that Britain was
increasing the numbers of enforced and voluntary
removals. More than 1,000 Iraqis went home under
voluntary return programmes over the last two years.
AFP
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