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The recent agreement proposed by the government of Rishi Sunak in Rwanda is not in line with international laws on refugees, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR).
The UNHCR released their legal evaluation of the legislation aimed at permitting Britain to relocate asylum seekers who enter the UK illegally to Rwanda.
The UNHCR stated that the revised Rwanda program fails to meet the necessary criteria for the lawful and appropriate transfer of asylum seekers, and is not in line with international refugee laws.
In November of the previous year, the UK’s highest court deemed the government’s policy towards Rwanda to be illegal and prevented its implementation.
Following the decision, the government implemented the Safety of Rwanda Bill, stating that under UK law, Rwanda was deemed a secure nation.
In addition, the legislation allows ministers to ignore emergency mandates from the European Court of Human Rights that would stop a flight to Rwanda while a specific case is still being heard.
Reworded: Mr. Sunak is hopeful that the new legislation, when put into effect, will resolve legal issues and allow him to fulfill his promise of stopping individuals from crossing the Channel on small boats.
The UNHCR’s assessment, released on Monday night, stated: “After evaluating the revised UK-Rwanda program using the principles and standards outlined in its 2022 analysis, as summarized in Part I above, the UNHCR has reached its conclusion.”
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees stated that the deficiencies in the Rwandan system for granting asylum, which were identified by the Supreme Court, have not been addressed.
The statement still stands that the current UK-Rwanda Partnership Treaty and accompanying laws do not meet the necessary criteria for legally and ethically transferring asylum seekers, and are not in line with international refugee laws.
Mr. Sunak is currently facing a potential clash in parliament this week with members of his party who hold conservative views. These members are likely to back rebel changes to the bill, which is considered to be his most significant piece of legislation.
The Parliament is set to vote on a number of suggested changes on Tuesday and Wednesday with the goal of preventing any potential loopholes that could prevent the removal of asylum seekers to Rwanda.
Lee Anderson and Brendan Clarke-Smith, deputy chairmen of the Tory party, have announced that they will go against the government’s wishes and join over 60 other Tory MPs in attempting to remove international law from the Bill. This would also limit the rights of asylum seekers to appeal against being deported to Kigali.
Source: independent.co.uk
