The boss of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Grandi, blasted the agreement signed between the two countries which “is not going at all for so many different reasons”.
“We are talking about a country with structures and resources that exports its responsibilities to another country, Rwanda,” he denounced during a press conference in Geneva.
If the United Kingdom claims, through its project, to “avoid a dangerous journey” for these migrants, the High Commissioner wonders whether it should “do it this way”.
“Do I feel sorry for the people who make these dangerous journeys? But of course and more than anyone. And do I feel revulsion for those who profit from this? Of course, they are criminals who must be prosecuted, tried and sentenced because they commit serious crimes. But from there, saying we don’t take these people anymore, go back home, it’s not fair!”, He continued.
The UNHCR fears that the British measure “sets a catastrophic precedent” and encourages other countries targeted by migrants to make the same arguments and close their borders.
The NGO Human Rights Watch believes, for its part, that London “seeks to shift its responsibilities for asylum entirely to another country, going against the object and purpose of the Geneva Convention of 1951 , running counter to its commitments and threatening the international refugee protection regime”.
The proliferation of comments condemning the British government’s plan did nothing to change London’s decision to send the migrants to Rwanda. That same Monday, the British justice rejected the appeal lodged by non-governmental organizations to obtain the cancellation of the London project.
Boris Johnson’s government hopes by its measure to discourage illegal crossings of the Channel, which are only growing.
By OMA Newsletter N° 741 of 14/06/2022
Article published under the direction of Dr. Najib Kettani
The OMA, NGO with an Intercontinental vocation
For the development of cultural exchanges
Valuing human potential
The promotion and consolidation of Africa’s development, and
Inter-African integration
