The British upper house has decided, rights defenders are hysterical here or there, the deportation of migrants to Rwanda is enshrined in law.
After many weeks of debate - and pressure from the Prime Minister - the House of Lords gave in: illegal migrants will soon be deported to Rwanda, including those who did not come from there.
After weeks of debate - and strong pressure from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak - the British upper house finally relented and voted for the prime minister's old plan, the bill on the controversial refugee pact with Rwanda. The House of Commons already voted on the draft legislation in January.
Based on this, migrants arriving mostly via the English Channel on small boats will be deported to the East African country regardless of their origin if they enter the UK without a permit.
They will have to apply for asylum there and cannot return to the UK.
At the end of last year, London already signed an agreement with the Rwandan government about the plan, but the British immigration minister resigned because of this. Robert Jenrick believed that Great Britain should withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights so that deportations to Rwanda could not be sued.
The law, which will come into effect after King Charles's signature, declares Rwanda a safe third country. With this, the government wants to prevent deportations from being appealed in British courts.
"Stopping the boats" is Sun's old promise, recently confirmed: the government will force parliament to sit late into the night until the legislation is passed.
“We introduced the Rwanda bill to deter vulnerable migrants from making the dangerous crossing and to break the business model of the criminal gangs that exploit them. Passing legislation will allow us to do that and make it clear that anyone who comes here illegally cannot stay.”
Rishi stated to Sun.
From the beginning, charities and human rights organizations sharply criticized the idea, calling it a violation of international law. The "Rwanda bill" was also previously found illegal by the British Supreme Court, saying that Rwanda cannot be considered a safe country, and it is not excluded that the leadership there will over time send immigrants back to where they fled or to other countries where they may be in danger.
Featured image: MTI/EPA/ANSA/Concetta Rizzo
