TIMES.KY

Cayman Islands, Caribbeanand International News
Saturday, Apr 01, 2023

Top church cleric criticises UK plan to send migrants to Rwanda

Top church cleric criticises UK plan to send migrants to Rwanda

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby says the United Kingdom’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda goes against God.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Church of England’s highest cleric, has criticised the British government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda to process their claims for refuge.

In his Easter Day sermon, Justin Welby added his voice to the widespread criticism the scheme has sparked, saying “subcontracting out our responsibilities, even to a country that seeks to do well, like Rwanda, is the opposite of the nature of God who himself took responsibility for our failures”.

Speaking at Canterbury Cathedral in southeast England, Welby said that while “the details are for politics and politicians, the principle must stand the judgement of God — and it cannot”.

Welby said that sending asylum seekers overseas posed “serious ethical questions”.

Such a move “is the opposite of the nature of God”, the church leader said.

On Tuesday, the United Kingdom and Rwanda announced that they had reached an agreement to send some people who arrive in the UK as stowaways on trucks, or in small boats, to the East African country, where their asylum claims will be processed and, if successful, they will stay.

The deal — for which the UK has paid Rwanda $158m — leaves many questions unanswered, including the final cost and how asylum seekers will be chosen. The UK says children, and families with children, will not be sent to Rwanda.

“Egregious breach of international law”


The scheme has sparked outrage and widespread criticism from refugee and human rights organisations, which called the plan inhumane, unworkable and a waste of taxpayers’ money.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) condemned the scheme as an “egregious breach of international law” and “contrary to the letter and spirit of the Refugee Convention”.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party government says the plan will discourage people from making dangerous attempts to cross the English Channel, and it will put people-smuggling gangs out of business.

More than 28,000 migrants entered the UK across the Channel last year, up from 8,500 in 2020.

Dozens have died, including 27 people in November when a single boat capsized.

Unveiling the controversial plan last week, Johnson acknowledged there could be legal challenges by what he called “politically motivated lawyers” out to “frustrate the government”.

He also pledged to do “whatever it takes” to ensure the plan works.


Political opponents accuse Johnson of using the headline-grabbing policy to distract attention from his political troubles.

Johnson is resisting calls to resign after being fined by police for attending a party in his office in 2020 that broke his own government’s coronavirus lockdown rules.

The Home Office, which is in charge of implementing the Rwanda transfer policy, said that Britain had settled hundreds of thousands of refugees from around the world. But it argues that Britain’s current system of resettlement is “broken” and pointed to unprecedented global migratory pressures.

Senior civil servants at the Home Office had raised concerns about the policy but were overruled by Home Secretary Priti Patel, who said that it would be “imprudent” to delay a measure that “we believe will reduce illegal migration, save lives, and ultimately break the business model of the smuggling gangs”.

Alf Dubs, a Labour Party member of the House of Lords who came to Britain as a child refugee in 1939, said the plan was likely “a breach of the 1951 Geneva conventions on refugees”.

He said the Lords, the British Parliament’s upper chamber, would challenge the move.

Newsletter

Related Articles

TIMES.KY
Close
0:00
0:00
Don’t Dismiss China’s Peacemaking Bid
China and Brazil have signed a new deal that will allow them to trade in their own currencies, bypassing the US dollar as an intermediary
Elon Musk and Others Call for Pause on A.I., Citing ‘Profound Risks to Society’
Nashville style execution
“We've had evidence prior to the pandemic that masks were largely ineffective at preventing community transmission of influenza “
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz:
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz rejects being labeled a "billionaire"
Jamie Dimon is being deposed over JPMorgan Chase role in Epstein lawsuits
Brand new security footage has just been released to the public showing the Active shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale drove to Covenant Church School in her Honda Fit this morning, parked, and shot her way into the building
AMERICA, 2023
U.S. charges FTX's Bankman-Fried with paying $40 million bribe
Fallen 'Crypto King' Who Owes Millions to Investors Was Kidnapped and Tortured
Regulators blame social media for SVB's rapid collapse: 'Complete game changer'
AOC explains why she opposes banning TikTok
UK: Humza Yousaf replaces Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader and first minister in Scotland
In a dramatic U-turn against His Government: Judicial Reform Legislation Must Be Halted, Says Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant
Gordon Moore, a co-founder of Intel Corporation, died at 94
Powell: Silicon Valley Bank was an 'outlier'
Donald Trump arrested – Twitter goes wild with doctored pictures
NYPD is setting up barricades outside Manhattan Criminal Court ahead of Trump arrest.
Credit Suisse's Scandalous History Resulted in an Obvious Collapse - It's time for regulators who fail to do their job to be held accountable and serve as an example by being behind bars.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman tours potential migrant housing in Rwanda as asylum deal remains mired in legal challenges
Paris Rioting vs Macron anti democratic law
'Sexual Fantasy' Assignment At US School Outrages Parents
Credit Suisse to borrow $54 billion from Swiss central bank
Russian Hackers Preparing New Cyber Assault Against Ukraine
Jeremy Hunt insists his Budget will get young parents and over-50s back into work
If this was in Tehran, Moscow or Hong Kong
TRUMP: "Standing before you today, I am the only candidate who can make this promise: I will prevent World War III."
Mexican President Claims Mexico is Safer than the U.S.
A brief banking situation report
Lady bites police officer and gets instantly reaction
We are witnessing widespread bank fails and the president just gave a 5 min speech then walked off camera.
Donald Trump's asked by Tucker Carlson question on if the U.S. should support regime change in Russia?.
Silicon Valley Bank exec was Lehman Brothers CFO
In a potential last-ditch effort, HSBC is considering a rescue deal to save Silicon Valley Bank UK from insolvency
BBC Director General, Tim Davie, has apologized, but not resigned, yet, following the disruption of sports programmes over the weekend
Elon Musk Is Planning To Build A Town In Texas For His Employees
The Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse effect is spreading around the world, affecting startup companies across the globe
City officials in Berlin announced on Thursday that all swimmers at public pools will soon be allowed to swim topless
Fitness scam
Market Chaos as USDC Loses Peg to USD after $3.3 Billion Reserves Held by Silicon Valley Bank Closed.
Senator Tom Cotton: If the Mexican Government Won’t Stop Cartels from Killing Americans, Then U.S. Government Should
Banking regulators close SVB, the largest bank failure since the financial crisis
The unelected UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, an immigrant himself, defends new controversial crackdown on illegal migration
Man’s penis amputated by mistake after he’s wrongly diagnosed with a tumour
In a major snub to Downing Street's Silicon Valley dreams, UK chip giant Arm has dealt a serious blow to the government's economic strategy by opting for a US listing
It's the question on everyone's lips: could a four-day workweek be the future of employment?
Is Gold the Ultimate Safe Haven Asset in Times of Uncertainty?
Spain officials quit over trains that were too wide for tunnels...
×