Notts Indymedia coverage of Zimbabwe demo on March 29th

At 2pm on Saturday 29th March, on the day of the Zimbabwean elections, folks gathered to highlight the dangers that people who have fled Zimbabwe will face, if they are forcibly returned there.

No Borders Nottingham group [in association with Zimbawean asylum seekers] had called for the demonstration at our shinny new [temporary] Speakers Corner, on the edge of the Market Square, Nottingham. Some who had gathered there were asylum seekers who have come here for help, and their supporters demonstrating their wish that these people should not be turned away. Original story, audio interviews & lots of great photos can be found at http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/not…/03/395015.html
Addition – Link to more interviews here: http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/not…/04/395427.html
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UK government deports 60 Iraqi Kurds; no one notices

Article about a deportation flight that took place last Thursday:
http://www.andyworthington.co.uk/?p=251
Extract: […] Britain?s press completely ignored the forcible deportation, on Thursday, of 60 Iraqi Kurds, who were transported back to a decidedly uncertain future on a German plane from a UK airport. Each of the 60 ?failed asylum seekers,? as they are officially known, was escorted by an armed Home Office guard funded by the UK taxpayer. The guards had previously seized the men from the detention centers at Campsfield and Colnbrook in what looked uncomfortably like a ?dawn raid.? […]. For further information on the deportation, email Dashty Jamal, International Federation of Iraq Refugees (IFIR) Secretary on: d.jamal@ntlworld.com

See also: http://sankofafoundation.blogspot.com/2008…ns-to-iraq.html
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Congolese demonstrate in Nottingham and Leicester

Today in seven UK cities including Nottingham and Leicester, the Congolese community and their supporters held demonstrations to focus attention on government plans to categorise the ‘Democratic’ Republic of Congo as a ‘safe’ country to return people who have been fleeing the violence to the UK in search of security. In Nottingham people rallied and marched, highlighting that the Congolese who have already been deported face a very uncertain fate.

Between 60 and 80 people, including other asylum seekers (showing wonderful and much appreciated solidarity) & supporters from the host community, joined our vibrant Congolese community. We were-well received by people in the Market Square, who took the leaflet and asked for more information, and many signed our petition. We also learned more about the hundreds of people killed in Congo in recent weeks. Several Congolese did excellent interviews with the BBC locally too, and the coverage they gave on the local news tonight was postive and accurate (See the video! – Leicester then Nottingham then Congo [attachment=4]) . We then marched to the Bridewell Magistrates Court and sang and even danced for sanctuary (See the photos from Nottingham demo!- click to see full size images). More photos expected on Notts indymedia.
Congolese demonstrate in Nottingham and LeicesterCongolese demonstrate in Nottingham and Leicester
Congolese demonstrate in Nottingham and LeicesterCongolese demonstrate in Nottingham and LeicesterCongolese demonstrate in Nottingham and Leicester
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Reminder about Zimbabwe event (Fri 28th March) and demo (Sat 29th)

Come to ‘A NIGHT FOR ZIMBABWE’ at Nottingham’s Sumac Centre on Friday 28th March! The evening will start at 6.30pm with speakers against deportations of asylum seekers back to Zimbabwe, followed by (optional, for £3 donation) meal from the popular ‘Small World Kitchen’ at 7.30pm and NGOMA Zimbabwean roots ‘n’ reggae from 8.30pm (recommended £3 donation). You’ll also have a chance to talk to members of No Borders Nottingham and find out more us.

Next day, No Borders Nottingham and our friends in the Zimbabwean community will be DEMOSTRATING in favour of asylum rights and against the Mugabe regime on Saturday 29th March, the day of the Zimbabwean election. We will meet at Speaker’s Corner in the Market Square, Nottingham, at 2.00pm to show our solidarity and to talk to the people of Nottingham about the situation for Zimbabwean asylum seekers. Please join us!
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Hundreds of asylum seekers give testimony about UK’s inhumane system

As part of the publication of a report by the Independent Asylum Commission http://www.independentasylumcommission.org.uk/ about the UK asylum system (mentioned on BBC Radio yesterday morning but then dropped), the experiences of hundreds of asylum seekers going through our hellish immigration system were recorded.

Hearings from across the UK were videoed. These can be watched on Human Rights TV http://www.humanrightstv.com/channel/7 and some are presented in the BBC news article Asylum seekers tell their stories http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7314708.stm.

The IAC report warned that a “culture of disbelief” was leading to “perverse and unjust decisions”, and concluded overall that the treatment of asylum seekers fell “seriously below the standards to be expected of a humane and civilised society”. Proving that this culture of disbelief is alive and well, the Border and Immigration Agency rejected the report, claiming it operates a “firm but humane” system. Download IAC ‘interim findings’ report: [attachment=13]
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Human Rights Film “In This World” @ Broadway Cinema, Nottingham, 26th March

The Human Rights Law Centre at the University of Nottingham presents the last in their series:
Film: “In This World”. Screening: Wed 26th March, Broadway Cinema @ 5.30pm
Winner of the Golden Bear, the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury and the Peace Film Prize at the 2003 Berlin International Film Festival, Michael Winterbottom’s ‘In This World’ tells the story of two Afghan cousins who embark on a refugee’s clandestine odyssey from Pakistan to London during the American bombings in Afghanistan. Armed with a script informed by the actual experiences of refugees and shot on location in 6 countries with digital video and a non-professional cast, ‘In This World’ harnesses the immediacy of non-fiction techniques to create an urgent, intimate account of human beings driven by the fundamental urge to create a better life. The film will be introduced by human rights lawyer and practitioner Deirdre Sheahan (Paragon Law) who works almost exclusively on migrations issues.
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Call for ‘picket’ in Birmingham over threat to deny primary healthcare to unwanted asylum seekers

Since 2004, most failed asylum seekers and other undocumented migrants have been unable to access free NHS secondary care (like non-emergency hospital treatments). Now the government is considering doing the same with primary care (preventing them seeing an NHS doctor, for example). How low can you go? This barbaric decision would put the health some of the most vulnerable people in UK at great risk. Many asylum seekers suffer from physical or mental illness resulting from the persecution they were fleeing from in the first place. The uncertainty of going through the asylum process in UK is very stressful. Losing their case, along with housing support and money for food, contributes greatly to illness. West Midlands Anti Racist Campaign, ARC, has called for a protest at the surgery of Liam Byrne MP, Minister for Immigration at the Home Office, on Saturday 5th April 2008. For details, please see Birmingham Indymedia article.
* See also: Asylum seekers in Coventry are already being turned away by some GPs.
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Demonstrate with Zimbabweans in Nottingham 29th March

No Borders Nottingham and our friends in the Zimbabwean community will be demonstrating in favour of asylum rights and against the Mugabe regime on Saturday 29th March, the day of the Zimbabwean election. We will meet at Speaker’s Corner in the Market Square, Nottingham, at 2.00pm to show our solidarity and to talk to the people of Nottingham about the situation for Zimbabwean asylum seekers. Please join us! This protest follows ‘A NIGHT FOR ZIMBABWE’ taking place at Nottingham’s Sumac Centre on Friday 28th March.
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