Week of Action in Support of Migrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers
Saturday 15th June to Saturday 22nd June 2002

We are contacting you on behalf of Barbed Wire Britain, the Committee to Defend Asylum Seekers, the National Civil Rights Movement and the National Coalition of Anti-Deportation Campaigns organisations that have called a week of action in support of Migrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers from 15th - 22nd June.

The government's new proposals on the treatment of asylum seekers introduce an even harsher regime than previously, stepping up the use of detention, continuing the programme of forced dispersal and speeding up the deportation process.

Even vouchers, scrapped under pressure from those who campaigned against this intimidating and iniquitous system, are to be replaced by cash vouchers at only 70% of the level of Income Support.

In response, four organisations - Barbed Wire Britain, the Committee to Defend Asylum Seekers, the National Civil Rights Movement and the National Coalition of Anti-Deportation Campaigns, jointly called a conference on 23 March in Manchester in defence of asylum seekers.

The conference was attended by more than 400 people, including delegates from many trade union and community organisations. It decided to call a week of action in support of Migrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers from 15th - 22nd June.

The week will commence with national demonstrations at Harmondsworth and Dungavel Removal Centres on Saturday 15th June and culminate in demonstrations in London and Glasgow, on the 22nd June. During the week there will be local activity, protests against deportations, pickets of companies who run the detention estate, public meetings. The main targets will be:

Removal Centres
Removal Prisons
Group 4
Sodhexo
Airlines who carry deportees
Airports
Reporting Centres
Enforcment units
We would like you to support this week of action, particularly by sponsorship and adding your name to those organisations in support, giving publicity to the week among your members/affiliates (we can provide bulk copies of leaflets and posters on request), making a donation towards the cost, and in any other way you feel able.

If required, we can arrange to send a speaker to meetings to talk about our opposition to the government's asylum policy and the week of action. Enclosed are copies of leaflets advertising the week's main events, plus a copy of a model resolution. You may like to adopt it and circulate it.

We hope you will support us in making this week of action a strong show of opposition to the attack on civil rights embodied in government policy.

Further information can be obtained from:

Barbed Wire Britain
 info@barbedwirebritain.org.uk

Committee to Defend Asylum Seekers
 info@defend-asylum.org

National Civil Rights Movement
 info@ncrm.org.uk

National Coalition of Anti-Deportation Campaigns
 ncadc@ncadc.org.uk