This is from the National Coalition of Anti-Deportation Campaigns website:

Ahmadi Family Must Stay Campaign

How Times have Changed

1997, a Christian family in a Christian sanctuary, OK

2002, a Muslim family in a Muslim sanctuary not OK

One of the first things that New Labour did, when they achieved power in 1997, was to grant the Ogunwobi family refugee status. The Ogunwobi family, devout Christians had been refused asylum by the Tories in 1994 and took sanctuary in Downs Baptist church in Hackney, east London. They spent three years in the church with massive support from the community and over 100 Labour MPs . At no time did the Tories attempt to remove the Ogunwobi family from the sanctuary.

Beverley Hughes, the minister who ordered the raid on the Ghausia Jamia Mosque, on Thursday 25th July 2002, said she would seek talks with the leader of the British Muslim Council to stop people using mosques as refuges.

Not a word of her seeking talks with any leaders representing Christian faiths.

The Home Office defended the operation, saying that police could enter a mosque, church or other places of worship if a search warrant had been applied for and they had reasonable grounds to believe an 'arrestable' offence had been committed.

It is normal practice where an enforcement warrant is granted that an attempt is made to serve the warrant first, there was no attempt to serve the warrant in the raid on the Ghausia Jamia Mosque.

Let us also be quiet clear that though a warrant was issued for an 'arrestable' offence, no crime had been committed or could have been committed as there is no offence of being an 'asylum seeker' or no offence to take or give sanctuary in a mosque or to provide support/assistance to an asylum seeker, wishing to avoid deportation. Though new legislation going through parliament, will make it a criminal offence to assist an asylum seeker.

Farid and Farida are at present in Harmondsworth Removal/detention Centre and subject to 'closed' visits, a restriction only imposed on Category A criminal prisoners. Visits are supervised by a security guard, who has told visitors that the visit will be terminated it they say anything the security guard does not want the Ahmadi's to hear.



They are seeking asylum from two countries, Afghanistan their country of birth and Germany, where they were subject to racism and terrible living conditions.

Roger Sainsbury, the Bishop of Barking, has condemned the raid on the mosque, he said it was culturally insensitive to break down the door of a place of worship, places of worship have traditionally been places of sanctuary in the UK and should not have been broken into.

Amnesty International published a report last week which raised serious doubts over government claims that Afghanistan is now safe for returning refugees.

 http://www.amnesty.org.uk/cgi-bin/eatsoup.cgi?id=1027688088h195z224a245w188

Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, has dismissed his bodyguards and is now being protected by 46 American soldiers, in an extraordinary - and politically explosive - demonstration of how little he trusts his own government.

So if Afghanistan is unsafe for its own president, (not elected by the people of Afghanistan), it is certainly unsafe for the Ahmadi Family.

Depending on the Ahmadi family's wishes there will be further actions to persuade the Immigration Minister Beverley Hughes, not to remove the family from the UK.