London Home Office HQ Blockaded by Refugee Support Groups
Oscar Beard | 18.12.2007 14:30 | Migration | Repression | Social Struggles | London | World
9.45am, 18 December 2007: Five people from refugee support groups including No Borders London managed to successfully blockade the front entrance of the Home Office headquarters on Marsham Street in London.
Home Office Blockade
Within seconds they small group unfurled the banner and one individual secured the two main doorways off with "police, Do Not Cross" tape.
Security appeared, demanded they move and ordered this journalist no to take photographs.
The blockade lasted long enough to cause some disruption and allowed time to send the message out that child deportation and detention was illegal.
Press release below.
This morning autonomous actions have taken place across Britain in defiance of dawn raids and child detention as part of a general campaign against immigration controls.
At 10:00 here in London activists sectioned off the main entrance to the Home Office as a symbolic gesture to highlight the wrongful imprisonment of innocent "illegals", with a banner which read "No Child is illegal; Child Detention is a Crime!".
Activists chanted "Stop Deporting Migrant Children" to highlight the abhorrent practice of dawn raids in the deportation of women and children. This barbaric practice of border enforcement is responsible for the terrorising of minors through their imprisonment and deportation and the breakdown of families. Often, it is the most vulnerable immigrants who bear the brunt of the UK's target-driven deportation policy, deported back to countries they originally escaped from and thereby condemned to suffer further torture, rape and murder on their return.
This dictation of immigration policy to a set of arbitrary targets for deportation negates the consideration of the human rights of detainees and their personal difficulties, however desperate their plight might be, for instance, the deportation of Ugandan children and young women back to their home nation where they have already suffered severe violation of their human rights, including in some cases, torture.
We draw no distinction between this discriminatory practice and any other institutional racism, because both at heart are devaluing people's lives and freedoms based on arbitrary differences, be it in place of birth or race. Both systematically round up people considered of less value.
People have become blind to the plea of asylum seekers, unable to see beyond the spin that politicians and media giants strive on. We dispute both the legitimacy of economic factors over human lives, and the notion that migrants are a strain on it all, the result of deporting a person every 8 seconds might look good on the tabloids and government targets, but it has catastrophic consequences on the lives of the individuals involved.
Dawn raids have an irreversible and detrimental effect on babies and young children, which can leave them traumatised for life. A dawn raid will happen at around 6 in the morning, policemen and immigration officers will break down the door while in their beds, to be sent to indefinite detention, and forced removal. It's a lesson about the world no child should learn.
We demand the immediate halt of dawn-raids and child imprisonment, as well as the end of all deportations, in particular those of rape and torture victims, and those in danger. For a complete freedom of movement for all and the right to a life with dignity.
Freedom, Rights, Equality. End Deportation Of Migrants!
F.R.E.E.D.O.M!
For copies of stills and video please contact
oscarbeard@yahoo.com.mx
Security appeared, demanded they move and ordered this journalist no to take photographs.
The blockade lasted long enough to cause some disruption and allowed time to send the message out that child deportation and detention was illegal.
Press release below.
This morning autonomous actions have taken place across Britain in defiance of dawn raids and child detention as part of a general campaign against immigration controls.
At 10:00 here in London activists sectioned off the main entrance to the Home Office as a symbolic gesture to highlight the wrongful imprisonment of innocent "illegals", with a banner which read "No Child is illegal; Child Detention is a Crime!".
Activists chanted "Stop Deporting Migrant Children" to highlight the abhorrent practice of dawn raids in the deportation of women and children. This barbaric practice of border enforcement is responsible for the terrorising of minors through their imprisonment and deportation and the breakdown of families. Often, it is the most vulnerable immigrants who bear the brunt of the UK's target-driven deportation policy, deported back to countries they originally escaped from and thereby condemned to suffer further torture, rape and murder on their return.
This dictation of immigration policy to a set of arbitrary targets for deportation negates the consideration of the human rights of detainees and their personal difficulties, however desperate their plight might be, for instance, the deportation of Ugandan children and young women back to their home nation where they have already suffered severe violation of their human rights, including in some cases, torture.
We draw no distinction between this discriminatory practice and any other institutional racism, because both at heart are devaluing people's lives and freedoms based on arbitrary differences, be it in place of birth or race. Both systematically round up people considered of less value.
People have become blind to the plea of asylum seekers, unable to see beyond the spin that politicians and media giants strive on. We dispute both the legitimacy of economic factors over human lives, and the notion that migrants are a strain on it all, the result of deporting a person every 8 seconds might look good on the tabloids and government targets, but it has catastrophic consequences on the lives of the individuals involved.
Dawn raids have an irreversible and detrimental effect on babies and young children, which can leave them traumatised for life. A dawn raid will happen at around 6 in the morning, policemen and immigration officers will break down the door while in their beds, to be sent to indefinite detention, and forced removal. It's a lesson about the world no child should learn.
We demand the immediate halt of dawn-raids and child imprisonment, as well as the end of all deportations, in particular those of rape and torture victims, and those in danger. For a complete freedom of movement for all and the right to a life with dignity.
Freedom, Rights, Equality. End Deportation Of Migrants!
F.R.E.E.D.O.M!
For copies of stills and video please contact
oscarbeard@yahoo.com.mx
Oscar Beard
Additions
The original press statement (which was never sent)
19.12.2007 19:55
A day of action against dawn raids and immigration controls.
This morning autonomous actions have taken place across Britain in
defiance of dawn raids and child detention as part of a general campaign
against immigration controls.
At 09:00 here in London we sectioned off the entrances to the home
office as a symbolic gesture to highlight the wrongful imprisonment of
innocent “illegals”.
We have taken this action to show our support for the hardships faced by
people trapped in the border and immigration control system.
This barbaric practice of border enforcement is responsible for
breakdown of families, terrorising of children and babies, the
imprisonment and deportation of minors and the innocent. and
subsequently torture, rape and murder.
We took this action to oppose the above and in particular the practice
of dawn raids on “illegals”. This practice was implemented specifically
to detain families with young children, and is unacceptable by any
standard, but is part of a greater system which attempts to reduce any
person to it's supposed value to the economy.
This is how torture and rape victims are routinely detained and deported
back to the horrors they tried to escape.
We draw no distinction between this discriminatory practice and any
other institutional racism, because both at heart are devaluing people's
lives and freedoms based on arbitrary differences, be it place of birth
or race. Both systematically round up people considered of less value.
People have become blind to the plea of asylum seekers, unable to see
beyond the spin that politicians and media giants strive on. We dispute
both the legitimacy of economic factors over human lives, and the notion
that migrants are a strain on it at all, the result of deporting a person
every 8 seconds might look good on the tabloids and government targets,
but it has catastrophic consequences on the lives of the individuals
involved.
Dawn raids have an irreversible and detrimental effect on babies and
young children, which can leave them traumatised for life. A dawn raid
will happen at around 6 in the morning, policemen and immigration
officers will break down the door while in their beds, to be sent to
indefinite detention, and forced removal. It's a lesson about the world
no child should learn.
We demand the immediate halt of dawn-raids and child imprisonment, as
well as the end of all deportations, in particular those of rape and
torture victims, and those in danger. for a complete freedom of movement
for all and the right to a life with dignity.
Freedom, Rights, Equality. End Deportation Of Migrants!
F.R.E.E.D.O.M!
This morning autonomous actions have taken place across Britain in
defiance of dawn raids and child detention as part of a general campaign
against immigration controls.
At 09:00 here in London we sectioned off the entrances to the home
office as a symbolic gesture to highlight the wrongful imprisonment of
innocent “illegals”.
We have taken this action to show our support for the hardships faced by
people trapped in the border and immigration control system.
This barbaric practice of border enforcement is responsible for
breakdown of families, terrorising of children and babies, the
imprisonment and deportation of minors and the innocent. and
subsequently torture, rape and murder.
We took this action to oppose the above and in particular the practice
of dawn raids on “illegals”. This practice was implemented specifically
to detain families with young children, and is unacceptable by any
standard, but is part of a greater system which attempts to reduce any
person to it's supposed value to the economy.
This is how torture and rape victims are routinely detained and deported
back to the horrors they tried to escape.
We draw no distinction between this discriminatory practice and any
other institutional racism, because both at heart are devaluing people's
lives and freedoms based on arbitrary differences, be it place of birth
or race. Both systematically round up people considered of less value.
People have become blind to the plea of asylum seekers, unable to see
beyond the spin that politicians and media giants strive on. We dispute
both the legitimacy of economic factors over human lives, and the notion
that migrants are a strain on it at all, the result of deporting a person
every 8 seconds might look good on the tabloids and government targets,
but it has catastrophic consequences on the lives of the individuals
involved.
Dawn raids have an irreversible and detrimental effect on babies and
young children, which can leave them traumatised for life. A dawn raid
will happen at around 6 in the morning, policemen and immigration
officers will break down the door while in their beds, to be sent to
indefinite detention, and forced removal. It's a lesson about the world
no child should learn.
We demand the immediate halt of dawn-raids and child imprisonment, as
well as the end of all deportations, in particular those of rape and
torture victims, and those in danger. for a complete freedom of movement
for all and the right to a life with dignity.
Freedom, Rights, Equality. End Deportation Of Migrants!
F.R.E.E.D.O.M!
John Smith
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