‘My Name is Mercy’ Campaign - Do Not Send us Home to Die

     Rose and Mercy, two asylum seekers living in Glasgow with their children are facing deportation. They fled from Zimbabwe and Rwanda, where both had been raped whilst in custody. It was only after arriving in the UK that both women found they had been infected with HIV.

      The Home Office has refused to recognise them as refugees and wants to remove them. Rose and Mercy are in a double bind, if deported back to Zimbabwe and Rwanda. They could be killed by the forces that caused them to flee, or die from HIV, because there is no affordable treatment.

Rose and Mercy, in a joint statement said:
      "We are women and children Asylum Seekers in United Kingdom from African countries who are HIV positive, members of Body Positive Strathclyde. We have suffered untold persecution, torture and forced to flee our countries in search of safety. We have been forced to leave our way of life and our loved ones killed, displaced or left behind. We have an enormous responsibility to look after ourselves and our children in a foreign country in addition to coping with our HIV status.

     Undergoing the asylum process is a new thing in our lives and in many ways extremely stressful. Discovering we are HIV positive has been very traumatizing in addition to what we have suffered back home. When the Home Office decides to refuse our applications for asylum makes matters worse. There is effectively, no HIV treatment in Africa, and thousands of HIV positive people are dying every day as a result. All Asylum seekers are entitled to free NHS service in this country, which has enabled us to access HIV treatment. This has given us hope of a longer and productive life which would not have been possible in Africa.

     The Home Office maintains that there is HIV treatment in Africa but seem to ignore the fact that it's not financially available to the vast majority of people. The Home Office is sending us back home to die. We feel it is very cruel to give us hope of life and then snatch it away. Imagine yourself in such a position; how would you feel knowing that you are being taken to a certain death when something could be done to save your life but the people with the authority to do so are not willing and do not care?

     We the voiceless are calling upon you to do whatever you can to support our cause at this very hour of need. Please give us and our children a chance to live. Sending us back to Africa is like throwing us into a Gas Chamber!"

     Chancellor Gordon Brown in an interview with *The Guardian criticized the multinational drug companies manipulation of prices for drugs which can treat HIV and in a strong message has called on them to start acting in a more responsible manner. "Nobody can stand outside the need for action here and nobody can claim special interests or special privileges when people are dying unnecessarily. It's time that all recognise the responsibilities to help avoid unnecessary deaths."

Support grows for African rape victims      The Scotsman Online, Thursday 6th March 2003

UN Aids fund runs out of money         The Guardian Saturday February 1st 2003

UNAIDS: Joint United Nations programme on HIV/AIDS

What you can do:

There is a leaflet in PDF format: 'My Name is Mercy' leaflet

also a petition available in PDF format: 'My Name is Mercy' petition

Messages of support/solidarity to:
dontsendusbacktodie@btopenworld.com

If anyone would like to help/join the campaign contact:
‘My Name is Mercy’ Campaign
c/o Body Positive Strathclyde
3 Park Quadrant
Glasgow, G3 6BS

The campaign has no money, so any donations would be appreciated, make cheques payable to

Body Positive Strathclyde

Inquiries/further information call Gary Kelly, 0141-332-2003
dontsendusbacktodie@btopenworld.com

Background Material:
HIV and Human Rights

*Chancellor warns drug giants: sort out Aids row

Source for this page: ‘My Name is Mercy’ Campaign

The contents of this page are the sole responsibility of the author/s.

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Disclaimer: NCADC's web site is an important part of our work in educating the public on immigration, asylum and anti-deportation issues. As part of that work our web site hosts news and views from different individuals, organisations and campaigns working in the same field as us. The contents of named/signed articles are the sole responsibility of the author/s and are not necessarily endorsed by NCADC.