Maguy Kisungu and Jemima from DR Congo were detained in a dawn raid in Glasgow yesterday. It should have been Jemima's first day at Bellahouston Primary School. Little Jemima had been very excited about going to school. Instead now she is behind bars in Dungavel Detention Centre. Facing removal to DR Congo on the 20th August.

Extrajudicial executions, arbitrary arrests and torture on a daily basis in the DR Congo
"Extrajudicial executions and other unlawful killings, arbitrary arrests, unlawful detentions, acts of torture or ill-treatment, and life-threatening prison conditions continued on a daily basis" - Amnesty International Report 2007 - Democratic Republic of Congo

The DR Congo "Country Guidance" case
The "BK" case is a Country Guidance case (Appeal No. AA/04958/2006) due to heard on September 17th and is intended to give guidance to Immigration Judges in assessing asylum claims by Congolese asylum seekers. The BK case seeks to challenge the Home Office's claim that there is no risk on return to the DR Congo to "refused" asylum seekers and will hear what many describe as "overwhelming" evidence of the possible intimidation, torture and imprisonment by DR Congo authorities of deportees. If BK's appeal is allowed, it will result in "case-law" from which it is anticipated that many other Congolese asylum seekers could benefit.

Why are the Home Office trying to deport so many to DR Congo now?
Many feel it is a cynical and blatant attempt by the Home Office to get rid of as many Congolese asylum seekers as possible before case-law established by the BK goes against them.

They have done it before - little more than one week ahead of the original planned opening of the BK case in March, the Home Office rounded up and deported those 40 Congolese asylum seekers on 26th February. The BK case was in fact later adjourned to July, and later adjourned again, part heard, to 17th September 2007, which is why many feel the Home Office has organised another "deportation charter" flight now.

There seems to have been a pattern of the Home Office rounding up, detaining and deporting asylum seekers of a given nationality just prior to a "Country Guidance" case being heard or the judgement being handed down:
* Zimbabweans and the "AA" Country Guidance case (since been superseded by HS case).
* Sudanese asylum seekers and the "HMGO" Country Guidance case in March 2007
* Sri Lankan asylum seekers and the "LP" Country Guidance case earlier this month (August 2007)

UK officers personally hands deportees over in the airport to the DR Congo authorities
Even if a deportee had no history of persecution in the DR Congo, they may be branded a political dissident simply because they claimed asylum in Europe, and as such, could face imprisonment and torture on return. ALL DR Congo deportees are in danger because they risk being interrogated at the airport to see if there is a political "charge" against them, or just to extort a "fine". Some don't have any means to pay a "fine" and may be imprisoned, possibly indefinitely. The Home Office admits that DR Congo prison conditions are "life threatening", synonymous with disease, hunger, abuse, torture and death, and, are "likely to reach the Article 3 threshold".

The DR Congo authorities know which passengers are deportees because a UK officer personally hands them over in the airport - the response to a Freedom of Information Act request revealed that "the detainee and the Detainee Custody Officers (DCOs) are usually the last people to leave the aircraft. The detainee is personally handed over to the local authorities by the DCOs. The documentation identifying the detainee is passed to the local official accepting the detainee."

Lufu Ndombasi deported from UK last month to DR Congo - detained and "disappeared"
The Ndombasi family were snatched from their home in Bolton on 20th July 2007 and deported the next day to the DR Congo. Reportedly, Mr Ndombasi was detained on arrival by the DR Congo authorities and his family and friends have heard no news from him - he has become one of the disappeared. The mother told supporters in the UK that she and her son have been harassed by the DR Congo authorities and have now gone into hiding.

Background;
21 Children & 17 adult DR Congolese to be deported by 'Charter Flight'

UK Government publicly condemns abusive regimes and quietly deports their victims back to them, under the legal-radar


Photo above: protestors sit down in the street, demonstrating against deportations to DR Congo.

What you can do:

If you are a refused DR Congo asylum seeker and are given "removal directions"
If any DR Congo refused asylum seekers are detained and given removal directions, we suggest they seek legal advice immediately and to see if it might be possible for each individual case to be challenged by way of further representations to the Home Office on the basis of the BK case and the evidence which the Home Office is in possession of. Also, to see if may be possible to legally challenge any rejection by the Home Office of any such further representations by way of judicial review and injunction as the evidence in the BK case is thought to pass the fresh claim test.
Further info including a potentially useful court order;

If you are a refused DR Congo asylum seeker, have been given "removal directions" for 'Thursday 30th August, at 14:00hrs, Flight number PVT616' that may include the words "Operation Castor", and you do not have a legal representative
NCADC may be able to put you in touch will a well-respected immigration solicitor who can represent you for free. Please note this would specifically be for asylum seekers who get "removal directions" as a part of "Operation Castor" only. We would need the following information about you:
* Full names of asylum seeker and any dependents
* Date of birth(s)
* Port ref no. and Home Office ref no.
* Date, time, flight number of your "removal directions"
We may then ask you to fax the solicitor:
* Copy of your "removal directions"
* Copy of your "factual summary" from Immigration (if you don't have one you should request one)
* Signed and dated instructions to the solicitor to act on your behalf

Early Day Motion (EDM) 1729
Early Day Motion (EDM) 1729 was laid down by Rudi Vis MP on the 19th June 2007.
COUNTRY GUIDANCE TRIBUNAL ON THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
"That this House maintains that, in the light of the imminent Country Guidance tribunal on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), due to commence in July, which will address risk on return for failed asylum seekers from this country, all further deportations and removals to DRC should be suspended until the case has been heard and a decision reached, as it would be imprudent to return DRC nationals if there is a possibility that credible evidence may be presented in the tribunal to demonstrate that there is a real and substantial risk of serious ill treatment of returned asylum seekers."

EDM 1729 and has been signed by 53 MPs:
Rudi Vis, Alan Meale, Andrew George, Peter Bottomley, Jeremy Corbyn, Lynne Jones, Chris McCafferty, Mark Durkan, Robert N Wareing, Mike Weir, Kelvin Hopkins, David Drew, Clive Efford, Paul Flynn, Mike Hancock, Karen Buck, Vincent Cable, Betty Williams, Dai Havard, Sylvia Hermon, Harry Cohen, Neil Gerrard, John Bercow, Clare Short, Marsha Singh, Mark Oaten, Ronnie Campbell, Janet Dean, Lynne Featherstone, Stephen Williams, Mark Lazarowicz, Austin Mitchell, Michael Clapham, Bill Etherington, Paul Rowen, David Anderson, Lyn Brown, Alan Simpson, Jim Dobbin, John Battle, Mohammad Sarwar, Andrew Love, Gavin Strang, Jeremy Browne, Russell Brown, Diane Abbott, David Heyes, Julie Morgan, Patrick Hall, John Austin, John Leech, John McDonnell, Tony Lloyd.

If your MP is one of the above 53 MPs who have already signed
Download the model letter SignedEDM1729, informing your MP that despite them having signed the EDM, the Home Office has arranged another "deportation charter" flight to the DR Congo, and asking him/her to lobby the Immigration Minister to cancel the flight.

If your MP is NOT one of the below 53 MPs who have already signed
Download the model letter NotSignedEDM1729, asking your MP to sign the EDM now.

As Parliament is in recess, we suggest you either email your MP or write / fax him/her at their constituency address. You can find out who your MP is and his/her contact details here; http://www.theyworkforyou.com/http://www.theyworkforyou.com/

Source for this Message:
Congo Support Project
NCADC
High Court