Geneva, July 18 (FN Agency) The Illegal Migration Bill passed by the Parliament in the United Kingdom (UK) is at odds with the country’s obligations and will have profound consequences for people in need of international protection, the United Nations (UN) warned on Tuesday. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk and UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said in a joint statement that the legislation will exacerbate the already vulnerable situation of people who arrive irregularly in the UK. It will drastically limit their human rights, and put them at risk of detention and destitution, the UN officials said. “As a result, their rights to health, an adequate standard of living, and to work are at risk, exposing them to the risk of exploitation and abuse,” they added.
The new Bill removes access to asylum in the UK for anyone who arrives irregularly, having passed through a country – however briefly – where they did not face persecution. It also bars them from presenting refugee protection or other human rights claims, no matter how compelling their circumstances. In addition, it requires their removal to another country, with no guarantee that they will be able to access protection there. “This new legislation significantly erodes the legal framework that has protected so many, exposing refugees to grave risks in breach of international law,” Grandi said. Meanwhile, “carrying out removals under these circumstances is contrary to prohibitions of refoulement and collective expulsions, rights to due process, to family and private life, and the principle of best interests of children concerned,” High Commissioner Turk said.
The joint statement stressed that most people fleeing war and persecution either do not have, or are unable to access formal documents such as passports and visas. Safe and “legal” routes are rarely available to them, and the 1951 Refugee Convention explicitly recognizes that refugees may be compelled to enter a country of asylum irregularly. “In addition to raising very serious legal concerns from the international perspective, this Bill sets a worrying precedent for dismantling asylum-related obligations that other countries, including in Europe, may be tempted to follow, with a potentially adverse effect on the international refugee and human rights protection system as a whole,” Turk warned.