A win for humanity: Rwanda Supreme Court ruling
On 15th November 2023, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the Government’s cruel Rwanda plan was unlawful.
While this is a hugely positive step, it is unfortunately not the end of this Government’s ever crueller attempts to send people seeking safety in the UK to other countries. You can sign our petition here if you’d like join us in urging the Government to abandon for good the idea of outsourcing our international responsibilities to other countries.
We’re proud to be one of 135 organisations signing a joint civil society statement on this ruling, which you can find below.
We are relieved today that the Supreme Court has made the right decision and declared that Rwanda is not a safe country for this government to send people needing safety. The Rwanda plan was always cruel and immoral. We urge the Government to immediately abandon such plans with Rwanda or with any other country, and instead protect the rights of people who have come to our country in search of sanctuary.
While we welcome the decision today, we remain concerned by this Government’s overall treatment of people who move to this country. We are alarmed by this Government’s continuous efforts to detain and forcibly send people to countries where they may not know anyone, especially if it puts them at risk of harm and human rights violations. We know that as a community we are compassionate and welcoming, and we need immigration policies that are rooted in that same care, compassion, and respect for human rights. We call on everyone to stand up for the rights of people seeking sanctuary, regardless of where they come from or how they travel here.
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1. Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI)
2. BARAC UK
3. Kalayaan
4. Liberty
5. Doctors of the World UK
6. Welsh Refugee Council
7. Medical Justice
8. Focus on Labour Exploitation (FLEX)
9. Rainbow Migration
10. Bail for Immigration Detainees
11. Just Fair
12. René Cassin, the Jewish voice for human rights
13. After Exploitation
14. Freedom from Torture
15. Latin American Women's Rights Service (LAWRS)
16. North Wales Regional Equality Network
17. Young Roots
18. Anti Trafficking and Labour Exploitation Unit (ATLEU)
19. Association of Visitors to Immigration Detainees (AVID)
20. Every Child Protected Against Trafficking (ECPAT UK)
21. Humans for Rights Network
22. Hibiscus Initiatives
23. Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ)
24. Scottish Refugee Council
25. Helen Bamber Foundation
26. Asylum Aid
27. The William Gomes Podcast
28. Routes Collective
29. New Citizens' Gateway
30. CARAS
31. West London Welcome
32. Student Action for Refugees (STAR)
33. Afghan Association Paiwand
34. RefuAid
35. IMIX
36. Gatwick Detainees Welfare Group
37. Kent Refugee Action Network (KRAN)
38. Our Second Home
39. Samphire
40. Care4Calais
41. St Augustine's Centre, Halifax
42. Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit
43. Good Chance Theatre
44. The Runnymede Trust
45. Hope at Home
46. Voices in Exile
47. Refugee Support Group (Berkshire)
48. Ice and Fire Theatre
49. Waging Peace
50. Reading City of Sanctuary
51. forRefugees
52. Cambridge Convoy Refugee Action Group
53. Hastings Supports Refugees
54. Cambridge Refugee Resettlement Campaign
55. Hastings Community of Sanctuary
56. Herts for Refugees
57. City of Sanctuary UK
58. Bristol Refugee Rights
59. Da'aro Youth Project
60. Reunite Families UK
61. Migrants' Rights Network
62. Public Law Project
63. Praxis
64. Refugee Action
65. Together with Migrant Children
66. JRS UK (Jesuit Refugee Service)
67. Here for Good
68. Refugee Council
69. the3million
70. Open Rights Group
71. National AIDS Trust
72. Anti-Trafficking Monitoring Group (ATMG)
73. Asylum Matters
74. HIAS+JCORE
75. People in Motion
76. Refugee and Migrant Centre (West Midlands)
77. RAMFEL
78. Refugee Women Connect
79. Voices Network
80. Micro Rainbow
81. LGBT Health and Wellbeing (Scotland)
82. The VOICES Network
83. Mermaids
84. HOPE not hate
85. African Rainbow Family
86. Manchester Migrant Solidarity
87. Safe Passage
88. Birmingham City of Sanctuary
89. Birmingham Schools of Sanctuary
90. Haringey Welcome
91. House of Rainbow CIC
92. Asylum Welcome
93. Anti-Slavery International
94. LGBT Foundation
95. Migrants Organise
96. Hope and Aid Direct
97. Inclusive Mosque Initiative
98. Alawia SBI
99. JustRight Scotland
100. Kanlungan Filipino Consortium
101. Time To Be Out
102. TransActual
103. Durham Visitors Group
104. Lewes Organisation in Support of Refugees & Asylum Seekers
105. RefYouMe
106. Reclaim The Sea
107. Big Leaf Foundation
108. Freedom United
109. Muslim Council of Britain
110. Global Link
111. Lesbian Asylum Support Sheffield
112. Asylum Support Appeals Project
113. Gendered Intelligence
114. Migrant Voice
115. Stand For All
116. Migration Justice Project, Law Centre NI
117. NACCOM
118. Refugee Legal Support
119. South Yorkshire Refugee Law and Justice
120. Choose Love
121. Refugee and Migrants Forum of Essex and London
122. Leeds Asylum Seekers Support Network
123. Nottingham Arimathea Trust
124. Govan Community Project
125. Simon Community Scotland
126. Welcome Churches
127. The Pickwell Foundation
128. Refugees at Home
129. Stonewall
130. Sahir House
131. Southeast and East Asian Centre (SEEAC)
132. Room to Heal
133.Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative
134. Social Workers Without Borders
135. Human Rights Consortium Scotland