50 asylum seekers to return home from Britain

Thursday, 20 September 2012 00:59 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

A group of 50 Sri Lankan asylum seekers, mostly Tamils who were deported from Britain, will return to the country tomorrow, Immigration officials said.

A group of 50 Sri Lankans are heading home on a special chartered flight arranged by the UK Border Agency (UKBA, the Business Standard reported.

The deportation takes place despite a protest from the London-based rights group Human Rights Watch (HRW), which accused the UKBA of turning a blind eye to the conditions faced by the returnees.

“In its haste to be tough on failed asylum seekers, the British Government is turning a blind eye to compelling evidence that Tamils deported to Sri Lanka risk torture on arrival,” a HRW release said.

A large majority of failed asylum seekers are from the Tamil minority community who fled the island at the height of the civil war between 2006 and 2009.

Meanwhile, the Australian Federal Government continued to refuse to confirm a claim that 14 Sri Lankan asylum seekers have opted to return to their country rather than be sent to Nauru.

Wire reports noted that Coalition Immigration Spokesman Scott Morrison made the claim on television.

“There is an unconfirmed report that there are 14 Sri Lankans who I understand will be flying back to Sri Lanka because they don’t want to go to Nauru,” he had told Sky News.

“If that’s the case, the Government can confirm that and I would welcome that as an outcome.”

Both Immigration Minister Chris Bowen’s office and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship have declined to confirm or comment on Morrison’s claim.

But a source on the island said Morrison’s claim appeared to be correct, although the number of refugees involved was unclear.

The claim comes as authorities intercepted a boat carrying 58 suspected asylum seekers off the West Australian coast.

Home Affairs Minister Jason Clare said Australian Customs vessel Hervey Bay intercepted the “suspected irregular entry vessel” west-northwest of Cocos (Keeling) Islands overnight.

Clare said 58 people are believed to be on board.

They have been taken to Cocos (Keeling) Islands, where they will have basic health and security checks, and will then go to Christmas Island for more checks.