The UK Home Office will return failed Zimbabwean asylum seekers
October 29 2009 by Liam Clifford
UK immigration minister Phil Woolas wants to return failed Zimbabwean asylum seekers back to their country.
UK immigration minister Phil Woolas has said the ground will be cleared to start re-enforced returns "…as and when, the political situation develops".
The UK Border Agency has said it could start returns from the New Year, but confirmed no firm date has yet been set.
Asylum groups in the UK have reacted with apprehension, saying the country is way too volatile at the moment to realistically consider forcibly returning anyone.
There is said to be 28,000 Zimbabweans that have sought asylum across the past decade, however none have been forcibly removed since 2006 as a series of legal rulings have gone in their favour regarding the safety of the country.
Mr Woolas said UK officials were now considering recommencing removals as the launch of the new power-sharing government is started, led by President Robert Mugabe and new Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai the leader of the opposing MDC party.
"As Prime Minister Tsvangirai has set out, including during a visit to the UK in June, there have been some positive changes in the situation in Zimbabwe over the past six months.”
"While a great deal remains to be done to institute the political and other reforms set out in the Global Political Agreement, the indiscriminate violence which marred the elections of 2008 has abated.”
UK immigration minister Phil Woolas said that the UK Border Agency will spend the autumn working "…on a process aimed at normalising our returns policy to Zimbabwe, moving towards resuming enforced returns progressively as and when the political situation develops".
He has also announced new cash incentives offered to failed Zimbabwean asylum seekers who wanted to return voluntarily.
The UK immigration announcement comes during a worrying week for Zimbabwe. The MDC has said there has been increasing amounts of violence from radicals in Mugabe's Zanu-PF party. New Prime Minister Tsvangirai then retaliated by boycotting the second cabinet meeting, in as many weeks.
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