Month: February 2015

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Olayinka and her family MUST stay in Britain!

Olayinka RAPAR

Olayinka’s Story:

Olayinka is now 17, and currently lives in Rochdale with her mum and her two brothers (18 and 16).  They are here because Olayinka refuses to undergo female genital mutilation (FGM), part of cultural tradition within her father’s family and tribe in Nigeria.

Olayinka has made it crystal clear that she would rather die in Britain than be deported to Nigeria and endure FGM – she attempted suicide three months ago.Olayinka’s family fled from Nigeria and applied for asylum in Britain in 2009.  Olayinka’s elder sister (her mother Abiola’s first child) was born in Nigeria and died in 1992, aged 8, after being forced to undergo FGM.  When Abiola had Olayinka, she was terrified that the same could happen to her second daughter as well.  This created great tension in Abiola’s marriage and she eventually left her husband in 2003.  However, Olayinka’s paternal uncle continued to pressure mother and child. Continue reading “Olayinka and her family MUST stay in Britain!”
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RAPAR Refugee and Asylum Seeker Participatory Action Research

RAPARRAPAR (Refugee and Asylum Seeker Participatory Action Research) is a Manchester-based human rights organisation working with people, both locally and further afield, who are at risk of having their rights denied.

We work with — and many of us are, or have been — displaced* people facing challenges relating to citizenship, housing, deportation, employment, education, personal safety and other problems. We enable people’s access to the services they need, and release their abilities to find effective solutions to challenges facing them. Continue reading “RAPAR Refugee and Asylum Seeker Participatory Action Research”
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Justice & Security for the Famakinwa Family!

Abiola RAPARAbiola Famakinwa, mother of three children, 14, 12 and 6, is a Biomedical Scientist who was sadly widowed when her husband, a renowned journalist in Nigeria – Samuel Oluwasanmi Famakinwa died under mysterious circumstances in the Northern Part of Nigeria.
Although she was six months pregnant at the time she had to leave the country with her children in fear of her own and her children’s lives. Continue reading “Justice & Security for the Famakinwa Family!”
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Manjeet Must Stay in the UK – RAPAR

Manjeet RAPARManjeet Must Stay in the UK – RAPAR: www.rapar.org.uk/manjeet-must-stay-in-the-uk.html   

Manjeet Kaur is an Afghan national and current Chair of RAPAR, the human rights organisation based in Manchester. Since she sought asylum in the UK three years ago.
Manjeet’s StoryManjeet came to this country after she was subjected to a series of threats and attacks following the disappearance of her husband in India in February 2011. Before he disappeared, Amitt Bhatt, a campaigning journalist and Panun Kashmir activist, had been persecuted and attacked as a result of articles and books he had written criticising the Indian government’s policies in Kashmir.  Manjeet helped with research and proof-reading for Amitt’s books, ‘Lies and Genocide of the Indian Government’ (2011) and ‘Cryashmir’ (2009).  Continue reading “Manjeet Must Stay in the UK – RAPAR”
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What does Parliament say about asylum

HoClibraryAccommodation and financial support for asylum seekers – Commons Library Standard Note: http://www.parliament.uk/topics/Asylum.htm

Published 03 February 2015 | Standard notes SN01909

Authors: Melanie Gower

Asylum seekers are not eligible for mainstream welfare benefits whilst waiting for a decision on their asylum application. Instead, if they are destitute, they can apply to UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI, a Home Office directorate) for accommodation and/or financial support (‘asylum support’).  Continue reading “What does Parliament say about asylum”

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The Facts: Asylum in the UK

GatewaybeachWhat is the difference between a refugee and an asylum seeker?

What are refugees?

A refugee is a person who:

‘owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country’