02 April 2023 , 10:51
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Home Secretary Suella Braverman has insisted it is safe to send asylum seekers to Rwanda after being confronted with footage of a 2018 incident when 12 refugees were killed in a protest.
Ms Braverman claimed that she wasn't aware of the case, when police fired live ammunition at refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo who were protesting over food rations.
The case, which has been raised by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Amnesty and Human Rights Watch, is referenced in the Home Office's own country assessment of Rwanda.
Labour's Yvette Cooper also raised the incident in the House of Commons last year, when Priti Patel was Home Secretary.
Ms Braverman told the BBC it was safe to deport migrants to Rwanda under the Government's controversial plan to halt the flow of small boats arriving in Britain.
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But when challenged over the incident in 2018, she said: "I'm not familiar with that particular case."
Suella Braverman insisted that Rwanda was a safe country to send asylum seekers (PA)BBC presenter Laura Kuenssberg then showed her footage of the aftermath of the protest where the UN and eyewitnesses said live rounds were fired.
The Rwandan Government says there was violence and the police action was a resort, Ms Braverman was told.
Asked if she was still sure it was safe to send people to Rwanda, the Home Secretary said: "That might be 2018, we're looking at 2023 and beyond.
"The High Court, senior expert judges, have looked into the detail of our arrangement with Rwanda and found it to be a safe country and found our arrangements to be lawful."
Ms Braverman said refugees she had met in Rwanda recently had "nothing but gratitude and thanks" for the authorities for their treatment.
“They have a track record of successfully re-settling and integrating people who are refugees or asylum seekers,” she said.
“I think we’re on strong ground to say that Rwanda is a safe country.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman tours a building site on the outskirts of Kigali during her visit to Rwanda (PA)"It is the right solution for us grappling with our small boats problem.”
The 2018 incident is referred to in the Home Office's own guidance on Rwanda from May last year.
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It states: "Sources report that refugees have sometimes protested at conditions in the camps.
"The Rwandan government has taken steps to contain the demonstrations and prevent disruption and violence, but reportedly using excessive force in some instances.
"The last protest at which they allegedly did so took place in February 2018, when a number of refugees were arrested and killed.
"The exact circumstances of that incident are unclear, with sources also referring to rioting and the arrest and prosecution of refugees, however sources also note that no further similar incidents have occurred since."
Rishi Sunak has made stopping the flow of small boats one of his key priorities but the Government's plan to deport people arriving illegally in the UK has been tied up in legal wrangles.
The first flight was grounded last summer after legal challenges - and Ms Braverman downplayed official briefings that the Government was aiming for deportation flights to begin in the summer.
Campaigners have branded the plan cruel and costly, with the controversial Illegal Migration Bill described as an effective "asylum ban".
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