Rwandan politician says the country isn't safe for refugees from the UK

17 April 2023 , 07:52

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Rwandan opposition politician Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza said the country isn't safe for refugees (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

A Rwandan opposition leader has launched a scathing attack on the UK's deportation scheme - saying the country is not safe for refugees.

Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza said high unemployment and a heavy-handed approach to protests made the Central African country unsuitable.

The government has come under fire over the controversial scheme, which hasn't seen a single deportation flight more than a year after it was launched by former Home Secretary Priti Patel.

The Government has vowed to plough ahead with the project, which was branded a "grubby cash-for-humans" deal on the first anniversary of its announcement last week.

Ms Ingabire, who has spent eight years behind bars after challenging President Paul Kagame following what human rights groups called a "flawed" trial, said it is "not possible" to protest.

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Priti Patel with Rwandan Foreign Minister Vincent Biruta more than a year ago (EUGENE UWIMANA/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

The leader of the Development and Liberty for All (Dalfa-Umurinzi) party, who is banned from standing for public office, told The Times she is alarmed about what will happen if refugees show any opposition to the government.

"Will they shoot them?" she asked. "I think in the UK they can protest whenever they want but here it is not possible."

She claimed that the deal between Rwanda and the UK violates the Geneva Convention, which says countries can't send refugees to a nation that's not safe.

Ms Ingabire said: "Rwanda is not a freedom country where you can send refugees.”

Home Secretary Suella Braverman made a heavily-criticised visit to Rwanda last month, when she met with government officials and saw some of the accommodation.

But Ms Ingabire said: “If you only stay here for two days and the government has prepared what they want to show you, you will not know Rwanda."

She claimed that with unemployment at 16% of working age men - and 21% of those aged 16 to 30 - there would be very few prospects for those who are sent there.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman visited Rwandan capital Kigali last month (PA)

It comes after Mr Kagame claimed Rwanda would “always have capacity” for refugees deported from the UK.

The Rwandan government hit back at the claims, saying refugees would be given support and education to get them into work, and described the country as a "good place to live".

A Home Office spokesman said: “Our Migration and Economic Development Partnership will see people who come to the UK through dangerous and illegal routes relocated to Rwanda, where they will be given the opportunity to settle and rebuild their lives.

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“Rwanda is a safe and secure country and they stand ready to welcome and support refugees – provisions are in place for accommodation, education and employment, with an estimated capacity to relocate several thousands of people.

“We have a strong relationship with Rwanda and both sides are equally committed to delivering the policy and seeing people relocated as soon as possible.”

Former Home Secretary Ms Patel unveiled the "biggest overhaul of our immigration system in decades" on April 14 last year.

But MPs have questioned whether it'll deter small boat crossings and her successor, Suella Braverman, has refused to give a timetable for flights.

The Government has repeatedly refused to tell The Mirror how much it has spent, although it is known that it has so far paid £140 million to the Rwandan government.

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told The Mirror: "The Government claimed a year ago this plan would stop the boat crossings but since then the problem has got much worse.

"Ministers have written Rwanda cheques for £140m already yet the only person who has been sent to Rwanda is the Home Secretary on her flashy PR trip."

She branded it a "Tory con", and said: “Every day spent on this failing policy could have been spent doing the things that will actually work to clear the backlog and reduce crossings – things Labour has been calling for repeatedly."

In June last year the first deportation flight was halted at the 11th hour following legal challenges, and campaigners hoping to see the plan scrapped have vowed to fight on.

At the end of last year the High Court ruled the project was legal, but an appeal is currently being considered.

Tim Naor Hilton, chief executive of Refugee Action, said: “The grubby cash-for-humans deportation deal with the Rwandan government is inhumane, racist and it won’t stop people making dangerous journeys across the Channel.

“Ministers fail to accept that a tiny percentage of the world’s refugees come to the UK because they have loved ones here or speak English and no amount of brutal and costly deterrence will stop them.

“Deporting refugees to any country is cruel. But serious concerns over the Rwandan Government’s human rights record making it totally unfit to look after refugees.”

Dave Burke