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Churches speak out on Rwanda asylum policy

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Church leaders have voiced their objections and concerns about the UK Government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda from 14 June 2022:
 

Baptist Union of Great Britain

 


 

Catholic Church in England and Wales

 
Asylum seekers’ dignity must be protected and upheld said Bishop Paul McAleenan, Lead Bishop for Migration Issues, for the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

‘The UK’s plans to forcibly deport to Rwanda some of those seeking refuge in our country is shamefully illustrative of what Pope Francis has called the “loss of that sense of responsibility for our brothers and sisters on which every civil society is based”.

‘The plan is presented as a humanitarian response to combat people trafficking and smuggling yet the result will compound the suffering of those who are already victims. Crime is defeated by confronting the perpetrators not by punishing victims. This scheme will increase the difficulties of those hoping for a new beginning, and it does nothing to address the problems which cause people to flee their homes.

‘Migration is a complex issue, but it is not resolved by delegating our roles and responsibilities to other countries. Our starting point should be the innate dignity of every person, created in the image and likeness of God. Our Christian faith demands that we respond generously to asylum seekers whose dignity must be protected and upheld.

‘Whether or not the flight to Rwanda takes off today we are now in a new situation. With greater force we insist that asylum seekers are not commodities for profit, nor are they problems to be rejected and deported by government. Instead we should be guided by the four verbs provided by Pope Francis in our approach to migrants and refugees, “Welcome, protect, promote and integrate”.’

The statement is available on the Catholic Church in England and Wales website.
 

Catholic Church in Scotland

 


 

Church of England

 
The Church of England bishops who serve in the House of Lords (Lords Spiritual) have signed a letter to The Times voicing alarm about the UK Government’s plan, saying ‘this policy should shame us as a nation’:

‘Whether or not the first deportation flight leaves Britain today for Rwanda, this policy should shame us as a nation. Rwanda is a brave country recovering from catastrophic genocide. The shame is our own, because our Christian heritage should inspire us to treat asylum seekers with compassion, fairness and justice, as we have for centuries. Those to be deported to Rwanda have had no chance to appeal, or reunite with family in Britain. They have had no consideration of their asylum claim, recognition of their medical or other needs, or any attempt to understand their predicament.

‘Many are desperate people fleeing unspeakable horrors. Many are Iranians, Eritreans and Sudanese citizens, who have an asylum grant rate of at least 88 per cent. These are people Jesus had in mind as he said when we offer hospitality to a stranger, we do it for him. They are the vulnerable that the Old Testament calls us to value. We cannot offer asylum to everyone, but we must not outsource our ethical responsibilities, or discard international law — which protects the right to claim asylum.

We must end the evil trafficking; many churches are involved in fighting this evil. This needs global co-operation across every level of society. To reduce dangerous journeys to the UK we need safe routes: the church will continue to advocate for them. But deportations — and the potential forced return of asylum seekers to their home countries — are not the way. This immoral policy shames Britain.’

The statement is available on the Church of England website.
 


 

Church of Scotland

 


 

Church in Wales

 


 

Methodist Church

 
The Methodist Church has issued a statement in response to the UK Government’s plans to offshore asylum seekers in Rwanda:
 
‘The Government’s plans to offshore asylum seekers in Rwanda gives yet another insight into its hostile, uncompassionate and ineffective response to asylum seekers and refugees.

‘People are not a problem to be dealt with, but are individuals with inherent value and dignity made in the image of God. Sending some of the most vulnerable people in the world thousands of miles away to be imprisoned does not respect this dignity.

‘The factors which push people out of their homes and into displacement will always be much stronger than those which motivate them to claim asylum in a certain place. As we have seen in Ukraine, conflict and persecution can become a daily reality at a distressingly rapid pace.

‘Whilst it is important to address the dangerous trade of people smuggling across the channel, the lack of safe and accessible routes by which people can claim asylum in the UK will ultimately contribute significantly to increased small boat crossings. The government have shied away from committing to a resettlement target, and the Nationality and Borders Bill lacks detail of new or expanded resettlement routes. Now, the government is passing the issue onto another country, which the UK has previously criticised for holding a poor record on human rights.

‘Offshore processing is a distraction from the real work which needs to be done to establish workable, safe and welcoming routes through which the UK can play its part in responding to need.

‘We urge the government to reconsider their approach, and accept proposed amendments to the Nationality and Borders Bill to uphold a practice of welcome.’

The statement is available on the Methodist Church website, where you can also read a prayer for our lawmakers.
 

Quakers in Britain

 
The Quakers have spoken out against forced removals to Rwanda, saying that all people are precious, unique, a child of God:
 
‘Nearly five years ago, Quakers in Britain’s Sanctuary Everywhere Manifesto said: “Through Quakers’ longstanding work welcoming newcomers to our shores, we have seen up close that the government’s creation of a “hostile environment” is increasingly embedding policies of discrimination into the practices of the British state”. Today’s forced removals to Rwanda shows the cruel fruits of that discrimination.

‘Quakers around the world have spoken out against policies that criminalise entry into a country. This is ‘a policy choice that causes harm and deliberately increases human insecurity’. It breaches international standards and undermines a global rules-based order that seeks to uphold the dignity and rights of all.

‘A policy ostensibly aimed at people smugglers, but which targets and punishes the people being smuggled, is akin to victim blaming. If anyone else forcibly moved innocent people thousands of miles away against their will, the government would be prosecuting them for people trafficking.

‘The government claims that those opposing its removals policy offer no alternative. In fact, we and many others have advocated for “new, peaceful, safer routes of migration including the introduction of humanitarian visas and improved rules for family reunion”. This would be the real way to “break the model of the people smugglers”: nobody would use them if there were safer and easier ways to reach Britain. Providing safe routes for migrants and asylum seekers to reach Britain is both wise and kind, enabling people “to move in safety and dignity”. It is what our faith and our common humanity call us to do.

The statement is available in the Quakers in Britain website.
 

Scottish Episcopal Church

 

Churches in the Nations

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