27/04/06: Dawn Raid on Sri Lankan family

Why is the UK government terrorising Glasgow residents from Sri Lanka the day after Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the United Nations, issues a statement of concern at the escalating violence in a war that has claimed at least 60,000 lives?

12 April 2006 – United Nations statement on Sri Lanka:
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan issued a statement today that the UN is very concerned at the escalating violence and loss of life in Sri Lanka.

13 April 2006 - Tony McNulty's bootboys smash down the door of a Sri Lankan family in Glasgow, dragging a mother and her children off to prison. They have committed no crime. Their homeland is ravaged by an escalating war, and they sought refuge in Britain.

Echoing the Secretary-General’s concerns, the UN Resident Co-ordinator in Sri Lanka – who is also the head of humanitarian operations – said the latest killings, which included the deaths of two aid workers, “potentially threaten humanitarian operations in the most vulnerable areas affected by the tsunami and the conflict.”

Violence has continued in Sri Lanka despite a ceasefire agreement of February 2002 aimed at ending two decades of fighting between the Government and separatist forces that has claimed some 60,000 lives.
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=18134&Cr=sri&Cr1=lanka

Efforts to rebuild after the devastation of the tsunami have been severely hampered as the fighting increases. Sri Lankans and aid workers are being killed. Populations are on the move to escape the war.

Meanwhile, in Britain, refugees from the conflict are being targeted by Tamil rebels, extorting money to pay for their “final war” in Sri Lanka. An inspector with the Metropolitan police told Human Rights Watch: "We know that extortion is going on, but this is not a priority for the British government."
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/03/16/slanka13011.htm

So what is the priority for the British government? How is New Labour helping the victims of war-torn and tsunami-devastated country? By launching dawn raids on Sri Lankan families, dragging children off to prison in an effort to send them back to the chaos they were lucky enough to escape. These terror tactics have to stop.

Today, 13 April 2006, an Immigration snatch squad carried out a dawn raid on a Sri Lankan family in Pollokshaws in the south side of Glasgow. The family had been up til 1am preparing food and sweets for friends and neighbours, in celebration of the new year, the most important event in the Hindu and Sinhala calendar. The father and one son were not at home. The mother managed to get a call out for help, but as No Borders supporters arrived, the van was leaving with her and the children handcuffed inside. Another van waited outside the tower block, snatch squad in the flat awating the fathers return. That van left on a tow truck, unable to drive off with all it's tyres deflated, but the damage was done: another raid, another family split up, more children imprisoned.

This should not be happening. These attacks on our communities must be stopped.

Join the resistance – stop the dawn raids, end detention, no more deportations.
No Borders Glasgow - committed to practical solidarity, mutual aid and direct action.

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Unity Demo 08/04/06

Unity March & Rally Glasgow April 8 2006

Around 300 asylum seekers, refugees, sans-papiers and their supporters marched across Glasgow this afternoon, April 8th, calling for the right to work and an end to detention and deportation. As part of the international day of action against detention, they went from the Home Office Reporting Centre in Ibrox to a rally in the Carnival Arts Centre in town.

This was the first big demo by Unity: the Scottish Asylum Seekers Union. Over the last few months there have been mass meetings of asylum seekers in several different parts of Glasgow and local committees have been elected to campaign for better treatment. At the Unity rally after the march asylum seekers queued up to join the union and were encouraged by the speakers - including speakers from Unity, Jock Morris Chair of Glasgow Campaign to Welcome Refugees, Mohammed Asif, Tommy Sheridan MSP - to organise meetings where they lived to form more local committees.

Though it was a long way, the rain stayed off and the march appeared to gather momentum and energy as it went along. An international crowd with large numbers of women and children chanting, "We belong to Glasgow", "No Dawn Raids" and "No Borders, no nations, stop deportations". I thought I knew the word "ullulation" before but before passing into Tradeston under the M8, I didn't really. Paisley Road hasn't seen anything like it, judging from the surprise on the face of the smokers outside the pubs.

Once in town, the march paused outside Trades Hall, waiting to enter. Despite the management going back on their late decision to exclude the "rabble," there was no-one there to open the doors on arrival. The police's decision to force a premature start from Brand Street thus backfired on them as people spent 20 minutes on the busy street getting their message across before deciding to go to the Carnival Arts Centre (many thanks to the folks at Carnival Arts for helping with this last minute booking).

Inside the packed venue there was juice for the kids and speeches from the diverse strands of the march organisation. Representatives of asylum seeker committees in the Red Road, Pollokshaws and elsewhere spoke passionately of the need to stand together so that their voices could be heard. "We don't want income support, we want to work." They thanked the solidarity shown to them by Glasgow people and some even sang the praises of its weather (as diverse as its citizens).

Glasgow has seen marches with more people but this was something more than that. Rather than just walking, this was people finding their voices and the confidence to speak out against the injustice and indignity our immigration system heaps upon them. In Glasgow they are rejecting the isolation and fear imposed by the Home Office and starting to Unite.

many thanks once again to Gareth Harper for photos - www.photoecosse.net

Join the protest - Glasgow, 8th April

UNITE!
Saturday 8th April, Glasgow
All asylum seekers and friends - Join the protest!

End dawn raids
No more detentions
For the right to work

Organised by UNITY - the Scottish Union of Asylum Seekers, and No Borders Glasgow .

11.30: Meet outside the Home Office, Brand Street (near Cessnock underground)
12.30: March to George Square
2.00: Indoor rally with food & refreshments in the Trades Hall (Glassford Street)

Please help us make this demonstration the biggest demonstration in Scotland by asylum seekers ever. The more we are, the louder our voice. We Belong To Glasgow!