Asylum Research Consultancy (ARC) COI Update Volume 91
This document provides an update of Country Guidance case law and UKBA publications and developments in refugee producing countries between 18th November and 1st December 2014 - Volume 91  <> here . . .

Neglect/Indifference Kill American Man in Immigration Detention
A Prison and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) report on Brian DalrympleÕs six weeks in immigration detention paintsÊa grim picture of how the vulnerable are treated.ÊAlthough Dalrymple was a white man, we report on his case to show that, in immigration detention, immigration status ensures a grim equality of treatment. The report, Investigation into the death of a man at Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre in July 2011, details the concerning way that Dalrymple met his death.

The inquest, which was held in June 2014, found that he had died as a result of natural causes and that his death was contributed to by neglect. It is usual practice for PPO reports to be published soon after the inquest is held. However the PPO report has only just been published. Though written dispassionately in sanitised language, the report paints a grim picture of how a vulnerable person was treated in detention.

Read more: Harmit Athwal, IRR News, <>28/11/14

UKHO Immigration Statistics, Q3 July to September 2014

Asylum: There were 24,257 asylum applications, an increase of 2% compared with the previous 12 months (23,805), but low relative to the 2002 peak (84,132). The largest numbers of applications were from Eritrean (2,932), Pakistani (2,891), Iranian (1,999) and Syrian (1,802) nationals.

At the end of September 2014, 22,879 of the applications for asylum received since April 2006 from main applicants were pending a decision (initial decision, appeal or further review). This was 48% more than at the end of September 2013 (15,438). The number of decisions outstanding increased during this period due to a decrease in staffing levels following a restructure initiated by the UK Border Agency. Since January 2014, the Home Office has taken steps to reallocate resources to this area.

At the end of September 2014, 27,815 asylum seekers were being supported while their asylum claim was finally determined (under Section 95). The number of failed asylum seekers and their dependants receiving support (under Section 4) was 4,885. These were up 26% and 4% respectively compared with the previous year.

Detention: The number of people entering detention fell 3% to 29,492. Over the same period there was a fall of 3% in those leaving detention (from 30,102 to 29,151).

There was a continuing small decline in the proportion of detainees being removed on leaving detention to 55% from 57% compared with the previous 12 months. There was a slight increase in the proportion of detainees granted temporary admission or release, from 36% to 37% over the same period.

As at the end of September 2014, 3,378 people were in detention, 8% higher than as at the end of September 2013 (3,115). In the third quarter of 2014, 26 children entered detention, a small increase on the 19 recorded for each of the first and second quarters of 2014. Of the 27 children leaving detention in the third quarter of 2014, 20 were removed from the UK, 5 were granted temporary admission or release and 2 were released unconditionally.

During the year ending September 2014, 29,151 people left detention. Of these, 18,165 (62%) had been in detention for less than 29 days, 5,105 (18%) for between 29 days and two months and 3,932 (13%) for between two and four months. Of the 1,949 (7%) remaining, 144 had been in detention for between one and two years and 30 for two years or longer.

Just over a third of people leaving detention were detained for seven days or less (10,820). Of these, 5,912 (55%) were removed, 4,621 (43%) were granted temporary admission or release and 92 (1%) were bailed. Of the 174 detained for 12 months or more, 77 (44%) were removed, 54 (31%) were bailed and 39 (22%) were granted temporary admission or release.

As at 29 September 2014 there were 425 detainees held in prison establishments in England and Wales solely under Immigration powers as set out in the Immigration Act 1971 or UK Borders Act 2007. In the year ending September 2014, provisional data show that 4,852 foreign national offenders (FNOs) were removed, a decrease of 2% from the previous year (4,968).

[Total cost of running the Immigration Detention Estate financial year 2013/2014 was £164.4m. This includes all costs, including running costs, rent, depreciation and other costs, for all Immigration Removal Centres, Short Term Holding Facilities and amounts paid for spaces in the main prisons estate.

James Brokenshire: It has been estimated that an estate of around 5,000 beds will support the removal of those with no right to remain in the UK. This figure is subject to reviews of demand, affordability and value for money]

Removals and Voluntary Departures: There were 9% fewer enforced removals from the UK (12,461) compared with the previous 12 months (13,740). The number of passengers refused entry at port and who subsequently departed has increased by 6% to 15,118; however the long-term trends show levels decreasing since 2004. In the year ending September 2014, there were 4,289 enforced removals of people who had sought asylum at some stage, down 14% from the previous year (5,005).

There were 33,978 voluntary departures recorded in the year ending September 2014. Although this is lower than the 36,448 now recorded for the year ending September 2013 it is higher than the 30,184 originally reported a year ago for year ending September 2013. These latest figures are particularly subject to upward revision due to subsequent data-matching exercises which identify further cases of voluntary departures.

Summary points/Data tables: July to September 2014
Work - Study - Family - Visas - Admissions - Asylum - Extensions of stay - Settlement - Citizenship - Detention - Removals and voluntary departures - About this release - About the figures

<> Published 27 November 2014

Emergency Solidarity Demonstration - Campsfield IRC

In response to events over the weekend @ Campsfield IRC, that saw a detainee hospitalized and a large protest by detainees!

Wednesday 3rd December @12.30pm
Campsfield House Immigration Removal Centre
Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxon, OX5 1RE

Travelling from London meet: 8.30am Marble Arch Tube station (by the KFC) - Movement for Justice (MFJ) will pay transport costs for all asylum seekers, for others a return ticket is £18 - please get in touch if you want to come but have difficulties with the cost.

MFJ stands in solidarity with the detainees of Campsfield and all detainees who are standing up against a system that is inherently abusive. Mass resistance and building a movement inside and outside of detention is the only way to prevent cover-ups of the abuses and have a chance of bringing down this detention regime to end the deaths and abuse.

All Out On Wednesday - End Detention Now!

England Hear Our Voices - Campsfield IRC Detainee Hospitalized
Saturday 29th November 2014: A detainee with mental health issues is in a critical condition after being beaten up by Mitie security guards at Campsfield IRC in Oxfordshire. Between 60 and 100 detainees have occupied the courtyard to protest against the violence and the inhuman living conditions they suffer during detention.

Around 4pm on 29th November 2014 a male detainee with mental health issues has been left in 'a critical condition' after he was beaten by guards at Campsfield House IRC, as numerous detainees reported. This marks the second assault by guards against the detainee. Two other detainees were hurt by guards in the ensuing struggle and sustained minor injuries.

Between 60 and 100 detainees have occupied the courtyard to protest against the violent treatment of the detainee and the inhuman living conditions they suffer during detention. The protesters in the courtyard were joined by numerous demonstrators outside of the fences and barbed wire surrounding the detention centre who fully support the demands of the detainees.

The demands of the 60-100 protesting detainees are:

1. Permission to see their friend in order to see what happened to him
2. Release of the (at least 3-4) people forced into solitary confinement
3. Punishment for the guards who beat up the detainee
4. End to inhuman treatment, deprivation of freedom and separation from families

The protesting detainees emphasise that they are 'being treated like animals' in the racist system of immigration detention. Specific problems are inadequate medical care, low quality nutrition, and separation from their families in the UK. The protestors ask to be treated like humans.

Instead of responding to the demands, the management of Campsfield IRC ordered to put at least three or four detainees who tried to make contact with their injured friend into solitary confinement and confiscated their phones. A visitor who was trying to see one of them was threatened with arrest by the police. Many more detainees were put under lockdown and not allowed to leave the areas where they were being monitored. Afterwards, several detainees were moved to different detention centres.

The incident followed the demonstration '21 years too long' outside the detention centre on Saturday morning. Local, national and international groups have come again and again to protest against Campsfield IRC during the 21 years of its existence.

Source: Campaign to Close Campsfield <> 01/12/14

Dear supporters, we have been sent this short film, made this weekend, which includes three Campsfield detainees saying that they witnessed a serious incident of physical abuse. Their message is clear - they would like people outside to know. Asylum Welcome feels a responsibility to help them to share this information, please could you take a few minutes to watch the film and pass it on as appropriate. Many thanks, Kate
<>http://vimeo.com/113244678

David Cameron Blinks on Immigration
David Cameron has set out his vision of how the EU can control the free movement of workers. An ill-judged attempt to head off an electoral threat from the rabidly anti-European Union, anti-immigration UKIP, might be a better description.

Cameron blinked, as it was always likely he would. Talk of an 'emergency brake' on EU migrants to the UK was missing, as was any mention of caps or quotas. No doubt political self- preservation and the alarm of UK business leaders and investors to the prospect of the UK sleepwalking its way out of the EU played a significant part.

The focus is instead on blocking EU migrants from access to UK welfare payments until they have been resident and working in the country for four years. However, considerable doubt has already been cast over Cameron's ability to secure the required changes to EU law, and certainly before any referendum on the UK's membership in 2017. As the prime minister himself conceded on Friday, some (if not the vast majority) of his plans will require amendments and changes to EU treaties. Even if, and it is a big if, he were able to negotiate such a package with fellow EU leaders, it would still require a process of ratification in all 28 member states Ð something unlikely to happen any time soon.
Read more: Matt Evans, The Justice Gap, <> 02/12/14

Landlord Penalties and the Right to Housing

Forcing private landlords to police undocumented migrants will exacerbate inequality and deflect blame for the housing shortage.

The drive to embed immigration enforcement into all aspects of economic and social life is about to become even more intrusive. From 1 December, in a pilot scheme, residential landlords in Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Walsall and Sandwell will be obliged to carry out immigration status checks on all new tenants and adults living with them, on pain of a £3,000 fine if they are found to be renting to anyone without the right to be here. This will involve seeing, checking, and copying documents such as British and EU passports, biometric residence permits, refugee status documents, birth certificates and a myriad of alternative documents indicating that the prospective tenant has Home Office permission to be in the UK. They must retain documents for the duration of the tenancy and for a year afterwards, to avoid liability. If the prospective tenant has no documents or their status is unclear, the landlord (including a sub-letting tenant or someone taking in lodgers) must contact the Home Office's Landlord Checking Service, which must respond within 48 hours, either issuing a 'positive right to rent notice' or telling the landlord that the person concerned is disqualified from renting.

The checks are part of a raft of new measures in the Immigration Act 2014 to drive out undocumented migrants, including bans on bank accounts and driving licences, and increased fines for employers of unauthorised workers. Immigration minister James Brokenshire claimed that the 'quick and simple' checks 'make it more difficult for immigration offenders to stay in the country when they have no right to be here. They will also act as a new line of attack against unscrupulous landlords who exploit people by renting out substandard, overcrowded and unsafe accommodation.'
Read more: Frances Webber, IRR News, <> 28/11/14

Nigeria: Kano Mosque Blasts Death Toll Above 102
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan vowed to track down the perpetrators of the bomb blasts that killed more than 100 people at the central mosque in the city of Kano. Jonathan said his government will "continue to take every step to put an end to the reprehensible acts of all groups and persons involved in acts of terrorism."

More than 102 people were killed in the bomb explosions at the central mosque in Kano, said a hospital worker. The multiple explosions that hit the mosque on Friday 28th November injured more than 150. "Most of those receiving treatment ... are in dire need of blood and we are appealing to people to come and donate their blood to rescue the victims," Dr. Usman Bashir told Associated Press on Saturday. Hundreds had gathered Friday in the mosque, which is known for attracting moderates, for a sermon in a region terrorized by attacks from the extremist group Boko Haram.
Read more: Yahoo News, <>29/11/14

Early Day Motion 578: Sexual Violence In Conflict In Burma
That this House condemns the continuing use of rape as a weapon of war and the recent escalation in military attacks in Kachin, northern Shan and Karen States; notes the recent report by the Women's League for Burma, detailing evidence of the continuing use of rape and sexual violence; calls for a nationwide ceasefire and an end to the use of rape and sexual violence as a weapon of war in Burma; urges the government of Burma and the ethnic nationalities to engage in a political dialogue; welcomes the renewed dialogue between the government of Burma, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy, the ethnic nationalities and the military; further urges the government of Burma to uphold its obligations under international law to end impunity and ensure accountability; further urges the government of Burma to amend the Constitution in order to allow the full participation in presidential elections of all political candidates; further urges the Government to make Burma a country of priority concern in the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative; calls on the Prime Minister's Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict to address the issues in Burma; and calls on the Government to consider mechanisms for justice, accountability and ending impunity in Burma.

Sponsors: Vaz, Valerie / Bottomley, Peter - House of Commons: 28.11.2014

UKHO Country Of Origin Information (CIG) Bangladesh:

Background Information, Including Actors of Protection, and Internal Relocation

1.1 Summary of Issues
Are those at risk able to seek effective protection?
Are those at risk able to internally relocate within Bangladesh

This document provides supporting guidance to Home Office decision makers on handling claims made by nationals/residents of – but is predominantly country of origin information (COI) about – Bangladesh. It must be read in conjunction with the subject-specific country information and guidance reports.

The COI within this document has been compiled from a wide range of external information sources (usually) published in English. Consideration has been given to the relevance, reliability, accuracy, objectivity, currency, transparency and traceability of the information and wherever possible attempts have been made to corroborate the information used across independent sources, to ensure accuracy.

Published Refworld: <>01/12/14