The cancellation of the flight, which was to carry just seven people to the African nation, followed a last-minute ruling by the European Court of Human Rights following failed attempts to block the flight to UK courts. The Boeing 767 was to depart at 22:30 local time.
The European Court of Justice has upheld the precautionary measures “in the case of one of the asylum seekers, an Iraqi national who fled to Turkey in April and then crossed the English Channel by boat,” the court said in a statement. She said the man applied for asylum as soon as he arrived in the UK in May, saying he was in danger in his home country.
An out-of-hours judge reviewed the cases of each of the other asylum seekers who had to be deported.
UK Home Secretary Pretty Patel expressed frustration with the cancellation, but promised the government “will not be discouraged”.
“It is very strange that the European Court of Human Rights has intervened despite our repeated previous successes in our domestic courts,” the Guardian reported. “These recurring legal barriers are similar to those we face with other relocation flights, and many of those removed from this flight will be raised next.”
IMPORTANT: Tonight inhuman deportation of asylum seekers to
Sending people fleeing violence to a country thousands of miles away was already hard and unbearable.
It is now potentially illegal.
& mdash; @SadiqKhan
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Boris Johnson dismissed criticism of his plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, saying flight blocking efforts “encourage the work of criminal gangs” involved in smuggling people across borders.
Britain has reached a 120 120 million ($ 188 million Cdn) deal with Rwanda to send some migrants who had crossed the Channel in small boats from Europe to live in the closed African country. Rwanda is going to receive development aid.
The policy has faced a number of legal challenges, but the UK Supreme Court refused to hear a final appeal on Tuesday after lower courts refused to block deportations.
Johnson insisted the government would not be intimidated by those attacking the strategy and told ministers that “we will continue and implement” the plan.
Immigrants are presented on the Valiant ship of the British border force after an attempt to cross the English Channel from France, on Tuesday in Dover, England. The government of Boris Johnson is trying to drastically reduce the number of attempts to cross the canal. (Chris Eades / Getty Images)
The plan has sparked strong protests in the UK. Twenty-five Bishops of the Church of England, including the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, wrote an open letter describing the deportation plans as “an immoral policy that shames Britain”.
“Our Christian heritage should inspire us to treat asylum seekers with compassion, justice and fairness, as we have done for centuries,” the bishops wrote in a letter to the Times of London.
Newspapers report that Prince Charles has also dealt with the issue. The heir to the throne privately described Rwanda’s policy as “disgusting”, the Times reported at the weekend, citing an unknown source.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grady, has also criticized the policy, calling it “all wrong.” He said the British government should work with other countries to target smugglers and provide safe routes for asylum seekers, not just bypassing immigrants in other countries.
Reaction from the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby:
The deportation of asylum seekers should shame us as a nation.
Our Christian heritage should inspire us to deal with vulnerable asylum seekers with compassion, justice and fairness.https://t.co/gx6SMTvkV2
– @JustinWelby
Rwandan President Paul Kagame has told diplomats in Kigali that his country and the United Kingdom are not involved in buying and selling people, but rather trying to solve a global immigration problem.
Rwanda is one of the most densely populated countries in the world and remains one of the least developed, despite its focus on modernization from the country’s genocide in 1994. Immigrants seeking better lives in Britain are expected to find fewer opportunities to pursue their dreams here, even when Rwandan officials describe their country as having a proud history of welcoming those in need.
A bedroom appears inside the Hope Hostel in Rwanda’s capital, Kigali, one of the sites expected to host some of the asylum seekers to be sent from Britain. (The Associated Press)
Kagame ruled for more than two decades, earning a reputation as an effective but authoritarian leader. The US State Department in its latest report on the human rights situation in the country cites “credible reports” of enforced detentions and disappearances of citizens, as well as the suppression of freedom of speech and association.
Sensitivity around the arrival of the first asylum seekers from Britain is so high that Rwandan officials are banning the media from interviewing new arrivals.
“Maybe later, when they are settled,” said Claude Twishime, a spokeswoman for the Department of Emergency Management, which will take care of them.
One of those who have found a base is Urubel Tesfaye, a 22-year-old Ethiopian who is happy to find a part-time job at a bakery in the Rwandan capital, Kigali. But his friends are talking about moving to Canada or the Netherlands.
Even those who came straight to Rwanda to escape home problems say the country, though peaceful, is not easy.
“When you are not busy, you can not survive here,” said Kelly Nimubona, a refugee from neighboring Burundi. “We can not afford to eat twice a day. There is no way we can find a job or sell on the street.” But he described Rwanda as an oasis of order in a troubled region.
Those arriving under Rwanda’s new agreement with Britain will be housed in shelters around Kigali with features such as private rooms, TVs and a swimming pool. In one, the Hope Hostel, a security guard patrols outside and the lobby clocks show the hours in London and Paris.
“This is not a prison,” said director Bakinahe Ismail.
