Case Studies of Asylum Seekers

Hamid: In July 2008, Hamid called us, explaining that the Home Office was trying to send him back to Sudan and that he had just been given a plane ticket for Khartoum. As a member of the JEM Darfuri rebel group, he would most certainly be detained, tortured or killed by the authorities on his return.  However, the Home Office was claiming that it would be safe for Hamid to be returned.  In response to Hamid’s call, Article 1 took the following action:

• Wrote a letter to the  then Home Secretary Jacqui Smith which included signatures from other organisations asking the Home Office to halt the removal of Hamid and to review its policy on returns to Sudan in general.
• Contacted MPs and peers asking them to raise Hamid’s case and the issue of returns to Sudan of Darfuris with the Home Office.
• Launched a public campaign to stop Hamid’s deportation, which included asking our supporters to email the Home Office and the publishing of a pro bono quarter page advertisement in the Independent newspaper.

As a result, Hamid was not deported. Instead, he was released from detention and later given refugee status. In response to Hamid’s case, the Home Office also halted all further removals of non-Arab Darfuris to Sudan.

Yahya:  In August 2008 Yahya was returned to Khartoum, having become despondent and depressed with the process of claiming asylum in the UK.  Once there, he was followed by the Sudanese authorities as he travelled to Darfur where he was murdered in front of his family.  The Article 1 team secured Yahya’s death certificate and witness statements from his wife and another witness as well as other details for the defence lawyers. The information collected provided concrete evidence that it is not safe for Darfuris to be returned to Sudan.    We also worked with a journalist to secure a front page article in the Independent to highlight the issue to the general public. This evidence was provided to the Home Office, and contributed to their decision to stop returning non-Arab Darfuris to the Sudan.

Zainab:  In 2011 Zainab was due to be returned to Sudan, despite having been arrested and tortured four times by the Sudanese security forces.  Article 1 successfully campaigned with lawyers and relevant NGOs to stop her deportation.  We also secured her funds from Prisoners of Conscience while she was destitute and awaiting a decision from the Home Office.  Article 1 referred Zainab to the Helen Bamber Foundation for counselling.  Zainab has now been given refugee status by the Home Office.

*Names have been changed to protect identities.