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Zimbabwe: Asylum Seekers

Lord Ouseley asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many asylum seekers and refugees from Zimbabwe are being held in the United Kingdom for deportation or exclusion to Zimbabwe; and
 

6 Jul 2005 : Column WA112
 

whether those returnees will be safe from abuse, torture and harassment when back in Zimbabwe. [HL773]

Baroness Scotland of Asthal: On 30 June 2005, 117 failed Zimbabwean asylum seekers were held in the UK detention estate awaiting removal to Zimbabwe. The asylum decision-making and independent appeals processes ensure that only those failed asylum seekers who would not be at risk of treatment that amounted to persecution under the 1951 Refugee Convention or that would engage our obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights will be returned to their country of origin. If an unsuccessful claimant submits new information to show it would no longer be safe for them to return as a result of developments since their claim was refused, we will consider that information. If we decide it is still safe to remove but regard the information as nevertheless amounting to a fresh claim, a decision to proceed with removal would generate a further right of appeal. We do not actively monitor returnees, to Zimbabwe or to any other country—the processes outlined above ensure that we would not return someone if we believed them to be at risk. However, we will investigate any specific allegations of mistreatment of returnees. We are aware of uncorroborated reports that failed asylum seekers have been detained on arrival in Zimbabwe. We have investigated these reports where the returnees have been identified but the local and international human rights organisations we consulted were aware of only one unsubstantiated report of ill-treatment by a returnee, who was subsequently released. No corroborating evidence was found and there is no evidence that returnees have been systematically mistreated.

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