A British judge, on Friday, rejected lawsuits filed in attempts to halt UK’s bid to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda next week, but gave the migrants permission for a last-minute appeal.
The Judge, Jonathan Swift, in his ruling, refused a request from a group of the asylum-seekers, backed by a trade union and refugee groups, for an injunction grounding the flight.
But he said an appeal could be heard on Monday, and a full legal challenge to the British government’s new Rwanda deportation policy is to be held before the end of July.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Britain’s Immigration Minister, Home Secretary Priti Patel, both welcomed the ruling with Patel saying the government would “not be deterred” by further challenges in carrying out the deportations.
“Rwanda is a safe country and has previously been recognized for providing a safe haven for refugees.
“We will continue preparations for the first flight to Rwanda, alongside the range of other measures intended to reduce small boat crossings,” Patel said.
The first one-way flight which is supposed to airlift 30 of the migrants who were arrested while crossing the English Channel into the UK, has been scheduled to leave next Tuesday but several human rights groups had filed suits on behalf of the migrants, many of whom had threatened to commit suicide if they were forcefully deported.
The Tuesday flight which will be the first under a controversial deal between the U.K. and the East African country, will see Britain sending the migrants who arrived in the UK either as stowaways or in small boats to Rwanda, where their asylum claims will be processed.
The deal said to be worth millions of pounds in compensation to the African country, with the UK already paying Rwanda £120 million ($158 million) upfront for the plan, will see successful migrants staying in Rwanda, but human rights groups have called the idea unworkable and inhumane.
The British government has not provided details of those selected but refugee groups say the group includes people fleeing from Syria and Afghanistan who arrived in Britain across the English Channel.