Musings From Abroad

UK/Rwanda migrant deal suffers setback after new parliamentary defeats

Published

9 months ago

March 21, 2024

The proposed bill which seeks to legalize the deportation of refugees to Rwanda by the British government might be delayed till next month after the upper house of parliament defeated the government and reinstated demands for greater protections.

Though court hurdles have so far prevented anyone from being transported to the East African nation, British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, has remained enthusiastic about the controversial measure with intentions to move thousands of asylum seekers who come to Britain each year on small, inflatable boats to live in Rwanda.

With the next election approaching and his Conservative Party badly behind in the polls, Sunak thinks the deportation planes will turn around the party’s fortunes. On Wednesday, the unelected members of the House of Lords—who are primarily composed of former government officials and politicians—voted once more to change the law to include additional protections for asylum seekers’ rights.

The Lords approved modifications mandating that ministers give “due regard to domestic and international law” and stating that Rwanda could only be deemed safe once a treaty with Britain was put into effect. The suggestion is that the bill will be returned to the House of Commons in an attempt to establish a compromise via the “parliamentary ping-pong” procedure.

Due to the ensuing back and forth, it is unlikely that the bill will be passed into law until at least the middle of the next month when parliament reconvenes after its Easter recess.

The agenda suffered a similar fate last year when a British higher court declared that the strategy was illegal due to the possibility that individuals sent there would be returned to their home countries, endangering their safety. To prevent such court challenges, the government is seeking to pass a statute designating Rwanda as a haven for asylum seekers and excluding certain provisions of human rights legislation.

Illegal immigrants from Africa and the Middle East have grown to be a significant worry for Europe in recent years. As of June 2023, a record 45,000 persons had flown in small boats across the English Channel.

Related Topics:Featured Rwanda Sudan United Kingdom

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Musings From Abroad

Swiss company Mercuria partners Zambia’s IDC in new metals trading firm

Published

19 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to a statement released by Swiss commodities trader, Mercuria, on Thursday, it has established a metals trading arm with Zambia, the second-largest producer of copper in Africa.

The trading unit is jointly owned by Mercuria and an arm of Zambia’s Industrial Development Company (IDC), and its purpose is to allow Zambia to engage directly in the minerals trading market.

The joint venture “envisages the establishment of a vehicle to market and trade Zambian copper by mutual leverage,” according to a statement from Cornwell Muleya, the CEO of IDC.

The southern African nation wants to increase copper output to roughly 3 million metric tonnes within the next ten years, and in 2023, it produced roughly 698,000 tonnes of copper, down from 763,000 metric tonnes the year before.

In June, the Zambian government announced that it would establish a minerals trading unit.

Investors including First Quantum Minerals and Barrick Gold are ramping up production, with output set to receive a further boost once Vedanta Resources’ Konkola Copper Mines restart activity.

“Our joint venture with IDC marks a significant milestone for Zambia as it positions itself more strategically in the global minerals market,” Kostas Bintas, Mercuria’s global head of metals and minerals, said in the statement.

Musings From Abroad

Blinken to reveal UN Sudan funding additions

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Additional financing for humanitarian aid to Sudan and initiatives to strengthen civil society in the nation, where a conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions, will be announced by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the United Nations on Thursday.

Blinken will make many announcements when he leads a UN Security Council meeting on Sudan on Thursday, which will centre on humanitarian aid and civilian protection, Deputy U.S. Representative to the UN Ned Price told reporters on Wednesday.

According to Price, the announcements would include more money for humanitarian help, initiatives to strengthen civil society, and the return of democracy.

“Sudan, unfortunately, has risked becoming a forgotten conflict,” Price said.

“So part of the reason the secretary … opted to convene a signature event on this very topic is to make sure it remains in the spotlight,” Price said.

For almost 18 months, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and Sudan’s army have been engaged in combat, resulting in a severe humanitarian crisis that has forced over 12 million people from their homes and made it difficult for U.N. organisations to provide aid.

A power struggle between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces preceded a planned shift to civilian administration, which sparked the conflict in April 2023.

Although the army declined to join this year’s U.S.-mediated peace negotiations in Geneva, the warring parties did pledge to increase assistance access, which prevented any movement towards a ceasefire.

Price stated that before President Joe Biden’s term ends next month, the United States would keep collaborating with allies to enhance humanitarian access in Sudan and eventually end hostilities.

“We are going to leave nothing on the field in our efforts to work with allies, with partners, with the Sudanese stakeholders themselves, on the issues that matter most – humanitarian access, the provision of humanitarian assistance, ultimately, the process by which we can work to get to a cessation of hostilities, which is most urgently needed,” he said.