|
20th December 2006
Letter
to the Daily Express
Re: "WPC paid ultimate price for immigration madness" (20/12/06)
Dear Mr O’Flynn,
The UN Refugee Agency, like all in our society concerned for public safety, remains deeply shocked by the murder of WPC Sharon Beshenivsky. However, we find it highly damaging to foreigners and particularly people seeking asylum from persecution and war for a newspaper endeavouring to serve the public interest like The Daily Express to conclude that her death was a result of immigration and asylum “chaos.”
In the view of UNHCR, today’s leader in The Daily Express, “WPC paid ultimate price for immigration madness” is irresponsible as it conflates the issue of criminality with the valid protection needs of people fleeing persecution.
While Mr Jama’s asylum claim was indeed denied, it is not correct to write that he made a “bogus” claim for asylum. The claimant’s asylum request simply was denied. By utilising the term “bogus” in a pejorative manner The Daily Express is making a sweeping character assassination of not only Mr Jama, but all asylum claimants. Furthermore, there are a number of valid reasons why individuals who seek asylum are often forced to flee their homelands utilising falsified travel documents; the use of a forged passport does not make the holder a criminal as individuals fleeing persecution and war frequently cannot access valid travel documents or approach embassies for visas.
UNHCR certainly acknowledges the abhorrent nature of Mr Jama’s crime and his apparent unsavoury character, nevertheless, we are alarmed by your leader’s inference that asylum seekers and refugees are more likely to be associated with criminality.
As I am sure you are aware, a 2001 report by the Association of Chief Police Officers found no evidence of a higher rate of crime among refugees and asylum seekers. Asylum seekers and refugees, having frequently escaped violence and persecution in their own countries are in fact much more likely to be victims of crime here in the United Kingdom.
This is not the first time a misrepresentation regarding refugees and asylum seekers has appeared in The Daily Express. While I wish to reiterate that Mr Jama and his associates deserve to the punished to the fullest extent allowable under the law for their crimes in regard to the assault on WPC Beshenivsky and her fellow police officer, the UNHCR notes that the loose use of terminology and negative portrayal of refugee and asylum seekers as so frequently employed by The Daily Express propagates an atmosphere of fear and hostility towards people fleeing persecution.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees hope that The Daily Express will carefully consider the consequences of such articles, which creates unjust associations between asylum and criminality that are undeserving of the vast majority of people who seek refuge in the UK after fleeing homelands made insecure by violence.
Yours Sincerely,
Peter Kessler
Senior External Affairs Officer
|
