The scandals we choose to ignore

On the way to London to meet Lacuna’s extremely talented writer in residence Rebecca Ominora. We are interviewing for a story on austerity and immigration. For a taster of Rebecca’s incredible work in this area, look at this piece. More details on this story to follow. Don’t miss out: subscribe to our mailing list, follow us on twitter and “like” our facebook page.

Rebecca Omonira-Oyekanmi

 (This article was originally published by the New Statesman magazine)

The unknown whereabouts of 150,000 people refused residency in Britain made headlines last month. The UK Border Agency took the usual flack for failing to exercise a “clear strategy” to deal with these cases. A Labour MP playing two populist cards with one hand – immigration and bonuses – demanded the removal of bonuses from senior UKBA officials. The pattern is a familiar one.

Yet there are far worse practices for which the border agency ought to be held to account. It is troubling barometer of public opinion that this is the issue that we choose to get up in arms about when far greater injustices occur within the immigration system on a daily basis.

Gladys, a young dental nurse from Zimbabwe, is just one typical victim out of thousands, whose liberty depends on the caprice of border agency…

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Liberty, Fraternity, Equality?

ITN Correspondent Sophie Foster has reported on wildcat strikes that have seen thousands of students take to the streets in response to the deportation of two separate high school students. Foster reports:

Thousands of people have taken to the streets of Paris and blockaded high schools in protest at the seperate deportations of students Leonarda Dibrani and Khatchik Kachatryan.

Fifteen-year-old Leonarda, of Roma descent, has become the latest focus of France’s agonised debate over migration after being taken off a school bus and deported to Kosovo.

“We are against expulsion and we don’t agree that a person who is integrated is sent back to her country that she doesn’t even know,” said one student protester.

“Normally, our country is ‘Liberty, Equality, Fraternity’ but the problem is that there is a student who was thrown out of his high school, the police came to get him at the end of his classes, and normally they should not have the right to do that. More so, it was someone who was working, not someone who wanted to trouble people,” said another.

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