British Judges have a set a new precedent in a case involving Syrian migrants that critics say threatens to circumvent existing asylum policies. Four Syrian migrants currently living in the so-called Calais “jungle” camp have presented a case to the Immigration and Asylum Tribunal. Judges have ruled that all four men should be brought to Britain to reunite with family members already in the country.
Judges Mr Justice McCloskey, president of the immigration tribunal and Judge Mark Ockelton, the vice-president, were convinced by arguments that the boys must be allowed to come to the UK when lawyers for the four invoked Article 8 of the European Convention of Human rights which entitles them to a family life. The same set of laws was used to stop Ireland from deporting a man alleged to be a recruiter for ISIS at the beginning of this year.
The case was brought before judges by a charity group known as the Refugee Council, an umbrella group of various organisations that according to it’s website seeks to, “champion the rights of refugees and asylum seekers,” and counts celebrities like Emma Thompson among its patrons. The organisation is listed as a beneficiary of the ‘Unbound Philanthropy’ group – a U.S.-based charity that supports open borders campaigners, which in turn is financed by big, left-wing political donors, as Breitbart News uncovered last year.
Critics of the judgement have admonished the result and warned of the legal consequences. MigrationWatch UK has been among the most vocal in protest to the ruling with Alp Mehmet saying, “the decision is simply wrong. It will encourage more and more to bypass the system for asylum.”
Mr. Mehmet added, “It seems these four applicants are unhappy with the treatment of their asylum case in France and rather than trying to address that are simply trying to short-circuit the rules and have their case considered here.”
Even Michael Fordham QC, who represented the men was forced to admit that this case could set a precedent for more asylum seekers to bypass existing law when he said, “it will apply to others – certainly. I would say, any unaccompanied minor in this camp with a sibling in the UK. And I don’t shrink from that.”
He was careful to point out he did not agree with bringing in any unaccompanied minors without family in the UK.
The Home Office has fought against the case from the beginning. They have stated that they intend to appeal the judges’ decision but since the Syrians have been deemed to be in urgent need of relocating, they will likely be settled in Britain before the appeals process even begins.
The governing EU law for asylum is known as the Dublin III regulation and according to it refugees must register in the first EU country they arrive in. The regulation has been suspended in Hungary, Germany and elsewhere back in the summer of 2015 but not in the UK or France. Under the regulation refugees in Calais must register in France before they can apply to the UK.
Proposed changes to the Dublin regulation by Brussels seeks to end the policy of refugees being registered in the first EU country they arrive in and would allow migrants to “shop around” for the best place to claim asylum.
The precedent set by the court and the proposed changes to the Dublin regulation could mean the entire Calais jungle camp would be allowed to enter Britain and claim asylum. Additional future migrants would also be able to pass through Europe to Britain in the same way they have passed into Germany since the beginning of the migrant crisis last year.
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