Justice for Raul Ally!

Justice for Raul Ally!

TCAR demands that any future detention or deportation of Raul be halted.
TCAR demands that Raul be given exceptional leave to remain in Britain.

There are currently several countries – including Somalia, Iraq and Zimbabwe - to which asylum seekers cannot generally be deported due to difficulties in obtaining travel documents and the dangerous situation in those countries. Yet Somali men are still being held for long periods of time. 

Raul Ally is an 18 year old Somali man who fled war torn Somalia when he was 12 after his father was killed. He and his younger brother came to Britain to seek asylum. He has no family in Somalia and has made a life for himself in the North East with family members; he has forged friendships and represented his school in athletics and played for local football teams. This September he was due to start a degree in Sports Coaching at Sunderland University.

But one day he was arrested and locked up in Morton Hall Immigration Removal Centre (IRC) in Lincolnshire on 1st August 2012. Despite having committed no crime, no charges having been brought against him and no date set for a trial, he was told he was being held until ‘further notice’. After over two months in detention Raul was released on bail on 8th October 2012 - he still has to sign every week and is still under threat of being re-arrested and deported at the whim of the government. The Home Office has told Raul he is prohibited from getting a job; at the same time they have not provided him with any financial support. Raul’s situation is similar to others who are being criminalised when they arrive in Britain, despite fleeing from desperate situations - many of which British imperialism is itself responsible for, this can be seen clearly in the case of Somalia.

TCAR is leading a campaign to fight for justice for Raul with protests, meetings and petitioning. See the events section for more details.

Stop Deportations! Imperialist Hands Off Somalia!

In his November 2011 speech at the Lord Mayor’s Banquet, David Cameron made his intentions on Somalia clear—British intervention. He explained that ‘Somalia is a failed state that directly threatens British interests.’  The London Conference on Somalia that followed in February was led by Cameron. It was presented as being about democracy whereas in fact the aim was to impose an undemocratic constitution on the Somali people with the purpose of establishing enough political stability for renewed imperialist looting of oil resources. This is being achieved through corrupt political dealings and direct military intervention including drone attacks and an occupation force of over 17,000 mercenaries. The British government is leading every step of this process towards domination of the region. Yet when Somali people seek refuge from war and extreme levels of poverty they are the ones who are criminalised and imprisoned.

Racism and the British State

British imperialism has butchered its way round the world, hacking an ‘empire’ out of the bare flesh of the indigenous population of Asia, Africa, and South America. Today Britain’s overseas assets are a staggering £8,679.7bn (end of 2009). This is 6.2 times Britain’s GDP. Britain is dependent on this wealth that is produced abroad; this can be seen expressed in the need to maintain the 'City of London' as the financial centre of the world, especially with the economic crisis and the bailing out of the banks. This parasitic dependency is the material basis of racism in Britain and Britain's foreign policy.

Immigrations Controls, in Britain, are Racist!

When migrants arrive here, they are treated with suspicion and contempt by the British state where their 'value' is measured in purely economic terms. Asylum Seekers experience the full force of state racism with continuous harassment, a policy of forced destitution, they are terrorised with 'dawn raids', and criminalised in immigration prisons. UKBA acknowledges that “detention must be used sparingly, and for the shortest possible period necessary.” However, immigration detention in Britain is without time limit. People are being imprisoned for purely administrative reasons, with no charge against them, no trial and often no solicitor.

End detention! Shut down all immigration prisons! No deportations!