Hassanat and her children snatched this morning to be deported this Saturday 9th March - Emergency protest and phone campaign

Emergency: Hassanat and her three daughters were snatched from their home this morning, Wednesday 6^th March, 7am by UKBA officers and are being taken to Cedars detention centre. The Home Office have booked a flight to deport the family to Nigeria this Saturday 9^th March at 10pm. They are under serious risk of Female Genital Cutting and trafficking and have built a life for themselves here, her children having grown up here. See the campaign tab above for background information on the campaign.

Emergency protest:

Friday 8^th March, 12pm

Grey’s Monument, Newcastle

Come to help collect signatures for Hassanat and speak out against all deportations.

Phone/email/fax campaign:

Please contact the three places below to demand that the deportation is stopped, quote her name and Home Office Reference number: Hassanat Omeneke Aliyu (Home Office ref: A1432864/5). And please feed back any response you get to TCAR.

1. Please call and fax Cedars to demand their release

Phone: 01293 844900
Fax: 01293 844945

2. Please contact the Home Secretary to demand the deportation is stopped

You can fax or email. Include: 'In light of the risk of harm Hassanat Omeneke Aliyu and her children face in Nigeria, and the settled life they have made in the UK over the last 6 years , I urge you to use your powers as Home Secretary to stop the deportation set for Saturday 9th March and grant Hassanat's and her children indefinite leave to remain.'

The email addresses to use are:

mayt@parliament.uk
UKBApublicenquiries@UKBA.gsi. gov.uk
CITTO@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk
Privateoffice.external@ homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk
pscorrespondence@cabinet- office.gsi.gov.uk

The fax number is: 0207 0354745 (when faxing from outside the UK, use 00 44 2070354745). 

3. Please also call Virgin Atlantic to demand that they cancel the flight and refuse to take the family, ask to register a complaint (quote the flight details):

Flight number: VS651 Saturday 9^th March, 10pm,

Virgin Headquarters: 0844 8110 000 (you may be transferred to customer services)

Politely explain to the airline that UKBA are trying to remove Hassanat against her will. Explain her children are at risk of Female Genital Cutting and trafficking if they are removed, and that it is a breach of their human rights to be removed because her daughters have grown up here, and that they want to stay in Britain.

Keep it simple, clear and calm. Concern is better than anger, as the person you speak to will be more likely to respond sympathetically.

Remember you are not accusing the airline of deporting the person (UKBA are doing this), but are saying they should not be a part of this because of the reasons above, and because it is bad for their reputation. One way of saying it could be ‘You are very worried for Hassanat’s safety on the flight and after landing, and you are worried for the safety and comfort of other passengers, and for the reputation of Virgin Atlantic’.

Ask that your concerns are recorded, and are passed on to the pilot/flight staff.

Solidarity

Mark