Regional
By decampaigning the UK Rwanda deal, HRW reveals its true color
Human
Rights Watch (HRW) released a 115-page report, on October 10, claiming that
Rwanda is not a country the UK should rely upon to uphold international
standards or the rule of law when it comes to asylum seekers.
HRW
has spent the last three decades relentlessly
driving an anti-Rwanda agenda that has nothing to do with protecting the rights
of Rwandans and their latest report shows clear intent to disrupt the Migration
and Economic Development Partnership with the United Kingdom.
Related: Of Human Rights Watch unrelenting conspiracy against
Rwanda
"In April 2022, the UK and Rwandan governments announced the signing of a new asylum partnership arrangement, under which the UK plans to expel to Rwanda people seeking asylum in the UK. The UK Court of Appeal in June found the asylum deal unlawful because asylum seekers sent to Rwanda risk being sent back to their home countries, where they may face mistreatment,” reads part of the HRW report.
But
what HRW explicitly ignored is that this deal is a humanitarian act.
The
policy’s aim is to decrease the number of migrant crossings in the English
Channel, stop human smuggling, save countless lives and break the business
model of vile people smugglers.
Since
2014, more than 27,000 people have lost their lives, went missing in the
Mediterranean Sea in their attempt to reach Europe. In 2022, it was estimated
that 2,062 migrants died while crossing.
Rwanda
is doing its part in finding a solution, to this global crisis, something that
HRW is ignoring.
The
deal seeks to empower the migrants with a range of opportunities for building a
better life in Rwanda through different initiatives. They will be entitled to
full protection under Rwandan law, equal access to employment, and enrolment in
healthcare and social care services, among others.
The
number of migrants who die while crossing seas, oceans and deserts trying to
get to Europe, increases yearly.
They
are searching for a country that will respect their human rights, an issue the
so-called rights group should be able to understand. By detracting this policy,
is Human Rights Watch really advocating for human rights?
Rwanda
is already home to more than 130,000 refugees from different countries and
other asylum seekers from Libya and Afghanistan. They are safe and secure, and
assisted in various aspects of life whether economically or socially.
In
June 2022, after Rwanda successfully hosted the Commonwealth Heads of
Government Summit (CHOGM), former British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, called
on critics of the UK-Rwanda asylum plan to visit Rwanda and see how the country
is “really going places.”
After his
trip to Rwanda, Johnson told the press that he was shocked by those who paint a
picture of Rwanda as a country where asylum seekers are likely to die because
of “human rights violation”. It shows that they have not been to Rwanda or are
simply driven by hate and profit to tarnish the image of the country.
To
prove that Rwanda is ‘not safe’, HRW focused on claims of discredited sources
including génocidaires and convicted terrorists, which exposes the organization’s
intent to frustrate the Rwanda-UK deal, regardless of their sources’ questionable
background and credibility.
Related: Which
type of sources does HRW rely on for information on Rwanda?
For
Rwanda, the goal remains the same; working with partners to solve global challenges
when called upon.
The country will not be deterred from this work by bad-faith actors advancing a politicized agenda.