Asian Express Newspaper – Scrap racist Rwanda plan: Truss and Braverman are gone, and now, so should scapegoating of refugees

Now with Liz Truss and Suella Braverman gone, anti racists say that alongside their intended tax cuts for the rich and attacks on trade unions, their racist agenda of scapegoating refugees should now go.

The ‘Rwanda Plan’ for offshore detention of asylum seekers has been legally challenged by the civil service union PCS, the charity Care4calais and others.

Its legality is still being considered in the courts.

Anti racists, such as the #StopRwanda campaign led by the TUC, Care4Calais, Stand Up To Racism, the PCS and ten other unions, Refugee Council, Amnesty International UK and many others, have been campaigning and leading protests throughout the stages of the Rwanda plan.

The change of Prime Minister and Home Secretary should, anti racists say, now be the trigger for the withdrawal of this flawed, immoral and racist policy.

Stand Up To Racism argues that whoever becomes leader the likelihood is the government’s racist offensive and attempts at divide and rule will continue, and that we urgently need to build a mass movement against racism.

That’s why Stand Up To Racism supported by the TUC is organising protests as part of an international day of action to mark UN antiracism day on Saturday 18 March 2023.

Clare Moseley, Care4Calais CEO, said: “The Government is in tatters and it’s asylum policies clearly don’t make sense. Since the Rwanda plan was announced more peoole than ever before have crossed the Channel on small boats.

“If we have travel visas to other refugees in a similar way to how we do with Ukrainians, no one would get in small boats and people smugglers would be put out of business overnight. This is the only way to stop the chaos at Dover and to save lives.

“If peoples asylum claims were swiftly processed they could work and contribute to the growth of our economy instead of costing money in hotels.”

Weyman Bennett co-convenor of Stand Uo To Racism said: “We should get rid of the Rwanda plan – as the Tories dump their economic strategy It is time we clearly blamed this government for stoking racism in order to avoid dealing with the mess they made.

“We have to make sure that the Tory crisis and the politics of scapegoating are opposed. The rise of the far right in Italy and Sweden is a sober reminder of why we have to mobilise, all of us – black, white, Muslim – together, to oppose all divisions.”