[Imc-london-audio] SUPPORT FOR DETAINEES OF COLNBROOK

[Miriam Hollis]

Dear All,

I have forwarded this urgent request to you from detainees held in 
Colnbrook. The detainees are now on hunger strike. It is important for 
us all to remember that many of the detainees do not have contacts 
within the host community in the UK and their only way to ask for 
support is by asking for our attention.

I ask that you copy this email to everyone in your contacts list that 
might hear what the detainees are saying, and that you and your contacts 
forward this email (from the detainees), or write a separate letter, and 
send it on to the Immigration Minister, Liam Byrne. Could you also copy 
your messages of support to the detainees - their email address is below.

Thank you..

Miriam Hollis
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* NCADC News Service*
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*Joint statement issued by the Colnbrook IRC detainee's forum*

We the detainees of Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre have come to 
the conclusion that we are being held hostage by a monster that appears 
to be out of control of its creator. Like a Dr. Frankenstein, who lost 
control of his creature, the Home Office has now completely lost control 
of its three headed monster, the IND, the AIT and Detention Centres. 
These three organisations have turned into a coven of evil, promoting 
heart rendering injustice, bone crunching torture, psychologically 
destabilising malevolence, and spiritually crushing methods of handling 
immigrants.

We have run out of pleas and petitions, or reason to explain, or 
question, the ethics behind an organisation that dedicates itself to the 
dehumanization of already distressed, displaced, and disturbed people. 
Below, we pull three cases out of the hat, as examples of three 
categories of immigrants in detention here.

Group A: -Asylum seekers ; refugees who fled their native country, 
forced to abandon their wives, children and all they loved to save their 
life.  All they want in life is to survive and live in safety. They have 
always complied with the conditions given them. They were detained when 
they went to report weekly to the immigration office, and since then 
they have been at Colnbrook IRC. They marked many months in detention 
during Refugee Week. What disturbs these people the most, apart from 
their indefinite imprisonment without a crime, is that they cannot be in 
contact with their family. They are haunted by what may happen to their 
families. They suffer psychologically, they are a chronic insomniacs, 
they can sometimes be seen talking to themselves, they have become 
forgetful, detached, absent minded, and can hardly concentrate when they 
are spoken to.

Some finished their studies in the UK, most were working and paying tax, 
had never committed any crimes, but are victims of this* injustice* all 
the same. Most are married to wives who have got status in the country.
Some are socio-economic migrants or so called refugees from poverty.   
Mostly from third world countries wanting only to work and earn an 
income to support families who are starving, sick, and poverty stricken.

Group B: is for the disabled who suffer a health or handicap problem and 
they have never been able to earn an income to take care of themselves 
in their poverty stricken country. They have been detained for countless 
months, without proper medical attention, in a condition where there are 
no disabled access facilities. In their time in detention, they have 
been verbally and racially abused by officers and detainees alike. They 
are discriminated against by the Home Office in getting special 
consideration given to people who are physically challenged in the 
"normal" society.

The third group C, which is a minority, are ex-convicts who although 
they have lived in England for a long time (some more than 20 years), 
have become political scapegoats, but there are no prospects of removing 
them. Most of these people have been in detention for more than the time 
they served in prison. Mr C for example, served a 9 month sentence for 
using a false passport, but now he has been in detention for 19 months ; 
twice more than the period he spent in prison. If that is not double 
punishment, we do not know what it is.  Mr C recently attempted to 
commit suicide, after being refused bail for the seventh time, although 
he had voluntarily requested to return home many times. He is the 
picture of depression and he has developed the habit of hurting himself 
at every opportunity he gets. We worry about him a lot, and he is 
constantly under suicide watch.

The above examples are all average detainees of Colnbrook.  Some are 
less severely effected, whilst others are more disturbed, but all in all 
they represent the three categories of people being persecuted by the 
three headed axis of evil - the IND, the AIT and the Detention Centres.

We have repeatedly called for* help* and* intervention,* for an 
investigation of these crimes against humanity. We have appealed and 
will continue to appeal to whoever is willing to listen, to come to our 
aid, and exert some control, and restraint on these organisations. We 
are beginning to believe the silence which has greeted our cries is 
either/* inevitable*/ because no one/* can*/ help, or/* deliberate*/ 
because no one/* will*/ help, or no one is/* willing to*/ or bold enough 
to help.

This is why we have resolved to proceed on a declared* hunger strike*, 
to begin from the 22/06/2006.  There are 40 of us but 5 others already 
started since 15/06/2006.  We will all continue until someone in 
authority takes notice of our plight. We make the following requests 
with all respect for the authorities:

1. We humbly demand an audience with the immigration minister Liam 
Byrne, MP.
2. We request the parliament to set up an independent committee to 
investigate the injustices being perpetrated by the IND , the AIT and 
Detention Centres.
3. We request a temporary admission for any detainee in custody for over 
one month.
4. We humbly request for a temporary work permit for every detainee 
granted temporary admission, so they can earn a living, and support 
them. And to those who had work permits before detention, to be reinstated.
5. We request temporary NASS assistance for all detainees made destitute 
by the long periods of detention. We have resolved that we will embark 
on any and every form of civil disobedience along with the hunger 
strike, to make sure our voices are heard. We have decided to go the 
whole hog. Although we are receiving persecution from DCOs because of 
our protests, we will not comply with their coercions until we get some 
results, and our plight is addressed. We cannot go on like this; we are 
dying slowly, and painfully, in a land where we believed we would find 
solace, and survival.

We hereby renew our cry to the parliament, the cabinet, the Home Office, 
the press, the good people of UK, the European Union and the United 
Nations. Someone please hear us, someone please listen to us, someone 
help us and answer us. We beseech you in the name of every humanitarian 
virtue, in the name of mankind, and above all in the name of God, the 
creator and judge of all men - stop this detention. Stop the killing of 
the spirits of countless able young men.
We plead for an Amnesty For All.

*Colnbrook detainee's forum*
colnbrook.detainees at googlemail.com
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