Weasel words of UK Border Agency

Weasel words of UK Border Agency

It claims to act in the 'best interests' of the children of asylum seekers, yet its actions reveal a very different story

Consider these words, spoken by the head of criminality and detention at the UK Border Agency (UKBA), in response to allegations that the nine-year old son of an asylum seeker had been mistreated by UKBA staff:

Whenever we take decisions involving children, their welfare comes first and we will always seek to act in the best interests of the child. That's why we have transformed our children's policy, enshrining in law a commitment to protect youngsters and keep them safe from harm. Treating children with care and compassion is a priority for the UKBA.

Now compare those words with an account of the arrest and detention of that nine-year old along with his mother and elder brother. The family are fighting removal to Iran, where they fear persecution after police found copies of Salman Rushdie's novel The Satanic Verses at their home. The account was given by the boy himself, speaking through an interpreter:

I was taking a picture of my stuff for school. Suddenly I saw the officers from the kitchen window, and I said to Mum: 'They are coming to our home'. After that, they came through, about eight people I think, and they said: 'You are going somewhere that you have been before.' They meant detention. I understood that we had to go back to detention.