The Rwanda-United Kingdom Refugees and Asylum Seeker Deal: Absolved Responsibility?

Abstract

In April 2022, the United Kingdom (UK) government announced the signing of a deal with the Rwandan government to ‘transfer’ asylum seekers entering the country through illegal means, for processing in the African country. The argument was that UK’s Nationality and Border Protection Act of 2022 prevents persons who enter the UK illegally from being processed in the country. Reasons cited include to deter people from taking treacherous journeys across the English Channel, sharing the global refugee ‘burden’, and to cull the business of illegal traffickers, among others. Human rights activists have however, critiqued the deal, stirring dialogue on different platforms. With this interrogation, the dirge was what next steps can the two countries take? The objective of the paper was to unearth the real context, pros and cons related to the deal, using desk research, through a review of related literature. Findings were that as both countries are signatories to the United Nations Convention on the Status of Refugees, they are in breach of Articles on non-penalization, non-expulsion, and non-refoulement, respectively. They are also in breach of the Global Compact for Migration, which seeks, among other things, to share the global‘ refugee burden’. By sending asylum seekers to Rwanda, the UK is absolving itself of the responsibility to share that burden. The paper bemoans the growing trend by Western states to transfer asylum seekers to other states, as if they were commodities: summarized as gross violation of human rights. The recommendation is for the deal to be rescinded, allowing asylum seekers the right to choose the country that they wish to seek their asylum in, without fear of reprisals, or further exacerbating their vulnerability.