UK resumes Zimbabwe deportations despite ongoing violence claims

The UK Government has announced that it will resume scheduled deportation flights for failed Zimbabwean asylum seekers. The announcement comes just 24hrs after a torture investigator from the United Nations was refused entry into the country and Amnesty International claimed the nation was once again on the brink of violence.

The High Court deemed in 2006 that forced returns to Zimbabwe would endanger the lives of any opponents of President Robert Mugabe. However, Immigration minister Phil Woolas claims that since Mugabe’s power-sharing arrangement with Morgan Tsvangirai was launched in June the situation in the country has improved greatly, prompting Woolas to ‘normalise’ returns.

According to a written statement by Woolas to parliament the UK Border Agency will begin the return process over autumn and will grow progressively as the political situation stabilises. Woolas argued that Zimbabwe has seen improvements in the economy, education and basic commodity availability. Woolas also announced a controversial £6,000 repatriation incentive package which would involve £2,000 cash with the remainder in funded aid.

Refugee and human rights groups have denounced the decision, claiming that Zimbabwe was still unstable and the crisis was worsening. Amnesty International has pointed to the recent arrests of two leading civil figures and threats against Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party members by Mugabe supporters as evidence of a worsening situation.

On Wednesday, UN torture investigator Manfred Nowak was refused entry on arrival in Harare. Nowak had been invited to Zimbabwe by Mr Tsvangirai but had his security clearance withdrawn at the last minute, suggesting widening cracks in the coalition agreement. Nowak claimed the withdrawal was a clear sign that the government did not want any investigations into current torture conditions.