May 2002 Campsfield Monitor Newsletter of the Contents Campaign to Campsfield to Close 1 Close Campsfield Protest Works! 2 The Campsfield: News & Updates 4 Bail for Immigration Detainees 5 Asylum & Immigration: the big picture 5 Summary of BWB’s Response to the white paper 6 Barbed Wire Britain 7 Campsfield The New Jargon: Accommodation & Removals Centres 8 Swamped! 8 Bicester’s Accommodation Centre 9 May Yarl’s Wood Cover Up? 10 Open Borders - review 11 2002 Terrorism Law & Refugees 11 Monitor Campaign Info & Contacts 12 www.closeCampsfield.org.uk Campsfield to Close! "I can also confirm that I intend to close Campsfield House. This outdated centre is no longer appropriate in the 21st century. These places will be transferred to the new high- standard removal centres." David Blunkett, Home Secretary, speech to the House of Commons 7th Feb 2002 The unexpected announcement came It certainly looks like that, so the amidst the Home Secretary's speech decision is useful for future unveiling the new white paper on campaigning against detention!" Asylum and Immigration. The The Campaign also pointed out that Campaign, now in its ninth year, of new, bigger detention centres are course welcomed the news to the being opened and more innocent extent the closure will mean one refugees and other migrants are being fewer detention centre and "Oxford's detained (Yarl's Wood: 900, Shame" (Oxford Mail) will be no more. Harmondsworth 550, Dover 400). The However, in the context of Blunkett's new generation of mega detention speech advocating increased centres, Yarl's Wood (which prior to detention capacity, it was clear from the recent fire was Europe's biggest) the out set that this did not represent and Harmondsworth may have bigger a softening of the government's gyms but they are still prisons, with policy of detaining asylum seekers. even tighter security. As a BBC report pointed out, the They are still an abuse of the basic "controversial" centre has been right not to be imprisoned if you are "dogged by problems", including innocent or not charged with crime. "riots, fires and hunger strikes" which Detention is increasing not have broken out at Campsfield since decreasing, with all the clinical it opened in the mid-90s. Could it be depression it causes among detainees, that Campsfield is one problem that the despair and powerlessness it Blunkett is no longer prepared to deal engenders, and the racist thoughts with? Close Campsfield's Bill Mackeith words and deeds this act of state said, "The closure decision is most racism engenders in the UK likely to be down to the continuous population. protest from inside and outside Campsfield. www.closecampsfield.org.uk 1 Campsfield Monitor May 2002 If Campsfield is "outdated" (the reason being given for its closure) then most of the other detention centres should be closed too as they Protest Works! are older (some were built in the nineteenth century!). Detainees, most of the time, bear their imprisonment with extraordinary fortitude. Nevertheless its bitter injustice Dr Evan Harris, Liberal Democrat MP for Oxford West and Abingdon and has led in many cases to severe depression, to long-time critic of government listlessness and despair, and in some cases to suicides detention policy, said: "This is a and suicide attempts. It has also led to a series of mixed blessing. Many people will be glad to see the back of Campsfield protests, hunger strikes and attempts to escape. House as a symbol of the Government's oppressive, irrational There have been hunger strikes in Hunger Strikes and unnecessary detention regime for practically every other refugee prison, Early in 1994, after some asylum refugees. Campsfield House has had a but they have not been on the same seekers detained at Pentonville prison chequered history, including two scale as at Campsfield. And, until had won release with a hunger strike, highly critical reports from two Yarl's Wood, there were no mass ten Algerians, including one woman, successive HM Chief Inspectors of protests elsewhere. In addition, went on hunger strike at Campsfield Prisons, Judge Stephen Tumim and Sir outside Campsfield, protest has been and were eventually freed. This was David Ramsbotham. Many people in sustained for over eight years. The followed by a mass hunger strike, in the area see Campsfield House as a May 25 demonstration will be the which 180 if the 200 detainees at symbol of an unreasonably harsh 100th and there have been camps, Campsfield took part. At the approach to refugees. A significant marches, letters calling for the freeing beginning of the strike several of number of those refugees now work of detainees from Oxford university them broke out into a courtyard and in our schools and hospitals. professors, support for individuals climbed on to the roof, where they Unreasonable detention of asylum from Asylum Welcome, and much could communicate with seekers is an unnecessary cost to the media coverage of the "notorious" demonstrators outside. Others in taxpayer." Campsfield. It is impossible other detention centres and to avoid the conclusion Following the events at Yarl's Wood prisons followed their that all this was, in (see page 10), which deprived the example. After reality, the reason The May 25th 2002 Home Secretary of almost one quarter several weeks 15 of for the demonstration will be the of his promised places of detention, the Campsfield government's Campsfield House is at full capacity. 100th and there have been hunger strikers decision to close The government has announced that described as Campsfield. camps, marches, letters calling the centre will close by the end of "ringleaders" April 2003 and that this will not be for the freeing of detainees... It is were removed to Escapes Winson Green, affected by the fire at Yarl's Wood. In Before razor impossible to avoid the conclusion fact, the recent fire at Yarl's Wood has Bullingdon and wire was added that all this was, in reality, the Blakenhurst prompted insurance companies to to Campsfield's reason for the government's prisons. Some refuse to insure detention centres run high fences, there by Group 4, so this may force decision to close were put in were over a dozen isolation cells and all Campsfield to close even earlier. escape attempts, Campsfield. ended up on hospital The Campaign to Close Campsfield some of them wings. Two were put in will continue to demonstrate outside successful. Although the bare strip cells as suicide razor wire appeared to make the centre on the last Saturday of the risks, deprived of all their belongings month as it has done tirelessly for 8 escape impossible, two Indian including books and toothbrushes, years. The Campaign still has much refugees threatened with deportation, given only an indestructible tunic and astonishingly, attempted it; one work to do if we are to prevent the left shivering on the bare floor, a Government's cavalier approach severely gashed his legs; the other fell method of physical prevention of towards refugees: we suspect this will on his head and was in hospital for suicide which has since been ruled many weeks. In January 2002, just not be the final edition of the inadmissible. They eventually Campsfield Monitor. before closure was announced, five abandoned their hunger strike Romanian refugees without being escaped successfully released. Since then (see page 4) there have been several more hunger strikes at Campsfield, none on so large a scale; the latest was Outside Campsfield in September 2001. in November 1998 2 www.closecampsfield.org.uk May 2002 Campsfield Monitor Group 4 donned their riot gear, numerous police and extra guards were brought in, and, so the government claimed, a further £100,000 of material damage was caused by detainees. Mike O'Brien, Home Office Immigration Minister, issued an inflammatory press statement headed "BURNING BOOKS - IN A MOMENT OF MADNESS", ignoring the fact that library facilities were burned by one individual who was never identified by the authorities. "The detainees", he said, "destroyed their own facilities". Ten West African young men were charged with riot, and acquitted (see page 4). Protests In May 1997, when an On 5 June 1994 a mass protest Algerian falsely accused followed the summary removal for of sexual harassment deportation of Ali Tamarat, an was removed to Winson Algerian. His friends climbed onto a Green prison, his roof to protest; others came out into friends, after spending the courtyard. During a long night the morning "talking they caused material damage which and talking", decided to the government claimed amounted to climb onto a roof to £100,000. Group 4 left out a ladder demand his return. which was used by six detainees to They stayed on the roof escape; a seventh was badly injured all night and most of when an immigration officer pulled the next day, with a the ladder from underneath him; later little food and some detainees recaptured the ladder and blankets passed up to another five people escaped. Group 4 them by detainees below. About one A further protest took place took fled and barricaded themselves in hundred other detainees, refusing to place at the end of 2001, when their offices. Riot police were called. be locked into their rooms, broke out detainees reacted angrily to the One of the Algerians on the roof was into a courtyard and were eventually refusal of immigration officials to seen jumping, head first, off it. The locked into another wing. Extra meet them to respond to their Home Office admitted only five Group 4 guards were bussed into grievances. A fire was started. Some serious injuries. Twenty-two Campsfield in riot gear. Eventually detainees were removed to Yarl's detainees were dispersed to various the rooftop protesters were forced Wood, where they were further prisons.