Inspection of Country of Origin Information: March 2017 Report David Bolt Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration Inspection of Country of Origin Information: March 2017 Report Presented to Parliament pursuant to Section 50 (2) of the UK Borders Act 2007 July 2017 © Crown copyright 2017 This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Informa- tion Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: [email protected]. Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain -per mission from the copyright holders concerned. This publication is available at www.gov.uk/government/publications Any enquiries regarding this publication should be sent to us at Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, 5th Floor, Globe House, 89 Eccleston Square, London, SW1V 1PN United Kingdom Print ISBN 9781474148276 Web ISBN 9781474148283 ID 12071705 07/17 Printed on paper containing 75% recycled fibre content minimum Printed in the UK by the Williams Lea Group on behalf of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office Our purpose To help improve the efficiency, effectiveness and consistency of the Home Office’s border and immigration functions through unfettered, impartial and evidence-based inspection. All Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration inspection reports can be found at www.independent.gov.uk/icinspector Email us: [email protected] Write to us: Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, 5th Floor, Globe House, 89 Eccleston Square, London, SW1V 1PN United Kingdom 5 Contents Foreword 2 1. Scope 3 2. Reviewers’ detailed points and recommendations 4 3. Independent Chief Inspector’s Findings and Recommendations 8 Annexes 11 Annex A: Review of the Home Office Country of Origin Information on ‘Minority groups, Albania, October 2016’ and ‘Sexual orientation and gender identity, Albania, December 2016’. By Dr. ENKELEIDA TAHIRAJ 12 Annex B: Review of the Home Office Country of Origin Information (COI) on Bangladesh: Minority Religious Groups (March 2016); and Political Opponents (February 2015); and 10 responses to COI requests by Joseph Allchin 59 Annex C: Review of the November 2016 UK Home Office Country Information on Egypt: Country policy and information note on Christians; country policy and information note on the Muslim Brotherhood; and a selection of country of origin information responses by Dr. Dalia Malek. 89 Annex D: Review of the Home Office Country of Origin Information (COI) on Sri Lanka: Tamil Separatism (August 2016); Journalists, media professionals and human rights activists (September 2015); and 10 responses to COI requests by Liz Williams. 144 Annex E: Minutes of the Independent Advisory Group Meeting held on 27 March 2017. 193 Foreword The UK Borders Act 2007 Section 48 (2)(j) states that the [Independent] Chief Inspector [of Borders and Immigration] “shall consider and make recommendations about” ... “the content of information about conditions in countries outside the United Kingdom which the Secretary of State compiles and makes available, for purposes connected with immigration and asylum, to immigration officers and other officials.” The Independent Advisory Group on Country Information (IAGCI) is a panel of experts and practitioners, created to assist the Chief Inspector in this task. The IAGCI commissions and quality assures reviews of country information produced by the Home Office’s Country Policy and Information Team (CPIT).1 A list of IAGCI members can be found on the Inspectorate’s website. This report covers the reviews considered and signed off by the IAGCI at its March 2017 meeting, which related to Albania, Bangladesh, Egypt and Sri Lanka. On 9 April 2017, Palm Sunday, two Christian churches in Egypt were bombed, killing over 40 people and injuring more than 100 others. Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the attacks. The following day, Egypt’s President declared a three-month state of emergency, which was later approved by parliament. These events post-date the review of the Country Policy and Information Note ‘Egypt: Christians (November 2016)’, although the review did recommend adding a reference to the El Botroseya Chapel bombing in December 2016 in which 25 people died, to which the Home Office agreed. The 9 April 2017 attacks highlight the dynamic nature of the threat to Egyptian Coptic Christians and the importance of ensuring that the Home Office’s guidance is kept as up to date as possible. This report makes two recommendations for improvement. It was submitted to the Home Secretary on 11 May 2017 D J Bolt Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration 1 Previously the Country of Origin Information Service (COIS). 2 1. Scope 1.1 In January 2017, IAGCI sought tenders for reviews of the following CPIT Country of Origin Information Requests (COIRs) and Country Policy and Information Notes (CPINs): • Albania ◦ Country of Origin Information Requests (COIRs) ◦ Ethnic Minority Groups (October 2016) ◦ Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (December 2016) • Bangladesh ◦ Country of Origin Information Requests (COIRs) ◦ Minority Religious Groups (March 2016) ◦ Opposition to Government (February 2015) • Egypt ◦ Country of Origin Information Requests (COIRs) ◦ Christians (November 2016) ◦ Muslim Brotherhood (August 2016) • Sri Lanka ◦ Country of Origin Information Requests (COIRs) ◦ Tamil Separatism (August 2016) ◦ Journalists, Media Professionals and Human Rights Activists (September 2015) 1.2 These countries and topics were chosen because they were last reviewed by IAGCI in 2012 (Sri Lanka) or 2013 (Albania, Bangladesh) or not at all (Egypt), and because of the numbers of asylum applications and high refusal rates in 2016. 1.3 IAGCI received two tenders each for Albania, Bangladesh and Egypt. These were assessed by the Chair, with input from members, and the reviewer with the most relevant, country-specific knowledge selected in each case. One tender was received for Sri Lanka, from a reviewer who had previously produced high quality work for IAGCI. 1.4 The completed reviews were quality assured by the IAGCI Chair and members and sent to CPIT. CPIT added its responses, forming a single document for each country review (original review and CPIT response are attached). 1.5 IAGCI met on 27 March 2017 to go through each review and the CPIT responses (The agenda and minutes of this meeting are attached). 3 2. Reviewers’ detailed points and recommendations Albania 2.1 Dr Enkeleida Tahiraj2 reviewed nine COIRs. CPIT ‘Accepted’ the substance of the reviewer’s recommendations or points in five instances: discrimination against Gorani ethnic groups; availability of shelters for LGBT minors; imprisonment of minors; fear of persecution because of historic links to the Democratic Party; and, the name of a regional head of police. 2.2 Three further points were ‘Noted’, two with the caveat that “We acknowledge that further information is available, but time constraints limit what we can provide when responding to COI Requests.” The ninth recommendation/point, in relation to the arrest of a named individual was, in effect, rejected, primarily because the COIR was of no lasting value, but citing as a supporting argument “and the additional sources are in Albanian”. 2.3 The reviewer assessed that the CPINs on Ethnic Minority Groups (October 2016) and on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (December 2016) presented the referenced source material fairly and accurately. However, while this material was recent, the reports relied on a narrow range of sources, mostly International organisations active in or with Albania. The reviewer recommended the inclusion of other sources, such as Albanian national media reporting, much of it available in English, academic research and material from civil society organisations. 2.4 The reviewer described a separation between stated policy and the implementation of policy and legislation in Albania. She noted the lack of consistent data and analysis about how poor implementation of policy affects particular social groups in Albania. In the absence of this evidence, she recommended that the Home Office widen its selection of sources and reconsider their weighting, and that subjective testimony should not be discounted where no alternative objective evidence is available. 2.5 Of the 17 detailed recommendations made in relation to the report on Ethnic Minority Groups, CPIT ‘Accepted’ 16. One recommendation was ‘Rejected’. This concerned the description of Roma children as ‘not fully integrated’ in the education system, which the reviewer read as implying a greater degree of integration than the statistics show. 2.6 For the report on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, CPIT marked five (out of 32) recommendations ‘Not accepted’. In two cases, this was because it considered the reviewer’s sources to be dated, but the other three rejections involved disagreements of substance: about the prevalence of homophobia in different parts of Albania; about internal relocation as an option; and about whether the rights of LGBT individuals are effectively enforced. In each instance, the reviewer challenged whether the evidence was sufficient to support the broadly positive position set out in the CPIN. 2 Full review including biography is attached. 4 2.7