Summary report: autumn Sustaining Hope gathering 12-10-24
After opening worship, two keynote speakers addressed the questions: “What makes them come?” and “What happens when they get here?”.
“What makes them come?”
Rev John Howard suggested that above all people are looking for stability – including from the impacts of climate change. He highlighted the many conflicts, often overlooked, which are currently raging – not least in Africa – and are resulting in many refugees, most of whom begin as internally displaced people. His presentation included photographs from his visit to the vast, tented Kiziba refugee camp in Rwanda, with its appalling conditions.
Then, illustrated with photos and a short video, John spoke of his more recent time in the Methodist Liaison Office in East Jerusalem, during which he visited refugee camps in Palestine and in the neighbouring countries. Many of these were originally established for Palestinians, driven out when the modern state of Israel was created in 1948. Over time refugees themselves have replaced the original canvas tents with solid buildings and developed basic education and health services. The three around Bethlehem alone now house over 60,000 people. Many refugees still cling to the UN’s recognition of their Right to Return. But meanwhile, constant exposure to violence feeds an insecurity which undermines any efforts to create stable society.
John told us that Lebanon and Jordan both now have more refugees than settled citizens. In Lebanon, these include refugees more recently arrived from Syria, especially into the Bekaa Valley, where they are living under canvas and often camped in other people’s gardens.
In Gaza, the refugee camps are ‘holding places’ rather than ‘home’ as people are being repeatedly displaced. With everyone focused on surviving for the next day or two, there is currently no energy or scope to develop leadership and build community. John had seen confusion, uncertainty and instability everywhere, but also the determination to find a way through it all, including therapy for the children, who are particularly traumatised. John described how, in tightly-packed refugee camps, young people are easily radicalised and parents will do anything they can to get them to a more positive place, where they can grow up in greater security.
- Asked how we can best help, John said that to deal properly with the refugee situation, we have to address the instability at its roots. This includes challenging the UK’s exporting not just of weapons but also of the electronics that enable those weapons to be used.
- He said that to help the situation in the camps you need to identify and engage with agencies working in a particular place, eg.Save the Children and Christian Aid in Gaza.
- To understand more, he recommended the book The Lightless Sky: My Journey to Safety as a Child Refugee by Gulwali Passarlay from Afghanistan, and also on Netflix The Oak House, based on the true experiences of Syrian refugees.
“What happens when they get here?”
Rev Gill Songer addressed this question in the second presentation. Gill is a presbyter based in Folkestone and is one of 1000 unpaid volunteers with the Independent Monitoring Board, which covers every place of detention in the UK, including prisons and immigration centres.
Gill’s role is to monitor the treatment of people detained in short-term immigration holding facilities along the Kent coast. She explained that there are monthly meetings with all the organisations involved, and links are being established with key places in northern France. French police have stopped many people getting into boats in the first place. As a result boats are launched further away from Calais and are much more overcrowded. French police often face violence and have to deal with the aftermath of failed launches. British authorities do not act until a boat has crossed the line that separates French and English waters, although they track the vessels. Usually it is the Border Force that picks people up in English waters. They try to ensure children under 18 are not at risk, as well as identifying any adult pretending to be a minor.
People are processed on ‘the jetfoil’, beginning with a medical examination. Then they are taken to another tent, where they are arrested for entering the UK illegally. After 24 hours they are usually bailed and dispersed. Unaccompanied minors are taken to the Kent Intake Unit for 24 hours, while Kent Social Services find them somewhere to stay.
Independent Monitors are permitted to observe every stage of the process The IMB produces an annual report, based on what monitors have observed, which leads to positive changes to people’s experiences on arrival, including the facilities and procedures at Manston.
Gill shared some recent statistics:
- in 2023, 52,530 irregular migrants were detected.
- of these, 17% did not arrive on boats
- the 10 IMB volunteers in Kent had made 104 visits.
- on the previous Saturday, 973 people had arrived in 17 boats
- this year, up until 5.10.24, 23,612 people had arrived in 503 boats
Gill spoke of the kindness of staff that she has seen in the Care and Custody tents. We were struck by how organised the whole process seems to have become and we expressed our appreciation that Gill has got involved with the IMB. She encouraged more people to do so.
The gathering finished with prayer for all those we had heard about – refugees, asylum seekers and those who work with them and seek to make it possible for them to find a safe, new beginning.
Hazel Forecast, October 2024
For a more detailed report, see Keg