Peter Gichura, father, wheelchair user and disability activist, is again threatened with imminent removal back to Kenya, where he faces political persecution, including death threats, and the loss of the medical treatment on which his life depends. Mr Gichura is suing the Home Office and Kalyx, the private company which runs Harmondsworth detention centre, for mistreatment in 2006. On 21 May, the district judge at Central London County Court will rule whether Mr Gichura can proceed with his disability discrimination case under the Disability Discrimination Act, and also under the European Convention on Human Rights which forbids discrimination. Meanwhile, the Home Office is pressing ahead with deportation of the man who has taken them to court for discrimination. On 23 May at the High Court, Mr Gichura's legal team will argue it is unjust for him to be returned to Kenya. The Home Office claims that if he is sent back, Mr Gichura’s right to a fair hearing of his case won’t be jeopardised, and that he could pursue his civil action from Kenya -- despite having compelling medical and other expert evidence that he would not have access to treatment there, his life would be in danger, and the village he would return to lacks basic accessible living conditions. BACKGROUND Peter Gichura was detained twice in Harmondsworth in appalling conditions including: not being able to use the bathroom and toilet properly, suffering painful and threatening body searches, and on the first occasion (February 2006) being given the wrong medication. Anne Owers, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, condemned the conditions at Harmondsworth as “the poorest report we have issued on an Immigration Removal Centre” (November 2006). Mr Gichura's original application for asylum on grounds of political persecution as a disability activist was refused. In 2006, when his spinal injury worsened, he applied for asylum for medical treatment without which he would die. Expert evidence from Rachel Hurst OBE (Disability Awareness in Action), a member of the Advisory Group to the government Office for Disability, confirming this, has been ignored. Many other people seeking asylum face a similar fate as Mr Gichura, and others have already been sent back, because of a High Court ruling that removal does not contravene Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights -- the right not to be subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment. In a similar case, recent press coverage has highlighted the plight of a couple who face a rapid deterioration in their health and death, if they were deported, because the medical treatment they need (for HIV) would not be available and their young son would become an orphan (Independent, 4 April 2007). In March, Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights condemned as unacceptable, “the deliberate use of inhumane treatment” in asylum policy and found that, “Asylum seekers as a group do not always get the greatest sympathy from society or the media, but what we have seen and heard provides very hard evidence of appalling treatment that no human being should suffer." Also in March, Anne McGuire, Minister for Disabled People, signed the UK government up to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in all areas of life, including access to justice and the right to health services. But the Home Office is going against the Convention by continuing High Court proceedings to send Mr Gichura back to Kenya. Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, writing in support of Mr Gichura, said: “I would underline the wider social consequences of handling cases like these in ways that entrench . . . a perception that the UK immigration regime is unbalanced, unjust and inhumane. I recall . . .the European Convention on Human Rights, “Everyone’s right to life shall be protected by law.” He proposes discussion with the Home Office “to find some more humane middle ground” than the current refusal of medical grounds (Letter to Liam Byrne, 12 October 2006). People with disabilities have not only the right to life but also the right to live free from fear. We are calling on everyone, and especially those who speak for the disability community, to defend Peter Gichura’s right to anti-discrimination protection and safety. A victory in his case would help establish rights and protections for all. You can also: Write to or email the Immigration Minister Liam Byrne, demanding that Peter Gichura (HO ref: G1053958) be granted the right to stay – see model letter on WinVisible’s web pages - or write your own.
Liam Byrne MP
Please copy to:
WinVisible (women with visible and invisible disabilities) Tel 020 7482 2496 (voice/minicom) winvisible@allwomencount.net www.allwomencount.net/EWC%20WwDiss/WVindex.htm
Payday,
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