Failed asylum seekers in the United Kingdom will not be sent back to Zimbabwe until the high court considers new evidence on whether it is ”safe” to resume deportations, a judge ruled on Thursday.
The British home office also agreed to consider releasing 30 Zimbabweans in detention awaiting being sent back to Harare.
Justice Collins adjourned his hearing of four cases brought by the Refugee Legal Centre pending a ruling by the new asylum and immigration tribunal on whether Zimbabwe is a ”safe” country.
He said that since the question was last considered by the courts in February, the situation in Zimbabwe had deteriorated with the slum clearance programme and attacks on non-government organisations and foreign aid agencies.
Collins had been due to hear submissions of evidence that that those returned were in danger of being abused because they had claimed asylum in Britain.
He agreed to orders banning the publication of names of witnesses because it might put their lives ”in considerable jeopardy” in Zimbabwe.
The hearing did not go ahead as the home office asked for an adjournment to consider ”the large amount of new and important evidence” about the situation in Harare.
Ian Bennett QC, for the home secretary, told the judge that forced removals to Zimbabwe would continue to be suspended until the asylum and immigration tribunal had the chance in October to rule on new ”safe” country guidance. The guidelines are binding on immigration judges ruling on individual cases.
He denied that the home office had already arranged flights to send back 30 or so Zimbabweans in detention in anticipation that the high court would lift the moratorium on removals.
A home office spokesperson said after the hearing: ”With the agreement of the home office and the Refugee Legal Centre, the court has decided that the best way forward is for the specialist asylum and immigration tribunal to hear a test case on a Zimbabwean failed asylum seeker so that it can set out authoritative and updated country guidance.”
She confirmed that the enforced removal of failed asylum seekers to Zimbabwe were deferred pending the new safe country guidance.
Tim Finch, of the refugee council, said the decision was great news for the refugees and those who have campaigned to stop the inhumane policy of returning people to [Zimbabwean President] Robert Mugabe’s regime.
”Ministers are under intense pressure to back down and stop all returns to Zimbabwe until the situation there improves radically.
”This is clearly the right thing to do and the government should act now. There is no need for any more expensive and time consuming court hearings when everyone can see that returning people to Zimbabwe is so unsafe,” he said. – Guardian Unlimited Â