Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre
Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre is an immigration detention centre at Milton Ernest in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire. It opened on 19 November 2001 and was built to hold up to 900 people making it the largest immigration detention centre in Europe at the time. Since opening in 2001 has been dogged by controversy. In February 2002, it was gutted through a fire, reopening in September 2003. Throughout its operational period a number of hunger strikes and riots have occurred there. On 11 January 2011, the High Court ruled that the continued detention of the children of failed asylum seekers at Yarl's Wood is unlawful.[1]
It is operated by the Serco Group.[2]
Contents |
Controversies [edit]
Hunger strikes [edit]
In December 2001 just after opening the first hunger strike began with twenty five Roma detainees refusing to eat.[3] [4]
In May 2007, it was reported that there was a hunger strike involving over 100 women.[5]
On February 4, 2010, a hunger strike began with a number of women protesting their indefinite detention. One hunger striker had been held for 15 months. The hunger strike was escalated when, according to a Guardian report, "70 women taking part in a protest were locked in an airless corridor without water or toilet facilities."[6]
February 2002 fire [edit]
In early February 2002 while under the management of Brodie Clark, the building was burnt down following a protest by the detainees. This was triggered by someone being physically restrained by staff. When the fires started the Head of Group 4 security ordered all staff to exit the building, locking the detainees inside the timber framed building. Five people were injured in the fire.[7] Although there was an investigation, no members of Group 4 were ever prosecuted.
Death of Manuel Bravo [edit]
In September 2005 Manuel Bravo, an asylum seeker from Angola, hanged himself while in detention awaiting deportation with his 13 year old son following a dawn raid at his home in Leeds.[8]
Inquiries into provision at Yarl's Wood [edit]
A September 2003 report by the inspector of Prisons, found that provision at Yarl's Wood was "not safe". [9]
In March 2004, the Prisons and Probations Ombudsman published a report into allegations of racism, abuse and violence, based on 19 claims made by an undercover reporter for the Daily Mirror. The report found evidence of a number of racist incidents, although noted that staff had been disciplined following publication of the journalists findings, and that an allegation of assault had not been properly investigated.[10]
In October 2004, the prisons and probations ombudsman published an inquiry into the disturbance and fire in 2001. One of its main findings was that the provision of sprinklers could have prevented the damage caused.[11] In February 2005, a local fire chief alleged that the lessons had not been learnt as it was announced that there were no plans to introduce sprinklers.[12]
In February 2006, the Chief Inspector of Prisons published an inquiry into the quality of health care at Yarl's Wood. It found substantial gaps in provision and identified 134 recommendations.[13]
A 2006 Legal Action for Women (LAW)[14] investigation into Yarl’s Wood Removal Centre found that: 70% of women had reported rape, nearly half had been detained for over three months. 57% had no legal representation, and 20% had lawyers who demanded payment in advance. Women reported sexual and racial intimidation by guards. LAW’s Self-Help Guide has been confiscated by guards depriving detainees of information about their rights.[15]
In April 2009, the Children's Commissioner for England published a report which stated that children held in the detention centre are denied urgent medical treatment, handled violently and left at risk of serious harm. The report details how children are transported in caged vans, and watched by opposite-sex staff as they dress.[16] This follows earlier allegations in 2005 by the Chief Inspector of Prisons that children were being damaged by being held in the institution, citing in particular an autistic five year old who had not eaten properly in several days.[17]
References [edit]
- ^ http://www.liberty-human-rights.org.uk/media/press/2011/yarls-wood-families-detention-ruled-unlawful.php
- ^ UK Border Agency : Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre. Retrieved 14 March 2010.
- ^ Britain: Fire at Yarl’s Wood detention centre highlights plight of refugees
- ^ BBC News | ENGLAND | Vigil held for hunger strike refugee
- ^ Hodge call for rethink over immigrants | UK news | The Observer
- ^ Fears for health of Yarl's Wood women in third week of hunger strike | UK news | The Guardian
- ^ BBC News | ENGLAND | Eye-witness accounts from Yarl's Wood
- ^ http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/asylum-seeker-kills-himself-so-child-can-stay-in-britain-507169.html[dead link]
- ^ BBC NEWS | UK | England | London | Immigration centre 'not safe'
- ^ http://www.ppo.gov.uk/download/special-investigation-reports/special-yarls-wood-abuse-03.pdf[dead link]
- ^ http://www.ppo.gov.uk/download/special-investigation-reports/special-yarls-wood-fire-02.pdf[dead link]
- ^ BBC NEWS | UK | England | Beds/Bucks/Herts | Yarl's Wood 'lessons not learnt'
- ^ HMIC
- ^ Home Page
- ^ Yarl's Wood staff steal legal guide from asylum seeker - Blog - The F-Word
- ^ Inside Yarl's Wood: Britain's shame over child detainees - Home News - UK - The Independent
- ^ BBC NEWS | UK | England | Beds/Bucks/Herts | Centre 'damaging' child detainees
