Fear has ‘never left' asylum seekers after last summer's disorder, warns charity

South Wales Argus

4 days ago

Hotels housing asylum seekers were among the targets which saw protests and disorder in the wake of the Southport murders on July 29.
It followed false rumours spread online that the suspect was an asylum seeker who arrived in the UK by boat.
During the disorder, Conversation Over Borders, a charity which supports those seeking sanctuary, tried to counter the narrative and delivered thousands of messages of welcome to asylum hotels across the country.
Chief executive Colette Batten-Turner said: 'It's been a year since the riots, but for many of the people seeking asylum that we work with at Conversation Over Borders, the fear never left.
'People are still stuck in the same unsafe hotel system that became sitting targets for racist violence and enabled the attacks in the first place.'
Conversation Over Borders leaves welcome notes for newly arrived asylum-seekers (Conversation Over Borders/PA)
The charity said the hotel system is isolating people seeking asylum from communities, and many who are survivors of trauma are 'exhausted' and describe their accommodation as 'prisons'.
Freedom From Torture's Kolbassia Haoussou also said 'nothing has changed' over the fear felt last year by those the charity supports.
He said some people did not go out, missed GP appointments and therapy sessions with the charity, or did not take their children to school 'because they were scared somebody's going to attack them'.
Mr Haoussou, also a survivor of torture who sought refuge in the UK 20 years ago, recalled his own fear during last summer's disorder and said he did not go to the office for a week.
'I was also fearful… because I said that if I'm going out now, I'm black, an African looking guy, if I end up in front of those people, they're going to beat me up, absolutely,' he said.
'I was also having a conversation with some of my colleagues that maybe we need to gather as a group in order to go to the office.
'The fear, the vulnerability, it is not just only for those people in a hotel, but also for us that being here now you know, we are not a refugee anymore, but still we're also target, because nobody's going to ask you, are you asylum seekers or not? They're going to attack your face.'
In the lead-up to the anniversary of the disorder, Freedom From Torture has been preparing for the potential of something similar happening again, including looking at putting on virtual meetings for clients.
Mr Haoussou, the director of survivor leadership and influencing at the charity, also said it is vital not to give 'too much oxygen' to those such as the far right to legitimise their actions.
'I think the most important message is that we are a very vulnerable group of people, that we don't have much protection, but we are not the cause of people suffering in this country,' he said.
'We are not coming, taking people's food, taking people's job, taking people's houses, all those kind of misinformation.
'I think those people that they need to ask a question about why, what is happening with the economy, with the society, is those sitting at Westminster.'
Multiple demonstrations have been held outside a hotel housing asylum seekers in Epping since July 13, after an asylum seeker was charged with allegedly attempting to kiss a 14-year-old girl.
Essex Police said there was an 'escalation of violence' during protests at the same site on July 13, 17, 20 and 24, involving hundreds of people.
Mr Haoussou said it is a legitimate concern when someone is accused of sexual assault in your community, but then it is for the 'full force of the law' to apply to those people.
He added it does not reflect the whole population of migrants in the UK, adding: 'Allow the law to do justice, but let's not really criminalise everybody, putting everybody in the same level.
'The majority of us, all we want is the opportunity just to rebuild a safe life.'
Events in Epping show why housing people in hotels is a 'tinderbox', Ms Batten-Turner said, adding: 'We are appalled that the Government still has not learnt its lesson, nor enacted change.
'If Labour is serious about change, it must act on its promise. No more delays, no more hotel contracts, no more treating people seeking safety as problems to be contained.
'With Reform gaining support, and the far-right rising again, the Government has an opportunity to set out an alternative vision for the asylum system. Instead, it's pandering to an anti-migrant vote it will never win.'
Conversation Over Borders is urging ministers to adopt cost-effective plans for safe housing of asylum seekers a year on from the disorder.
Creating community-based housing such as the Homes for Ukraine scheme and moving away from private contractors are among the calls in a letter sent to the Home Secretary, co-signed by 62 local and national organisations including Refugee Action and Refugees at Home.
Ministers have vowed to end the use of hotels for housing asylum seekers by the next election, and are piloting different ways to provide accommodation.