afghan refugees | Pandaemonium

DUMPING THE UNWANTED

December 13, 2023 by Kenan Malik

This essay, on the Rwanda deportation policy, was my Observer column this week. It was published on 10 December 2023, under the headline “The west’s dumping of migrants on poor countries is a grisly echo of penal transportation”. Imagine that Britain signs a treaty with France agreeing to take its unwanted migrants for cash payment; that France suggests sending lawyers to this country to ensure the British courts treat deportees properly; and that the French national assembly passes a law declaring Britain […]

Categories: Britain, Race & Immigration • Tags: afghan refugees, asylum seekers, immigration policy, performative policymaking, rwanda deportation scheme

IMMIGRATION AND PERFORMATIVE POLICYMAKING

November 15, 2023 by Kenan Malik

This essay, on the performative character of immigration policymaking, was my Observer column this week. It was published on 12 November 2023, under the headline “Across the globe, compassion for migrants has given way to cruel, performative politics“. On Wednesday, the UK supreme court will give its verdict on the Rwanda deportation scheme. The decision will clearly have a major impact on those who face deportation. It will have an impact, too, on the political debate about immigration, with government supporters either hailing a […]

Categories: International, Race & Immigration • Tags: afghan refugees, asylum seekers, giorgia meloni, hein de haas, hungary, italy, offshoring, pakistan, performative policymaking, refugees, rwanda deportation scheme

HOME OFFICE STATISTICS AND HOME OFFICE PROPAGANDA

September 1, 2022 by Kenan Malik

This essay, on the reality of immigration statistics, was my Observer column this week. It was published on 28 August 2022, under the headline “There are lies, damn lies, and then there is Home Office propaganda about migrants”. There are Home Office statistics and then there are Home Office press releases. And the gap between the two is often so wide that even the most resourceful migrant would be unlikely to discover a way of navigating from the one to the other. Last week, the […]

Categories: Britain, Race & Immigration • Tags: afghan refugees, albanians, asylum seekers, channel migrants, home office, immigration, immigration statistics, priti patel, refugees, rwanda deportation scheme

REFUGEE POLICY FROM INSIDE THE BUNKER

August 24, 2021 by Kenan Malik

This essay, on the Afghan crisis and Home Office refugee policy, was my Observer column this week. It was published on 22 August 2021, under the headline “Britain’s offer to Afghan refugees is not ‘generous’. It’s blindly inhumane”. Boris Johnson and Priti Patel believe that Britain’s “bespoke scheme” for Afghan refugees is “one of the most generous in our country’s history”. That says more about their ignorance of British history than it does about the scheme itself. The government has promised 5,000 refugees […]

Categories: Britain, International, Race & Immigration • Tags: afghan refugees, afghanistan, asylum seekers, boris johnson, david blunkett, deportations, home office, hungarian refugees, iran, margaret thatcher, nationality and borders bill, pakistan, priti patel, refugees, ted heath, ugandan asians, vietnamese boat people