Britain and Rwanda on Tuesday signed a new treaty in a bid to revive a controversial plan to transfer migrants to the East African nation, after the UK Supreme Court blocked an earlier arrangement as unlawful.
The agreement, signed in Kigali by Rwandan Foreign Minister Vincent Biruta and British interior minister James Cleverly, aims to address concerns raised by the court’s ruling last month.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who has made curbing irregular migration a key pledge before next year’s general election, hailed the treaty as crucial to achieving his goal.
“There is a lot of desire to continue to improve the process,” Cleverly said at a joint press conference. “The UK and Rwanda are working on this because it is important.”
Biruta echoed Cleverly’s sentiment, emphasizing Rwanda’s commitment to the partnership and its efforts to address the court’s concerns.
Under the new treaty, Rwanda will be legally bound by international law not to return individuals to countries where they face persecution, a practice known as refoulement. Additionally, a joint tribunal with judges from both nations will be established to hear individual appeals.
This tribunal, requiring approval and parliamentary votes from both countries, aims to ensure no migrant sent to Rwanda is subsequently deported to their home nation.
However, legal challenges remain. The UK Supreme Court’s decision last month was a major blow to Sunak, who also plans to introduce “emergency legislation” designating Rwanda as a safe country to expedite processing.
“I’m fed up with our Rwanda policy being blocked,” Sunak wrote in The Sun tabloid. “I’ve got the government working on emergency laws to end the merry-go-round so that we can fix this problem once and for all — and stop the boats.”
The UK-Rwanda “partnership,” agreed upon in April 2022, envisaged sending anyone deemed to have made “dangerous or illegal journeys” to Britain to Kigali.
The first deportation flight in June 2022 was thwarted by a last-minute European Court of Human Rights injunction, prompting further legal battles.
Human rights activists have vehemently criticized the plan, with Yasmine Ahmed, UK director at Human Rights Watch, urging the UK government to acknowledge Rwanda’s human rights violations, including against refugees and asylum seekers.
Rwanda, led by President Paul Kagame since the 1994 genocide, has faced scrutiny for its human rights record and Kagame’s grip on power.
The London government insists the scheme is vital to deter illegal immigration across the English Channel from France, a hot-button issue ahead of the upcoming election.
While nearly 30,000 have made the perilous crossing this year, down from 46,000 in 2022, it still falls short of Sunak’s pledge to “stop the boats.”
“We are clear that Rwanda is a safe country, and we are working at pace to move forward with this partnership to stop the boats and save lives,” Cleverly stated before his trip.
Despite Cleverly’s confidence, the Law Society of England and Wales remains skeptical. “Neither a treaty nor domestic legislation can overnight provide adequate means of safeguarding the rights of people removed to Rwanda,” said the society’s president, Nick Emmerson.
Only time will tell if the revamped UK-Rwanda deal can overcome legal hurdles and public criticism to achieve its ambitious goals.
