Wednesday 26 February 2020

British African Caribbean Community Leaders Condemn Prime Minister Boris Johnson Secret Meeting With Hand Picked Leaders.



For Immediate Release.


Wednesday, 26 February 2020 9:44:15 am

Subject: British African Caribbean Community Leaders Condemn Prime Minister Boris Johnson Secret Meeting With Hand Picked Leaders.

This evening Prime Minister, Boris Johnson will hold a secret meeting at number 10 Downing Street. He has invited representatives from a number of African and Caribbean representatives from government consultative forums and community organisations, for a private discussion around issues such as the Windrush compensation scheme, Jamaica deportations, and other related issues.

The meeting has invited a select few to hear from the Prime Minister and his team their responses to some of the trenchant criticisms levelled at the door of the Prime Minister in relation to his policies and views as they relate to Britain’s African and Caribbean communities in the UK.

We believe this to be nothing more than a cynical exercise in public relations management, in an effort to convince a number of high profile African and Caribbean individuals of his respect and admiration for our community.

African and Caribbean communities in response to the deep anger and furore will feel deeply disappointed by this secret meeting. Across the county, there is rising and profound anger in relation to a number of critical issues.

These include;
  • the recent employment of an ideological racist, Andrew Sabinksy, as a senior policy adviser to the Prime Minister;
  • the delayed publication and the reported dilution of Wendy Williams Windrush Lessons Learned Review;
  • the failure of the Windrush Compensation Scheme to ensure that people obtain adequate support to make viable claims, make offers in a timely manner and that reflect the actual pain and suffering people have endured. The fact that the Home Office has admitted to only paying out £63,000 to 32 after almost two years of the scandal is deeply disturbing;
  • the recent deportation flight to Jamaica and the judicial challenge to government and the consequent removal from that flight of many individuals whose legal and human rights had not been observed by government.
  • Those in attendance are unknown to us and constitute a handpicked audience who will, no doubt be sworn to secrecy in relation to the detail of the meeting.
We hope that those in attendance will, in no uncertain terms, ensure that the Prime Minister and his team are left in no doubt about the huge level of anger and the anxiety caused by his government's actions, and policies in relation to Britain's African and Caribbean communities. 

There must be no doubt in his mind, or that of his team, that there is now a profound crisis of confidence in his administration about what appears to be an ideological objection to race equality and preference for the employment of individuals who advocate pseudoscientific racism of the most abhorrent kind.

We call on the Prime Minister to make a public statement that makes it absolutely clear that he does not believe in the genetic inferiority of black people.

The ending of all deportation flights until the unamended publication of the Wendy Williams Windrush Lessons Learned Report and the implementation of its recommendations.

A clear commitment to the ending of the policy of "hostile environment"

And finally, we call for you and all of the lookout a full judicial public inquiry into the Windrush scandal and the failure of the Windrush Compensation Scheme.

Lee Jasper Vice-Chair of BAME Lawyers for Justice.

"This government's appalling and sneering contempt in relation to Britain's African and Caribbean communities has been laid bare in recent weeks. Whether it's the hostile environment, the Windrush Scandal, the employment of ideological, pseudoscientific racists, or the trampling of black people's legal and human rights, this government’s racism exudes such a powerful stench you can taste it.

This Prime Minister needs to make it absolutely clear he does not support ideological racists and is committed to repairing the profound damage and insult his government has so far inflicted on Britain's African and Caribbean communities."

Jacqueline McKenzie of Beute and Pope solicitors and the Organisation for Migration Advice and Research.

“ Downing Street can meet whoever it wants to but these events do little to really address the issues affecting the Windrush generation and in particular those affected by the Windrush scandal, or relieve the pain and suffering of those who are affected by the hostile environment not just in immigration but in education, criminal justice, policing and many more areas.

Two years after the Windrush scandal, we still have people who are destitute, including homeless, we're still seeing major injustices of people who have not been allowed to return to the UK, we're still seeing people being denied citizenship by dint of very old convictions.

In addition, we're still seeing the grand and great-grandchildren of Windrushers who have lived most of their lives in the UK being deported and we are beyond shocked with the failure of the Home Office to set up a credible system of community and legal support to enable people to make viable and substantiated claims to the Windrush compensation scheme.

Zita Holbourne, Chair of Black Activists against Racism and the Cuts (BARAC) UK.

“ What we need is openness, transparency and a commitment to end racism and injustices faced by BAME communities in the UK, not cosy secret gatherings. Until the Lessons Learned report is published and acted upon all deportations should be halted. Amongst those, the government sought to deport earlier this month were a blind man with no convictions and a man with a severe heart condition using breathing apparatus who was not fit to fly. Stopping institutional racism in the UK must be a priority for the government.

Euen Herbert BAME Lawyers specialist advisor on British citizens born overseas.

“ The Windrush Scheme and its compensation scheme are filled with obstacles and hurdles many appear to be put in place to prevent victims from accessing the scheme. We have found there are great difficulties for persons claiming from overseas, my grandfather being one of those persons who moved to the UK in 1955 and is a British Citizen today with Right of Abode in the UK but no proof of this status. The Windrush team in the UK said in 2018 they would send a field team from the Toronto Visa office to his home in Kitchener near Ontario as he will be 90 years this year and is unable to travel to the Visa office.

My grandfather still gets his pension from the UK government and the Home Office has all the documentation to prove that he is British but is conveniently refusing to issue him with a status letter saying that he is British.

Another relative of mine (Mr Fleming) was naturalised in 2018 after the scandal broke, this was a convenient error by the Home Office. After I wrote to them in January 2019 they backtracked and issued him a status letter claiming that he has been British all his life. How does that affect compensation if he was led to believe he was only British since 2018. My grandfather shares the exact same status from the same Caribbean country. 

Trying to resolve his case ends with the Home Office hanging up the phone on me because he is outside of the UK.” I was sat behind Amber Rudd when she told the Home Affairs Select Committee that there were not Home Office targets for removal. When she got up to leave with her entourage I asked to apologise to Anthony Bryan, Hubert Howard (now deceased) & Sarah O’Connor (now deceased) she said Sorry I havent got the Time I’m afraid” while staring into our face” Im still shocked to this very day.

Miranda Grell Barrister at Law.

"The news today that the government seeks to convene a secret meeting of members of our community that it deems "compliant" with its agenda is insulting.
Since the Windrush scandal came to light, the government has treated the British African Caribbean community with no respect or dignity.
While the government continues to act in flagrant disregard of the rule of law in the way it treats African Caribbean residents of all ages - by deporting Black British citizens, not paying Windrush compensation and refusing to publish the Windrush Lessons Learned report - holding secret meetings beyond contempt."

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