Former UKBA employee exposes abuse and mistreatment of asylum seekers

During an interview with The Guardian, Ms Perrett spoke of her first day working at the UKBA’s Cardiff Office, when she overheard a manager say ‘if it were up to me, I’d take them [asylum seeking clients] all out and shoot them’.

 

Other incidences included UKBA staff asking former child soldiers to demonstrate how they shot people in the bush and asking North Koreans whether they eat chop suey – all in the pursuit of determining the authenticity of asylum claims.

 

Ms Perrett also alleged that asylum seekers’ due process rights, including the right to legal representation and independent witnesses, were breached on several occasions.

 

These stories reveal a worrying culture within the UKBA – one in which staff take pride in and are rewarded for refusing asylum applications.

 

Mr Keith Vaz, chairman of the Home Affairs Committee, was quoted as saying: "I am deeply concerned by a number of ex-UKBA workers who have spoken out about ... behaviour such as this. I will be writing to the chief executive, Lin Homer, to discover what steps are being taken to remedy this culture of disbelief and discrimination."

 

The allegations come at a time when the UKBA is under increasing pressure to justify its heavy-handed policies, not least in relation to the use of force and degrading tactics to break up last week’s hunger strike at Yarl’s Wood detention centre.

 

The Testimony Project condemns the UKBA’s use of humiliating and degrading tactics and calls for a timely and thorough investigation into Ms Perrett’s allegations.