by Tim Dieppe, The Critic
So many undeserving cases are let in, yet a genuine Christian was blocked
We are all becoming familiar with news headlines about asylum seekers who clearly should not be granted asylum in the UK, and yet they have nevertheless won the right to remain, thus demonstrating that our asylum system is ineffective. Some of these cases are so absurd that they beggar belief.
The latest example is a Pakistani drug dealer who has been allowed to stay in Britain because of his role in talking to his son about Islam and his culture. Muhammad Asif Karim has been convicted of 21 drug dealing offences, but won his appeal against deportation by arguing that it would breach his rights to a family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
Another recent example is a Kurdish asylum seeker who won the right to stay in Britain because he has tattoos which “deviated from the principles of Islam.” In another case, an asylum seeker was allowed to stay in Britain after a judge confused Iraq with Iran.
If this wasn’t absurd enough, an Islamic State-supporting illegal immigrant could not be deported even though he is a threat to national security. His status as a refugee has been revoked, but he can’t be deported as it is thought he might face torture in his home country.
A Pakistani convicted paedophile escaped deportation because it would “harm his children”. This even though he has been banned from living with his children since his conviction.