Ukrainian asylum seekers find tough going in Britain

by Tony Leliw

LONDON - Most people would cynically dismiss Ukrainians who seek political asylum in Britain simply as opportunists abusing a system to find a better life in the West.

However, scratch beneath the surface and there are some genuine cases, argues Chris Daly, head of case work at the London-based Refugee Legal Center.

Last year this organization represented six Ukrainians desperate to escape deportation. "The grounds on which Ukrainians are claiming political asylum vary," says Mr. Daly. "These include people receiving cruel and degrading treatment because they are HIV positive, Crimean Tatars and Russians facing ethnic tensions, and cases of anti-semitism.

"We have also seen two cases of persecution by mafia-type agencies where the state was unwilling or incapable of protecting them. Some accounts have shown persecution in prisons," he added.

Mr. Daly, however, believes that the situation in Ukraine is improving and that the number of Ukrainians claiming political asylum will decrease substantially in the future.

Jessica Yudilevich of the Refugee Council says that of the 84 Ukrainians who claimed political asylum last year, only 40 to date have been processed. None have been allowed to stay here. Political asylum in Britain is granted predominantly to applicants from countries such as Iran, Iraq and the former Yugoslavia.

"Last year were received 27,885 applications for political asylum from all countries" said Ms. Yudilevich. "The year before that it was 43,965."

The sharp fall can be explained in part by the government's severe cap on welfare provisions in the United Kingdom for refugees. Since last year asylum seekers cannot seek any benefits once they have lost their case to stay. They can appeal, which can take up to six months, but they have to survive by their own means.

The situation is made more difficult since people who lose their case are usually turned down by the Home Office if they apply for a work permit, and under the Asylum and Immigration Act of 1996, employers can be fined up to 5,000 pounds for employing an illegal worker.

Destitute families who would have received welfare provision from the central government have now fallen to the mercy of local councils. Some councils, such as labor-controlled Heringrey in North London, are more sympathetic to refugees than others. However, they have now had to warn constituents that money not recouped from the central government could force them to raise local council taxes, and immigration is a hot and sensitive election issue.

Nobody knows how many Ukrainians are working or living here illegally, having been refused political asylum. The types of employment illegal immigrants get include working in restaurant kitchens, cleaning jobs (hotel rooms, cars, etc.), working on farms picking produce and even prostitution.

At the Ukrainian Association Club in London, a message appeared on the bulletin board recently from a worried mother concerned about her missing son. He had come to Britain on holiday and had not returned.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, January 18, 1998, No. 3, Vol. LXVI

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