Students are planning a protest today at the Carfax Tower in support of hunger strikers at Campsfield House, an immigration removal centre situated to the north of Oxford.
Large numbers of Oxford students are expected to attend, with Wadham student Rebecca Sparrow, who is heavily involved in the Close Campsfield campaign, “hoping for a big turnout.”
Alistair Johnson, of Oxford University Amnesty International, told Cherwell that they were protesting “to remind those detained in Campsfield that they haven’t been completely forgotten, and to show the people who run Campsfield that we are against what they’re doing.”
The protest comes as a result of reports from campaign group Close Campaign that six Darfuri asylum seekers, held in detention at Campsfield indefinitely without charge, have been on hunger strike for six days. The strikers have been held for varying periods of time, the longest time being six months.
A statement on Close Campsfield’s website said, “At least one of the strikers is also a confirmed torture survivor with visible torture wounds. Torture survivors are not supposed to be held in immigration detention under UK law, but campaigning groups say that this law is regularly flouted by the UK Border Agency.”
Whilst the hunger strikers’ demands are that they all be released and granted asylum, they have also expressed a desire to be removed to a safe place, and have claimed that they are being held arbitrarily with no time limit. They have complained of their treatment inside the centre, saying that they came to Britain asking for refuge, and instead have been locked up.
A report on an unannounced inspection of Campsfield by the Chief Inspector of Prisons in May last year revealed, “Health care staff received no training in recognising symptoms of torture and trauma.”
Concerns have also been raised over how the centre’s management have dealt with the issue, after those who attempted to visit the strikers, including Oxford students, were denied access earlier this week.
In an official statement concerning the attempted visits on Wednesday evening, the Close Campsfield campaign commented, “The hunger strikers requested visits; [additionally] various supporters from Oxford independently organised visits for the evening of 30 May. Despite pre-arranging visits, each of the visitors was turned away on different spurious reasons (some with no reason given) once detention centre management realised they were visiting Sudanese men.”
The group added, “Supporters have vowed to try and visit the hunger strikers again to support them and intend to submit a complaint alleging that detention centre management attempted to cover up the hunger strike and illegally refused and lied to visitors, to the company who manage Campsfield (Mitie), to the Independent Monitoring Board, to the HM Chief Inspector of Prisons and to the Minister for Immigration tomorrow (31 May) through their local MP.”
The news of the strikes has caused concern among a number of Oxford students. Tilly Hill, a second year medic at St. Anne’s who plans to attend the protest, said, “How can you lock away a man that has been forced to leave his family and life behind and flee from his home country?”
After the denial of visiting access, channels of communication with immigrants have come under scrutiny.
Sparrow said, “One of the reasons Campsfield House gets away with what it does is that communication with the outside world is so difficult. People just don’t know what’s going on and there is so much denial of responsibility as these centres are run by private companies for profit.”
Many students also expressed the opinion that the events at Campsfield were a result of problems with the asylum system more generally. Brasenose student Rachel Rowan-Olive commented, “The current system is labyrinthine and bureaucratic at almost every level; it seems to me that Campsfield and centres like it are symptoms of its inadequacy. Asylum seekers’ wellbeing and rights are low on the priorities list.”
In an investigation into Campsfield earlier this term, Cherwell reported that in 2010, 147 of the 216 detainees went on hunger strike. The Home Office told Cherwell at the time, “Immigration removal centres like Campsfield are vital in helping us to remove those with no right to be in the country. HMI Prisons confirmed last year that Campsfield continues to be a particularly well-operated centre, and that it provides a safe and secure environment for staff and detainees.”
A UK Border Agency spokesman said, ‘Six detainees at Campsfield House are currently refusing prepared meals. However they have access to food at the centre’s shop, and healthcare teams have no concerns over their wellbeing.
‘Staff at Campsfield continue to monitor the situation, work with detainees and listen to their concerns.”
