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UK tribunal determines ‘real risk’ of Tamil asylum seekers being detained and tortured on return
View(s):A British Upper Tribunal has determined that there would be a “real risk” of “persecution” and “serious harm” for two Sri Lankans of Tamil ethnicity, and granted them their claims for asylum in that country. The Tribunal rejected the arguments of the UK’s Legal Department that there would be no danger to the asylum seekers if they went back to their country other than monitoring by the authorities. Rather, it said the authorities will be aware of their return, they would be permitted to enter and exit the airport, but will be kept under surveillance with a “real risk” of detention and being subjected to torture.
In a ruling handed down last Thursday (26 May) in favour of the protection claims of two individuals (KK and RS, names kept anonymous) of Sri Lankan origin, the Tribunal’s hearing came in the wake of the two asylum claims being dismissed by a lower tribunal. Its assessment included the finding that recent political changes in Sri Lanka had led to “an entrenchment of the presence of military personnel in the power structure of government… there is also ample evidence of journalists and others who have sought to investigate alleged wrongdoings by political and military leaders being targeted for harassment and intimidation.”
KK had entered the UK as a student in 2009, soon after which, he had assisted the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE) in their political meetings, distributed leaflets and participated in fundraisers. KK confirmed that he wanted to fight for a separate Tamil Eelam, and would “do something” in Sri Lanka if returned. RS had entered the United Kingdom in October 2007, claiming asylum on the same day on the basis that she had been detained and mistreated by the Sri Lanka Army because of suspected LTTE assistance. She, too, stated that her support for the establishment of Tamil Eelam would put her and her family members in danger if she went back to the country.
The Tribunal concluded that the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) regards the TGTE (a proscribed organisation) “with a significant degree of hostility… it is reasonably likely that GoSL perceives that organisation as a ‘front’ for the LTTE…” It acknowledged inconsistencies in the statements of the two claimants and recognised that they may be trying to create profiles for themselves in order to avoid imminent removal from the UK.
The hearings concerned the application of the United Kingdom’s in-country guidance of the “extent of the risk in Sri Lanka to individuals on the basis of their political activities in the United Kingdom (UK) which are (or are perceived to be) in opposition to the Government in Sri Lanka”.