The UK as an Asylum Provider

The immigration law of any sovereign country is devised to regulate, monitor and control the foreign human traffic to that country. The practice of having a certain amount of check and control over people entering a country's borders has always been in existence in the civilized world, irrespective of the type of rule of government of the time. However, the modern immigration laws are a recent phenomenon and have come in practice in the twentieth century. It was a result of factors like national boundaries of nations being redefined and reestablished firmly (geographically and politically) post World War II. Also, there has been extensive migration of people to countries they were not born in, either for a politically more stable and secure life or for better economic prospects, or both in most cases.

 

The United Kingdom as a nation has had very clearly defined immigration policy over the years based on its political and economic position, and by extension it has a well defined policy for providing asylum to people. It is also a strong statement about the UK's moral, humane and democratic values.

 

Anyone who feels a security threat in the country they are currently citizens of or are residing in and has the relevant means to establish their case to the UK immigration department can be considered for providing asylum in the United Kingdom. If one has an established threat to their security and life on the basis of their religious belief, political position, racial origin or orientation or sex, they are entitled to seek asylum in the UK. Not only that, if you face discrimination and security threat in your current country because of your sexual orientation you are entitled to seek asylum in the UK. Of course, this does not in any way mean and must not be understood as an easy means to enter the country because the asylum law like any other for one, very clearly defined and secondly, it grows and amends as per the new and changing definitions in a fast changing political environment the world over. The UK's asylum policy in its fundamental form remains as a moral value and commitment of the UK government but it can not be misused by anyone.

 

The UK has been known to provide a secure haven to those who genuinely needed such protection and have lived and moved as free people. Politicians, advocates of free speech in a country of origin have all had asylum in the UK if they sought it. Similarly, if an ordinary citizen in a country and has been discriminated against by the state or a non state entity, they have been given shelter in the UK. More recently, gay men have been known to ask for asylum in the UK because they were able to establish the imminent threat in the land of their origin because they were differently sexually oriented.

 

Source : articlesbase.com