A correspondent wrote to new Bath MP Ben Howlett concerning the fate of Majid Ali, the City of Glasgow College student who was forcibly deported to Pakistan in June. Majid had been applying for asylum since 2011, claiming that his family home was raided and uncle and cousin shot dead because of their political beliefs, and that his brother had been abducted by the government. Hundreds of students protested and many more were opposed to his deportation, including Nicola Sturgeon of the SNP, the First Minister for Scotland. Majid has not been heard from since, and reportedly told his lecturer that he was scared hours before being forced onto a military plane. It is thought that he is either dead or was abducted on arrival.
Ben's reply is as follows:
Dear XXXX
Thank you very much for your recent email. My sincere apologies regarding my delay in replying.
I am very sad to hear of the case of Majid Ali, however I have every faith in our Home Office team and in the difficult decisions made by Theresa May and her staff. I will continue to support the decisions made by the Home Office as I believe that they act in the best interests of the British people. The abuse of the student visa system - a system that was installed to encourage international students to study in our great country, and rightly so - cannot be tolerated.
Thank you again for getting in touch. Please do contact me again with any questions or concerns.
Best wishes
Ben Howlett
Member of Parliament for Bath
We question the ethics of Mr Howlett on this matter. There was a very clear risk of danger to this young man's life, and it is highly likely that his worst fears have been realised. How can Mr Howlett continue to support an institution that would knowingly send a young person to their potential death? What is this great country he refers to? It is surely not the United Kingdom under the rule of the Conservatives. To even consider mentioning the abuse of the student visa system in this instance is abhorrent. If Ben Howlett had any concern for the wellbeing of human life, he would oppose the actions of the Home Office on this matter. After only two months, Bath's new MP has disgraced himself.
We'd rather not have to keep writing these posts, but it appears that we are going to be doing so for some time if Mr Howlett continues along these lines. If you have received a response from Ben Howlett that you are not satisfied with, please send it to standingstonesblog@hotmail.co.uk and we'll consider publishing it.
Mr Howlett's contact details are as follows:
Address: 96 Sydney Mews, Bathwick, Bath, BA2 4ED
Phone: 01225 338555
E-mail: ben@ben4bath.co.uk
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Ben's reply is as follows:
Dear XXXX
Thank you very much for your recent email. My sincere apologies regarding my delay in replying.
I am very sad to hear of the case of Majid Ali, however I have every faith in our Home Office team and in the difficult decisions made by Theresa May and her staff. I will continue to support the decisions made by the Home Office as I believe that they act in the best interests of the British people. The abuse of the student visa system - a system that was installed to encourage international students to study in our great country, and rightly so - cannot be tolerated.
Thank you again for getting in touch. Please do contact me again with any questions or concerns.
Best wishes
Ben Howlett
Member of Parliament for Bath
We question the ethics of Mr Howlett on this matter. There was a very clear risk of danger to this young man's life, and it is highly likely that his worst fears have been realised. How can Mr Howlett continue to support an institution that would knowingly send a young person to their potential death? What is this great country he refers to? It is surely not the United Kingdom under the rule of the Conservatives. To even consider mentioning the abuse of the student visa system in this instance is abhorrent. If Ben Howlett had any concern for the wellbeing of human life, he would oppose the actions of the Home Office on this matter. After only two months, Bath's new MP has disgraced himself.
We'd rather not have to keep writing these posts, but it appears that we are going to be doing so for some time if Mr Howlett continues along these lines. If you have received a response from Ben Howlett that you are not satisfied with, please send it to standingstonesblog@hotmail.co.uk and we'll consider publishing it.
Mr Howlett's contact details are as follows:
Address: 96 Sydney Mews, Bathwick, Bath, BA2 4ED
Phone: 01225 338555
E-mail: ben@ben4bath.co.uk
"There was a very clear risk of danger to this young man's life ..."
ReplyDeleteHow do you know this?
I have been trying to follow this case since early June and so far nobody has verified if what has been publicly claimed on Majid's behalf tallies with what he submitted in his asylum application to the home Office. Furthermore, nobody has told us why the Home Office rejected his application.
I can see that your MP's e-mail could have been better worded, but there is no evidence in the public domain that Majid's claims were true or that he has come to any harm. If you do have such evidence, then why not post it here?
If people such as yourself are convinced that Majid has indeed come to harm, then surely there are enough of you to investigate this thoroughly, including through former Pakistani asylum seekers and the UK diaspora, and taking legal action against the Home Office.