Hack Week's
Foundational Portfolio
Notes
1) Introduction paragraph
- Thesis statement
- Essay map
Signposting
State main stance in regards to the law
2) Summary of the law
3) Issues with the law
4) Proposed Reform
5) Concluding paragraph
50 words
50 words
100 words
200 words
200 words
Introduce the act, identify the main issues within it, and propose a reform
Section 12: Differential treatment of refugees
Two tiered system
Group 1
Group 2
'Refugee status'
'Temporary refugee status'
No family reunion/ settlement rights
Can only stay for 30 months before becoming an overstayer (illegal citizen)
Two main requirements:
Come to the UK directly
Claim asylum without delay
Violates international law
Article 14 of ECHR
Isn't justified
Discrimination definition
"The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms shall be secured without discrimination on any ground"
“Differential treatment may be justified where it pursues a legitimate aim and where the means to pursue that aim are appropriate and necessary”
R v. Uxbridge Magistrates Court and Another, Ex parte Adimi
Facts
3 defendants entered the country w illegal passports
Uxbridge Magistrates Court gave them sentences
They claimed for asylum
Judgement
“I conclude that any merely short term stopover en route to such intended sanctuary cannot forfeit the protection of the Article [...]”
"... given the special situation of asylum seekers, in particular the effects of trauma, language problems, lack of information [...] there is no time limit which can be mechanistically applied or associated with the expression ‘without delay’."
Main mischief to correct: Refugees only giving themselves up if they’re meant to be found (about intention here)
Mischief the law means to correct
Deter illegal entry into the UK
Break the business model of people-smuggling networks
Speed up the removal of those with no right to be in the UK
Proposal
Remove section 12 except for:
(3) Where a refugee has entered or is present in the United Kingdom unlawfully, the additional requirement is that they can show good cause for their unlawful entry or presence.
Fulfils all 3 requirements
Stops people smuggling
Removes those not meant to be here
U.S. Refugee Resettlement Process
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) conducts an initial screening to determine if an individual seeking refugee status qualifies as a refugee under international law and then identifies an appropriate “durable solution” for that individual: voluntary repatriation, local integration, or resettlement
Integrate this into UK law
Actively solves the mischief without violating ECHR
Takes into account case-by-case nature of dealing with refugees
- Summarize
Final comment
Deters illegal entry
Might not be needed - depends on word count
Breaks other rights too
- Denied education
- Denied family rights
- Denied housing rights