Three weeks after the rejection of a previous project, London and Kigali signed a new treaty in Rwanda on Tuesday December 5, aimed at resurrecting a controversial agreement to deport migrants who have arrived in the UK illegally.
The British government is trying to salvage this flagship measure of its policy against illegal immigration after the British Supreme Court in mid-November confirmed that its project was illegal as it stood. The new agreement was signed in Kigali, the Rwandan capital, by British Home Secretary James Cleverly and Rwandan Foreign Minister Vincent Biruta.
“We have pursued this partnership with the UK because we believe we have a role to play in this illegal immigration crisis,” Vincent Biruta assured a press conference when James Cleverly declared he had “immense admiration for the Rwandan government, which has received a great deal of criticism.”.
The new treaty “will address the concerns of the Supreme Court, notably by guaranteeing that Rwanda will not expel to another country persons transferred within the framework of the partnership,” as earlier assured in a press release from the Ministry of the Interior in response to one of the main concerns of the magistrates.
Following the Supreme Court’s decision, James Cleverly gave assurances that a “legally binding treaty” would be signed with Kigali to guarantee the fate of migrants expelled from the UK. Once signed, this text will have to be ratified by the British and Rwandan parliaments. Before signing the agreement, the new Home Office boss visited the site of the Rwandan genocide memorial.
“It is clear that Rwanda is a safe country, and we are working at a steady pace to take this partnership forward to stop the boats and save lives”, assured James Cleverly, quoted in the statement.