Politics
Labour to stop issuing study visas for selected countries
The racist Labour government will stop issuing study visas to people from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan. Additionally, it is stopping skilled work visas for people from Afghanistan.
The Home Office claims the changes are due to “widespread abuse” and will take effect this month.
Figures suggest that individuals from those four countries are most likely to come to the UK to study and then make an asylum claim.
War, oppression, genocide
But all four of those countries are experiencing various levels of oppression, war, and genocide.
Since US troops withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban has reigned over the nation. This has included public executions, amputations, and flogging. Of course, the UK played a huge role in destabilising the country. It was a key ally in the US-led invasion, the initial overthrow of the Taliban in 2001, and ultimately, it sparked a violent, long-term conflict against the resurgent Taliban.
In Cameroon, the government forces and armed separatists from the English-speaking minority have been fighting since 2016. It has killed over 6,500 people and displaced 584,000. It is reported that 1.8m people need humanitarian aid.
According to Oxford Law:
Since 2018, the UK government has supported the London-based firm, New Age, to win a contract to develop an offshore gas project in Cameroon estimated to be worth more than $250 million. This lucrative contract sees money going directly to the state-owned company SNH, which reportedly funds the elite armed forces of the Cameroon state.
Since 2017, the military in Myanmar has been committing genocide against the Muslim Rohingya population. The military frequently attacks schools, hospitals and civilian infrastructure, whilst throwing journalists in prison. Once again, the regime is backed by over 200 British companies.
In Sudan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are committing genocide in the pursuit of gold. The UK is a major supplier to the UAE, and British Military equipment often turns up in the hands of the RSF.
Fuck around and find out
Now, Shabana Mahmood, Home Secretary, has said she was:
taking the unprecedented decision to refuse visas for those nationals seeking to exploit our generosity.
And, according to the BBC:
The Home Office said a higher proportion of people than average from the four specified country cited destitution as part of their asylum claim, and there were 16,000 people from the four countries currently being supported.
About 95% of Afghans who arrived in the UK on a study visa then applied for asylum since 2021, while applications by students from Myanmar increased 16-fold and claims by students from Cameroon and Sudan more than quadrupled.
It’s such a coincidence that asylum claims are higher from the countries where there is ongoing genocide, armed conflict, and US and UK involvement.
Maybe if the UK stopped funding illegal wars, supplying arms to terrorist nations, and destabilising the Middle East, fewer people might need to escape war-torn countries.
There’s a thought for you, Shabana.
Featured image via GBNews/ YouTube