New UK government, and the cracks that let in hope

The Home Office Vigil Prayer Group is nearing three years of its monthly vigil in front of the central offices down the road from the Westminster Parliament.

We have handed in no petitions, but instead have said commemorative prayers for the hundreds who die every month in trying to reach Europe and the UK. We pray for those making the decisions leading to these deaths. We pray for those trying to rescue them, the coast guards with life and death responsibilities, the families who see members die.

We hear of bodies decomposing on beaches, groups dying in rivers and forests, dozens and dozens lost at sea in the Mediterranean, in the Atlantic and in the English Channel. We are not masochistic, though it is sobering to learn of so many disastrous deaths of unnamed people every month.

In the building facing us are policy-makers and policy executors. The security men at the door in their hi-viz jackets look at us with indifference or mild friendliness when we offer to pray for them. We are fortunate to have a few asylum seekers some of the time, though most are nervous about standing in such a public place, opposing government policy. Who are 'we'? Just a handful from Justice and Peace, the London Catholic Worker, the London Churches Refugee Fund, a handful of 20-30 attendees: charity volunteers, self-employed or retired people, who can afford to take an hour or two on a Monday lunchtime: who have the luxury of free time to pray, 'O God, will you save the city for fifty righteous people, or even ten' (Gen 18)?

During this time, government policy has plunged from bad to worse in terms of hostile immigration legislation. Instead of negotiation for safe passage and for legal process towards asylum applications, the expenditure on border protection has shot up. There has been a dramatic increase in those arriving in small boats, exacerbating the housing crisis. Boat arrivals are placed in sub-standard accommodation, barracks, disused airfields, and run-down hotels. They have little access to any facilities and usually wait over a year to have their claims heard, during which time they can't work.

Worst of all, a desperate government spent millions of pounds trying to set up a deportation process to Rwanda - other countries reputed to be in the pipeline. Praying often seemed futile. In the last few days however, we have seen a crack in that oppressive policy. On July 6th, the day after a Labour government was voted in, the new Prime Minister announced an end to the Rwanda policy. How astonishing that that was one of the first announcements! It is only a beginning of the change we hope for. The end of indefinite detention, a legal and rational system for asylum applications, safe legal routes for those applying, the right to work, all come to mind.

We could feel like the Israelites in the desert: reluctant to believe in the good news, but surely now is not the time to be cynical. We feel, and are, so powerless in this global scene, but as St Paul reminds us, when we are at our most weak, God can show most strength. It is precisely in coming together to recognize our powerlessness that we gain the most hope. The faith of migrants continually astonishes us. Their faith is often greater than ours. Recognising the cracks which let in hope is our obligation to them.

This monthly Memorial Prayer Vigil for refugees and asylum-seekers takes place on the third Monday of every month outside the Home Office, SW1P 4DF, 12.30pm to 1.30pm. The next Vigil will be on Monday, 15 July.

LINKS

Home Office prayer vigil remembers: 'Jesus was a Refugee': www.indcatholicnews.com/news/50025

For more information, see: https://westminsterjusticeandpeace.org/