The Rwanda Bill has finally been passed in the UK Parliament after months of stalling. Within hours of the bill’s passage on Monday, five people, including a child, died after a boat of migrants trying to cross the English Channel from France fell into the sea.
According to Reuters, the small boat that broke down at sea was carrying about 110 migrants. The French coastguard is still searching the sea for survivors.
The regional governor told reporters, “Early this morning, a boat carrying migrants capsized at sea. We are sad to report that five dead bodies have been recovered. Among them are a seven-year-old girl, a woman and three men.
“After going a few hundred meters from the shore, the boat’s engine stopped and several people fell into the water. Rescuers quickly reached the spot and rescued 47 people alive from the water. Four of them have been hospitalized. Their lives are not at risk.
“The remaining 57 people on the boat refused to return. They somehow managed to start the engine and set off for the UK.”
The boat departs from Weimehue, 32 kilometers southwest of Calais.
The controversial Rwanda bill was passed in the UK parliament just hours before the boat was set to leave with the migrants. As a result of the passing of this bill, the UK government will now be able to send those who wish to immigrate to Rwanda. In other words, aspirants must be in Rwanda, not the UK, at the time their applications are examined.
Various human rights organizations and the country’s opposition parties have described the Rwanda bill as inhumane, but Rishi Sunak’s government claims that they have taken this initiative to prevent the arrival of refugees by sea by boat, risking their lives. They want to stop the flow of refugees on a priority basis.
“This kind of heartbreaking incident must be stopped,” UK Home Secretary James Cleverley said after the latest drowning at sea.
The Rwanda bill will now need royal assent to become law after it was approved by parliament on Monday. That approval is expected to be available within this week. Prime Minister Sunak said that he expects flights from the UK to Rwanda with immigration aspirants within the next 10 to 12 weeks.
“I know very clearly that nothing will stand in our way to do this and save lives,” Sunak said.
The UK government signed a five-year deal with Rwanda in April 2022 to send migrants to Rwanda.
Under the deal, Rwanda will host migrants coming to the UK for five years. In return, the British government agreed to provide aid to Rwanda for economic development. It has also promised to pay extra for the resettlement of aspirants.
The first flight with aspirants was scheduled to depart in June 2022. But at the last minute it was canceled by an order of the European Court of Human Rights. There are said to be concerns about how safe Rwanda is for migrants.
The UK Supreme Court declared such plans illegal in November of the following year, but the Rishi Sunak government continued to try.
The bill, which was passed yesterday on Monday, mentions Rwanda as a safe country for immigrants.
Many people from countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia risk their lives to cross the sea in small boats to the UK to escape war and poverty. More than 6,000 migrants have gone to the UK so far this year.
