UK officials warned gov’t not to pursue Rwanda refugee plan

British officials repeatedly warned the government not to go through with its plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, London’s High Court was told on Tuesday, citing concerns about human rights in the east African country.

Under a deal struck in April, Britain will send tens of thousands of migrants who arrive on its shores illegally more than 4,000 miles to Rwanda. The first planned deportation flight last month was blocked, though, by a last-minute injunction from the European Court of Human Rights.

Britain’s government vowed to press ahead with the plan, but the policy is facing a judicial review at the High Court where its lawfulness is being challenged.

Lawyers acting for asylum seekers from countries including Syria, Sudan, and Iraq were sent thousands of documents detailing internal government discussions about the policy.

In February 2021, the British High Commissioner to Rwanda said in a memo that the east African country should not be selected as a place to send migrants for a variety of reasons including accusations against Rwanda of “recruiting refugees to conduct armed operations in neighboring countries.”

The memo also said that Rwanda "has a poor human rights record regardless of the conventions it has signed up to" and was criticized by Britain for "extrajudicial killings, deaths in custody, enforced disappearances, and torture.”

Another internal government memo said the agreement was "unenforceable, consisting in part of upfront payments, meaning fraud risk is very high.”

Tuesday's hearing was held to decide when a full judicial review should begin, with the court due to give its decision on Wednesday.