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Government game of 'cat and mouse' with Ugandan twins

By Bianca Brigitte Bonomi

7 March 2006, 5:00pm

Student Action for Refugees (STAR) and No Borders Detainee Support Group are today celebrating after the deportation of two Ugandan sisters was cancelled.

At just twenty years of age, most young women in Britain are preoccupied with their social life or with exciting work opportunities, but for twins Mariah and Judith Rugobya this kind of life has remained but a distant dream. The girls, who have been living in the UK for three years, are currently being held at Yarl's Wood removal centre. The sisters fled their homeland following a catalogue of physical abuse. Mariah and her mother were abducted by Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels and were forcefully taken to the Ituli forest in Congo. In a disturbing statement, Mariah reveals that here she was 'tortured, raped and my mother was shot dead right in front of me because she was ''too old'' to run.' She was allegedly then interrogated by Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) soldiers and again tortured and raped. After managing to escape from prison and locate her sister Judith, the pair fled to England to seek asylum.

Fresh start

Upon arrival in the UK, the twins harboured hopes that life would change. Their journey began positively as they achieved academic and social success after enrolling in Enfield College to study business. They also became clients of the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture, where they received support and counselling to help them come to terms with the horrific ordeal they had suffered in Uganda.

Detention

Yet the girls enjoyed only fleeting happiness. They argue that inadequate legal representation led to problems with their asylum case, which has subsequently resulted in them being imprisoned four times. They refer to this process as 'a constant cat and mouse routine', in which they are detained, released and then detained again, just as they start trying to rebuild their shattered lives.

The twins claim that living in, or under constant threat of, detention, has caused them a variety of health problems, including panic attacks, insomnia, anxiety, withdrawal, a loss of appetite and weight loss. The turbulent nature of their existence, coupled with the lack of normality and sterility associated with detention, has led Mariah to comment that they are 'on the verge of insanity' - 'terrified' at the prospect of being returned to Uganda, fearing that they will be subject to the same abuses on return.

Good news

The news today of the cancelled deportations has provided the twins with some welcome relief from the duress and stress that they have been under. Jessica Thomas of STAR told IRR News that today marks a breakthrough in the girls' case. A demonstration last Wednesday outside the London Passport Office, jointly organised by STAR and No Borders, resulted in a petition of nearly eight hundred signatures being delivered to Minister for Immigration Tony McNulty. A rally planned for today at Gatwick Airport was cancelled after the good news was delivered. IRR News spoke to Mariah, who remains in Yarl's Wood with her sister. She stated that she was 'extremely relieved' and that her 'sister has been smiling today'. She thanked their supporters, both from the organisations and from Enfield College and said that their hard work was 'very encouraging' and continuously helped to 'keep me on my feet, otherwise I would struggle and collapse'.

It is still unsure as to whether future appeals will be possible on the grounds of legal incompetence, or whether the twins will be granted leave to stay on compassionate or medical grounds, or indeed whether today's verdict marks little more than another stage in the 'cat and mouse' charade, but for now at least, the twins and their supporters can enjoy their victory.

The Institute of Race Relations is precluded from expressing a corporate view: any opinions expressed are therefore those of the authors.

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