New immigration rules will keep out human rights abusers

The Telegraph

By James Hall 30 Apr 2012

Foreigners who have been accused of serious human rights abuses will be banned from visiting the UK under tough new immigration requirements to be outlined today.

The measures will allow ministers to ban non-EU citizens from entering the UK where “credible” evidence exists of past or continuing human rights abuses by the individuals.

The measures will to be included in the Foreign Office’s annual Human Rights Report, which is released today.

Currently people can only be prevented from entering the UK if they are viewed as a threat to national security. Visitors can not be excluded from entering the country on the basis of human rights abuses.

The change has been driven by Foreign Office ministers and Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister.

The new immigration requirements will only stand when there is “independent” and “reliable” evidence that the person has been involved in human rights abuses.
The new rule will state that: “Foreign nationals from outside the European Economic Area may only come to the UK if they satisfy the requirements of the immigration rules.

“Where there is independent, reliable and credible evidence that an individual has committed human rights abuses, the individual will not normally be permitted to enter the UK.”

However the new rules will not lead to a blanket ban on entry for human-rights abusing foreign officials, including heads of state.

It is understood that such people will still be able to visit the UK, so long as the trip is regarded as part of a policy of engagement on human rights.
Human rights experts welcomed the tougher regulations.

Shami Chakrabarti, director of civil liberties group Liberty, said: “The devil is in the detail. However given the understandable outrage when it becomes difficult to deport undesirables, it is common sense to apply greater scrutiny before allowing people accused of grave crimes from entering the UK in the first place.”
One official said over the weekend that the rules will mean that “rich and powerful people” around the will no longer have an “open ticket to the UK if they are involved in torture, murder or illegal detention – no matter if it happens here or not in the UK”.

The new rules have been drawn up in part as a response to the 2009 death of Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who was working for a British investment fund when he died in a pre-trial detention centre in Moscow.

Mr Magnitsky is thought to have been tortured to death after he was jailed by the same police who he identified as having helped orchestrate a £145m fraud against the Russian state.

Although certain people suspected of involvement in Mr Magnitsky’s death have been cleared of culpability in Russia, it is thought that the new rules would exclude such people from entering the UK.

Earlier this year backbench MPs called for the introduction of legislation to ban 60 Russians linked to Mr Magnitsky’s death from getting visas to the UK.
The Foreign Office declined to comment.

Mr Clegg has been a keen advocate on human rights, saying last year that Britain “has a proud history of international leadership” on the subject. unshaven girl займы на карту https://zp-pdl.com/best-payday-loans.php www.zp-pdl.com buy viagra online