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British Home Secretary Suella Baverman left the BBC, The Guardian, The Daily Mirror and other media critical of the government's immigration law in her first official trip to Rwanda to give new impetus to deportations to the African country.


"Rwanda is ready to admit thousands of people and offer migrants the opportunity to build new lives in the country," Braverman said upon arrival in Kigali, accompanied by conservative and pro-measures media, such as The Daily Mail, The Daily Telegraph or GB News.


The BBC's exclusion from the official trip, days after the scandal over the temporary suspension of Gary Lineker for comparing the government's anti-immigrant policy to Nazi Germany, has provoked a barrage of criticism against Braverman, who personally engaged in the controversy claiming that her husband is Jewish.


The organization Index on Censorship expressed concern about the exclusion of several media outlets from its official trip. "Democracy depends on a transparent relationship between the government and the media," said Martin Bright, the organization's director. "Access to ministers, within the country or on their international visits, should not be treated as a reward for favourable coverage."


"We are deeply concerned that they and other news organizations have been excluded from a taxpayer-funded trip to Rwanda," the Guardian said in a statement. "Excluding journalists from reviewing political decisions not only harms press freedom but runs counter to government guidelines on media impartiality."

Controversial trip

The veto to the media critical of the ultraconservative Suella Braverman tarnished from beginning to end her visit to Rwanda and her meeting with President Paul Kagame to relaunch the so-called Economic Development and Immigration Agreement of the United Kingdom and Uganda.


The agreement initially includes the payment to Rwanda of 120 million pounds (135 million euros) for hosting immigrants who arrived illegally in the United Kingdom, crossing the Canal de la Macha in boats, and pending asylum applications.


The first flight, during Boris Johnson's tenure, was however cancelled in June 2022 with eight migrants on board due to the intervention in extremis of the European Court of Human Rights. Despite successive litigation, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has reiterated his intention to go ahead with the plan and begin deportations this year.


Upon arrival in Rwanda, Suella Braverman was forced to deny the figure of 200 refugees used by Rwandan government spokeswoman Yolande Makolo a year ago. "To suggest that Rwanda may take only 200 migrants is a false narrative used by critics of the plan," Braverman said. "The country has the capacity to accommodate thousands of people the moment flights start."


Throughout 2022, a total of 45,728 migrants made the crossing of the English Channel and remain temporarily housed in hotels in the United Kingdom. The new Immigration Act, currently in the pipeline, aims to deny the right to asylum to all those arriving in the UK illegally, with the exception of children and people at serious risk.


The controversial visit of Suella Braverman, daughter of Indian immigrants settled in Kenya and Mauritius, has as its mission "to reinforce the commitment of the Government with our agreement (with Rwanda) as part of the plan to stop the boats and to make it operational in the short term".

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  • United Kingdom
  • Boris Johnson
  • European Court of Human Rights
  • Kenya
  • Germany
  • Articles Carlos Fresneda