Kadir's story
At the Refugee Council we see many destitute failed asylum seekers, but Kadir’s case stands out. Kadir is a failed asylum seeker from the Sudan, and we met him in 2004. After being refused asylum he became destitute and homeless. Kadir had been brutally tortured at home and had escaped to this country where he hoped to find sanctuary. Yet, he was reduced to sleeping rough or in churches or relying on friends. But his story doesn’t end there. After talking to him, we found that he had suffered brain damage and was too distressed to complete his asylum assessment interview. Despite this, he remains under threat of deportation.
Kadir had this to say about his situation: "I feel really depressed, unhappy and hopeless. I smell filthy and cannot walk amongst other people. I feel less than human - like an animal. I hate myself. I left my country to escape imprisonment, suffering and death. Here I fear hunger and homelessness."
The Sukula family
The extraordinary case of the Sukula family from the Democratic Republic of Congo has been well-documented in the press. Their story is one of many that show the damaging effect that Section 9 of the Asylum and Immigration Act of 2002 can have on asylum seeking families.
Kiala Sukula, an opponent of the regime in the DRC, fled to Britain after police beat up his wife Ngieidi and threatened the lives of their six children.
After their asylum claim was rejected in August 2005, the family had their benefits taken away from them for 12 weeks as part of a Section 9 pilot, and they were forced to survive on the charity of others. Their situation reached the point where they couldn’t even provide nappies and baby milk for their nine-month-old daughter. This made Mrs Sukula extremely depressed, and she had to be placed on medication. The irony is that the Sukulas really want to work and contribute to society but can’t because of their status.
