On February 9th, Ayman Alfsain, a refugee film director, was looking forward to his career and preparing to apply for British citizenship. However, the next day, everything shifted drastically for him and many others.
The government revealed that refugees would typically be denied the chance to apply for British citizenship, even if they have permission to live and work in the UK.
The Minister argued that refugees often arrive illegally, traveling in perilous ways, such as on dinghies and trucks, which supposedly disqualifies them from the “good character” necessary for citizenship. The Refugee Council estimates that around 71,000 refugees could be negatively impacted by this new policy.
“Now, individuals like me, who have never broken the law, are treated worse than criminals,” Alfsain remarked.
Congress will discuss several amendments to the Border Protection, Asylum and Immigration Bill on Monday. Labour MP Stella Creasy has proposed an amendment stating that good character requirements should not contravene the UK’s international legal obligations. This clause is among the most contentious parts of the bill, facing opposition from a variety of groups including charities, trade unions, faith leaders, lawyers, human rights advocates, and refugees.
Alfsain, who escaped Syria after being imprisoned twice for protesting against the Assad regime, narrowly survived a bombing near Aleppo. He arrived in the UK in 2017 and received refugee status in 2019.
He supports a High Court challenge driven by friends of Syrian refugees, who must remain unnamed for legal reasons. One of his friends was in the midst of applying for British citizenship when the new policy regarding refugee citizenship was announced. This legal challenge claims the new regulations are unlawful and conflict with the United Nations Refugee Convention.
Alfsain has put significant effort into integrating into British society and now speaks English exceptionally well, even claiming, “My English is better than my Arabic now!”
During the initial lockdowns of the pandemic, he bought old cars and delivered food and medicine to elderly and vulnerable individuals confined to their homes.
“I enjoy celebrating both Christmas and Eid. I applied for British citizenship in September, eagerly anticipating my first British passport and the opportunity to vote. But now, those aspirations seem unreachable. Refugees truly put in hard work,” he stated.
He has contributed to various films, including the Syrian film “The Swimmer,” and is developing short films with the BBC. Alfsain described his experiences working on “The Great Escaper” alongside Michael Caine, expressing how friendly and supportive he found British people regarding refugee issues.
Jed Pennington, who oversees public law and human rights at Wilsons’ lawyers, is leading the challenge against the citizenship denial policy, questioning the rationale behind making the journeys to safety so perilous.
