U.K. deportation policy on asylum-seeking children under scrutiny

Sohail Yousafzai was 13 years old when his uncle paid a smuggler to take him from Afghanistan to Europe. Now, at 18, he's in danger of being deported to a country he no longer knows.

His painful journey to the U.K. started when the Taliban murdered his father. Yousafzai, whose name has been changed to protect his identity, escaped the dangers posed by the Taliban in his village in Baghlan, Afghanistan, by walking hundreds of kilometres and at one point hiding inside a truck to reach safety.

Now a student at John Ruskin College in London, Yousafzai leans against the school's railings and holds an assignment in his hand. His eyes look tired and slightly bloodshot. He said he has trouble sleeping most nights because of the constant worry over possible deportation.

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"Before coming to the U.K. I was really young, I didn't know about nothing, I was just told 'you're going to be safe there.' Now I'm worrying about my case, my school — I can't do anything because I can't focus on my work, I can't sleep," Yousafzai told CBC news.

As the situation in Afghanistan deteriorates, there is increasing scrutiny of the U.K.'s policy regarding unaccompanied asylum-seeking children.

The policy grants failed child asylum seekers, like Yousafzai, a temporary stay until the age of 18 — often with a foster family — after which they must apply again for asylum. If they are rejected once more, they are deported to their country of origin. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism found that just one in five Afghans secures asylum at that point.

Little to go back to

Returning to Afghanistan poses serious risks for Yousafzai. In Afghanistan he faces Taliban threats, as well as difficulty finding employment and pursuing education. He cannot read or write very well in either Pashto or Dari, the two official languages of the country.

Yousafzai's western dress and language could also make him a target for kidnapping and violence. An accessory as simple as his blue Nike bag could make him stand out as a western youth.

What's worse, a few months ago Yousafzai received a letter from the British Red Cross revealing his remaining family members had been killed.

Yousafzai's is just one of the many cases of unaccompanied children living in the U.K. that refugee advocates say are being treated unfairly, staining the country's reputation.

Afghanistan isn't the only country of origin for these children, but it's a notable source of young refugees. In recent years, more than a third of the unaccompanied children seeking refuge in the U.K. have come from Afghanistan.

Of the 5,500 unaccompanied Afghan children who have sought asylum in the U.K. since 2006, more than 80 per cent have had their cases rejected. Like unaccompanied children from other regions, the majority of those rejected were given temporary stay in the U.K.  

Home Office statistics show that of the 99 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children from Afghanistan who arrived in the country between January and June this year, 20 have been granted asylum and 63 children, whose asylum claims were rejected, have been given temporary stay. The remaining 16 were refused permission to remain in the country.

Meanwhile, since 2011, the Home Office has deported more than 600 failed child asylum seekers to Afghanistan, according to a report by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism.

It's a controversial policy. Canada, in comparison, has had a formal ban on removals to Afghanistan since 1994, according to the Canada Border Services Agency. This moratorium does not apply to people who leave voluntarily, those with criminal records or those deemed to be a security risk.

Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in Canada whose claims are rejected and who do not come from an area like Afghanistan where a deportation ban exists do not receive temporary stay. Once all legal avenues have been exhausted, rejected claimants are immediately deported. Unlike in Britain, age plays no factor in removals from Canada.

'We shouldn't cut them adrift'

As the situation in Afghanistan deteriorates, there is increasing scrutiny of the U.K.'s policy.

A report by an NGO called Refugee Support Network in partnership with Oxford University, due for release in November, examines the persecution and lack of education and employment youth face when deported to Afghanistan after spending their formative years in the U.K. The report's early findings were shared in an interview with CBC News.

"People face many problems when sent back. They often cannot locate their families, find employment or attend school," said Emily Bowerman, senior programs officer at the Refugee Support Network.

Bowerman helped interview more than 30 young people who were deported to Afghanistan. The Refugee Support Network's report is the first of its kind and will include the long-term tracking of young deportees. It provides evidence of the difficulties youth face accessing education and mental health services when sent back to Afghanistan.

"We have some moral responsibility as a country towards young people who have spent their formative years here, and whatever is going to happen to them, we shouldn't cut them adrift," Bowerman said.

Disrupted lives

Adrift is how Yousafzai has felt since he reached 18 and was told his application for asylum in the U.K. had been denied.

"I'm nothing here. Like Home Office said, 'you're going to Afghanistan' — they're going to waste my time, waste my studies, everything. I'm not going to be safe in Afghanistan."

His life has already been disrupted. In March, when Yousafzai's asylum appeal was refused, he was held at an immigration detention centre for over a month awaiting deportation. During that time he missed his exams and a large amount of school work.

But he still has hope. Earlier this year, Afghan Minister for Refugees and Repatriation, Hossein Alami Balkhi, said that European countries cannot safely return people to Afghanistan, as more than 80 per cent of the region is unstable and the situation i s getting worse.

Yousafzai no longer has permission to remain in the U.K., but a court order twice this year prevented his and all other scheduled deportations to almost every province in Afghanistan.

On Aug. 24, lawyers at the Duncan Lewis law firm obtained an unprecedented injunction from the Court of Appeal preventing removals to Afghanistan. The order forbids the U.K. Home Office from deporting people to any province other than Kabul, Bamiyan and Panjshir because of the country's unstable situation.

The order is in effect until a Court of Appeal decision is made in March 2016. The case involves 30 people who were removed from chartered flights to Afghanistan earlier this year.

One of the lead cases in this litigation is Yousafzai's, and it has wide implications for the numerous people who have had stays on their deportation because of the court orders. If the court rules in favour of the asylum-seekers, Duncan Lewis lawyer Jamie Bell said he imagines that in some form the prohibitions on removals to Afghanistan may continue.

Yousafzai said he is relieved about not facing immediate deportation, but also feels confused and upset about the future.  "Why does the Home Office try to send people to Afghanistan? They spend their time here, and they know the rules of this country, they grew up here - they (the Home Office) just waste people's time."

Yousafzai is ultimately hoping to stay in the U.K. If he succeeds, he wants to become an immigration lawyer, he said, working with people who have faced similar situations to his own.