UK: Asylum seeker found hanged at Yarl's Wood
01 September 2005
On 15 September 35-year old Angolan asylum seeker, Manuel Bravo, was found hanged at Yarl's Wood Immigration detention centre, Bedfordshire. Manuel, and his 13-year old son, had been snatched from his residence in Armley, Leeds, by immigration officials the previous day. According to the Independent newspaper, Manuel, whose father was a leader of the Association of Youth Democracy which was founded in 1988 to challenge President Jose Eduardo do Santos, arrived in the UK in October 2001 after fleeing civil war. Manuel and his father had been arrested before - his parents were murdered in August 2001. Fearing for his life Manuel fled in disguise arriving at Heathrow in October 2001.
Manuel was insistent that he had not received a decision on his asylum claim when he and his son were removed to Yarl's Wood by immigration officials. He told the Rev. Alistair Kaye that he did not understand why he and his son were to be deported the following day. His last words to his son were to "be brave, work hard and do well at school". Antonio Bravo is being looked after by Bedford Social Services and supporters are asking that he be quickly placed with foster parents from the church that the family attended. The Home Office has said that he will not be deported before his 18th birthday, allowing him to finish his education. A vigil was held outside Yarl's Wood to remember to commemorate Manuel and other victims of the government's detention policies and another was held by members of his church. They have called for a public inquiry into the circumstances surrounding Manuel's death and have been supported by campaigners and human rights groups. Deborah Coles of INQUEST, an organisation that provides free, independent advice to the families and their friends on the Inquest system, said:
This death once again raises fundamental concerns about the treatment of asylum seekers in the detention centre system. What's needed is a full and independent inquiry into all the deaths because unless action is taken lives will continue to be at risk."
The Institute of Race Relations News Service has recorded the deaths of 31 asylum seekers in detention (immigration removal centres and prisons) and living in the community.
IRR http://irr.org.uk/2005/september/ha000021html; Independent 16-17.9.05; National Campaign of Anti-Deportation Campaigns website; http://www.plcosearch.com/cgi-bin/ts.pl; INQUEST -
http://www.inquest.org.uk