Thousands of asylum seekers are to be sent a new questionnaire that could be used to make decisions on their claims in a bid to cut the soaring backlog of cases.
A leaked document obtained by Sky News reveals about 12,000 people from Afghanistan, Syria, Eritrea, Libya and Yemen will get the document – and will have to respond within 20 days or their claims will be invalidated.
While critics have called it an “amnesty in all but name”, others have questioned if the time-frame is fair given asylum seekers often speak little or no English and have limited access to help.
Among the questions on the paper is a requirement to provide documents or evidence to prove identity.
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If the applicant is scared to ask the authorities in the nation they are fleeing, they are asked if they can contact family members to act on their behalf “without placing yourself or them at risk”.
They are also asked who they fear, why, and what happened to create this fear.
The questionnaire also wants to know if asylum seekers have been employed by the state, army, police or private security companies.
A list of “all organisations (cultural, religious, political, military, other) you have been a part of” is also requested.
The UK government also wants to know the “key events” which led to someone claiming asylum – and when they took place.
People will also be asked about the route they took to the UK, whether they passed through other countries they could have claimed asylum in, and if so why they did not.
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The questionnaire also wants to find out who arranged the journey and how much it cost.
Applicants are asked to fill out certain details then write a statement which answers almost 40 questions.
Here is the full list of what they have to answer:
Who are you and where are you from:
• Do you have any documents or other evidence to confirm who you are?
• Do you have any documents or other evidence to confirm your country of origin?
• If not, why? If you don’t fear officials in your country such as the government or police, can you obtain documentary evidence such as a birth certificate, national ID card, passport or driver’s licence? If you do fear officials in your country, is it possible to email or telephone family members or friends in your country of origin to request these without placing yourself or them at risk?
• If not, can you provide us with some details to evidence who you are and where you are from?
Who do you fear:
• What is the name of the person, group of people, or organisation that you fear?
• What power or influence does the person, group or organisation you fear hold in your country of origin? For example, do they hold an official position in a company or political party, or member of a state authority and why do you think they could use their position to cause you harm?
• Do you fear your own government, authorities or other officials in a position of authority such as the police, army, judiciary etc?
Why do you fear this person/group/organisation:
• What do you fear would happen to you in your country of origin and what is the reason this would happen?
What happened to create this fear:
• What events took place that resulted in your fear of returning to your country of origin?
Employment in your home country:
• What was your last employment/job role before you left your home country?
• Who was your employer and what was their address?
• Have you ever been employed by the government? If so, please provide details to include as applicable: dates of employment, rank, role and primary responsibilities
• Have you ever been employed by the military? If so, please provide details to include, as applicable: dates of employment, locations of deployment, including start and end dates, rank, role and primary responsibilities
• Have you ever employed been employed by the police, intelligence services and/or private security companies? If so, please provide details to include, as applicable: dates of employment, rank, role and primary responsibilities
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Membership of organisations:
• Please list and provide detail of all organisations (cultural, religious, political, military, other) you have been a part of – this information should detail your role/responsibilities within each organisation i.e. leader, member, staff member, associate, assistant, volunteer etc including dates of involvement, locations.
When did key events take place that resulted in your fear of returning to your country of origin:
• Provide the date when these events took place.
Where did these events take place:
• Did these events take place in your country of origin or after you arrived in the UK?
• Did this happen in one place in your country of origin or does your fear extend to all parts of the country?
How did this situation develop:
• What are the reasons behind the events that took place?
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Did you seek help from the authorities in your country of origin:
• Did you approach authorities in your country of origin, such as the police, or other organisations, such as tribal leaders or local politicians, to see if they could assist you?
• If so, what was the result?
• If not, why did you choose not to approach these parties?
Did you try to move to another part of your country of origin:
• Did you try to move to another area of your country of origin in order to avoid the person or people you fear?
• If so, what was the result?
• If not, why did you choose not to move to another part of your country of origin?
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How did you get to the UK:
• What date did you leave your country of origin?
• How did you leave your country of origin?
• Did you use your own passport or identity document?
• Did you pass through a checkpoint such as an airport, seaport or land border with another country?
• Which countries did you pass through on your way to the UK?
• Did you claim asylum in any other country on your way to the UK? If you did not, why did you not claim asylum in any of these countries?
• Do you have permission to live in any other country or do you hold any other nationality?
• Did you arrange this journey yourself or did you use an agent?
• How much did your journey to the UK cost? Who paid for it?
• Were you subject to human trafficking (the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of people through force, fraud or deception, with the aim of exploiting them for profit) or modern slavery (severe exploitation of other people for personal or commercial gain) during your journey to or after you arrived in the UK?
• If you were already in the UK when you realised that you could not return to your country of origin, did you claim asylum immediately? If not, why not?
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Since you have arrived in the UK:
• Has anything happened in your country since you left that may put you at risk?
• Have you been involved in any activities since arriving in the UK that would put you at risk if you returned home?
