Rayan from Wales

[pequod]

An interesting account of a journey from Saudi Arabia to Cymru....

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-65174532

Escaping the Islamic Laws for foreign workers in his country of birth, which I understand he is able to claim citizenship once 18 yo, so will avoid the rules which he claims are the reason for his spending $$$ and a risky journey to escape from, is the basis for his ultimate arrival in the UK to claim asylum which appears to have been accepted last year? Already on a Teacher Training course, it would appear, and I'm amazed he isn't studying Languages given his account?

Have I misunderstood (quite possible) the difference between 'asylum' and 'migration' in Rayan's case?

[E63eeeeee...]

It says his asylum application is still being processed.

I'm not sure from the story what citizenship he has, if any, but presumably he's claiming asylum from being returned to Somalia.

[pequod]

E63eeeeee... said:

It says his asylum application is still being processed.

I'm not sure from the story what citizenship he has, if any, but presumably he's claiming asylum from being returned to Somalia.

Assuming his parents are still living in Saudi, and he was born there as claimed, it may be possible to obtain a replacement birth certificate (or whatever system they use in KSA) in order to claim citizenship? Or maybe the Saudi's take a dim view of someone born of foreign parents, who decides to leave and then criticise their home country?

ETA: "I grew up in a peaceful country, I never saw a gun in my life.'' said Rayan....

Edited by pequod on Monday 10th April 17:39

Edited by pequod on Monday 10th April 17:40

[E63eeeeee...]

There are quite a lot of gaps in the story that might help make more sense of it. I thought when he was referring to his family back in Somalia he meant all of them, but who knows. He's unlikely to be returned directly to Saudi Arabia regardless of the asylum outcome.

[pequod]

E63eeeeee... said:

There are quite a lot of gaps in the story that might help make more sense of it. I thought when he was referring to his family back in Somalia he meant all of them, but who knows. He's unlikely to be returned directly to Saudi Arabia regardless of the asylum outcome.

From the article:

''Rayan (not his real name) is one of 45,728 people who crossed the English Channel to the UK last year seeking asylum. It was the last leg in his journey to safety which has taken him through five different countries, including Ukraine.

Today, Rayan is a college student in south Wales who dreams of becoming a maths teacher.

"I want to be an example for young people. I want to inspire them, show them how to live a good life. It's important for the next generation to not see difference between your colour and where you come from.".........''

This is a recent interview with Rayan which, it claims, he arrived in the UK on a dinghy last year, and is now, apparently, a college student in south Wales? How is this possible given the backlog in the system?

[E63eeeeee...]

Tbh I was a bit bemused about some of that too, to me a college student is 16-18, in which case it would make sense he's allowed to study while his application is pending because that's always been the rule for kids, but the rest of the story implies that he's well over 18, in which case I'm surprised he's able to study, but maybe that's normal these days given how long the wait is. Or maybe the bit about him waiting for a decision is wrong. Reporting on immigration across the board is frustratingly rubbish, and of course the system is complicated and plenty of people don't really understand what's happening to them.

[JuanCarlosFandango]

It could all just be a load of bks concocted by the BBC?

[pequod]

JuanCarlosFandango said:

It could all just be a load of bks concocted by the BBC?

Maybe the translation from Welsh to English is the issue?

[Saleen836]

He made his was through 5 different countries to claim asylum here in the UK, I always thought you could only claim asylum in the first safe country you could get to, he didn't so is actually a migrant and not asylum seeker

[E63eeeeee...]

Saleen836 said:

He made his was through 5 different countries to claim asylum here in the UK, I always thought you could only claim asylum in the first safe country you could get to, he didn't so is actually a migrant and not asylum seeker

Nope.

[E63eeeeee...]

Asylum seekers are a subset of migrants, not a different thing.

Anyone who asks for asylum is an asylum seeker.

Where you came via is largely irrelevant, you're assessed on whether it's safe to send you back to your home country.

There are some agreements where asylum seekers can be returned to countries they travelled through for their assessments. Voting for Brexit meant the UK left those agreements.

[Mrr T]

E63eeeeee... said:

Asylum seekers are a subset of migrants, not a different thing.

Anyone who asks for asylum is an asylum seeker.

Where you came via is largely irrelevant, you're assessed on whether it's safe to send you back to your home country.

There are some agreements where asylum seekers can be returned to countries they travelled through for their assessments. Voting for Brexit meant the UK left those agreements.

They could not be returned to any country they travelled though only the first EU country they travelled thought.

[E63eeeeee...]

Mrr T said:

E63eeeeee... said:

Asylum seekers are a subset of migrants, not a different thing.

Anyone who asks for asylum is an asylum seeker.

Where you came via is largely irrelevant, you're assessed on whether it's safe to send you back to your home country.

There are some agreements where asylum seekers can be returned to countries they travelled through for their assessments. Voting for Brexit meant the UK left those agreements.

They could not be returned to any country they travelled though only the first EU country they travelled thought.

Technically the first Dublin signatory. But in practice, given each return required a negotiation, they were usually returned to the one where there was the most evidence of them having been there, particularly if they had interacted with the authorities.

[Mrr T]

E63eeeeee... said:

Mrr T said:

E63eeeeee... said:

Asylum seekers are a subset of migrants, not a different thing.

Anyone who asks for asylum is an asylum seeker.

Where you came via is largely irrelevant, you're assessed on whether it's safe to send you back to your home country.

There are some agreements where asylum seekers can be returned to countries they travelled through for their assessments. Voting for Brexit meant the UK left those agreements.

They could not be returned to any country they travelled though only the first EU country they travelled thought.

Technically the first Dublin signatory. But in practice, given each return required a negotiation, they were usually returned to the one where there was the most evidence of them having been there, particularly if they had interacted with the authorities.

Since only EU countries where signatures to the Dublin agreement same difference. It was first EU country but other factors such as family could apply. Details here.

https://www.migrationwatchuk.org/briefing-paper/44...

The difficulty of proving first country meant few were moved.

[E63eeeeee...]

There was significant variation in how amenable different countries are to the system and what their expectations are in terms of evidence.

It was also two-way traffic that didn't always have a net benefit for the UK.

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/what-is-the-d...

[pequod]

E63eeeeee... said:

There was significant variation in how amenable different countries are to the system and what their expectations are in terms of evidence.

It was also two-way traffic that didn't always have a net benefit for the UK.

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/what-is-the-d...

What agreement does the UK have with returning Saudi nationals, such as this fellow (should he claim it), who has turned up on a dinghy on British shores? In his own words, he wasn't subjected to any violence in KSA yet, he simply wanted a different life? Maybe, applying through legal channels to come to UK rather than through a dangerous, and expensive, route, would have been the better option, given his talents!

The Saudi's aren't shy in returning unwanted foreigners to their home country, so will they welcome back one who was born in the country, albeit to foreign nationals?

[E63eeeeee...]

I'm not sure where you get the Saudi national bit from. Reading between the lines of the story it seems most likely he's a Somali citizen.