Image by @Carcazan
This week, we spoke to two people detained in Harmondsworth immigration removal centre (IRC), DAK and Seed (not their real names), who spent over an hour answering questions sent in from across the UK.
Some of their experiences are similar, some are very different. DAK has been detained in Harmondsworth for over a year; Seed for a few weeks – and yet both told us about the uncertainty, oppression and wastefulness of indefinite immigration detention.
Thanks to JRS UK and Detention Action for putting us in touch, and a particular thanks to DAK and Seed for their time, thoughtfulness and insight.
We now have not one but two people in #Harmondsworth answering your questions for #Unlocked18 on Thursday: DAK and Seed. Tweet us your questions for a chance to find out about their experience of being detained. https://t.co/IlIXswgBxT
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 27, 2018
What would you like to know about immigration detention in the UK? Ask someone currently in #Harmondsworth #detention centre using #Unlocked18 – Qs will be asked live on thurs #Time4aTimeLimit https://t.co/sDP3So8lD8
— René Cassin? (@Rene_Cassin) November 26, 2018
These Q&As are one of our favourite parts of #unlocked18. It’s so rare to hear the direct testimony of people in detention. Make sure you send your question for Dak in #Harmondsworth to @DetentionForum using #Unlocked18 https://t.co/pIjYfUUaP0
— ScotDetaineeVisitors (@SDVisitors) November 26, 2018
We'll be holding a live Q&A with DAK and Seed, both currently detained in #Harmondsworth #detention centre, this morning from 11am. Tweet us your questions using #Unlocked18.
Image by @Carcazan pic.twitter.com/2BbTpJoc4E
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Check out @DetentionForum #Unlocked18 who are holding Q&A session with detainees currently in the UK'S Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre- happening now! https://t.co/bl7zdVFcnp
— ECRE (@ecre) November 29, 2018
DAK: I’ve been 16 months in detention. I’ve been in Harmondsworth for over a year and before that almost 3 months in the Verne. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK: The system – how long people are detained and how they are treated. I’ve been living in the UK for 14 years. I never expected this could exist here, where people come for a better life. I’m sure Her Majesty the Queen is not aware of what’s going on behind bars. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/38ztrwTiCT
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
@FreedVoices ask about Home Office treatment…
DAK: It’s barbaric. They think they’re above the law. They do what they believe is for their benefit and nothing else. If I do a mistake and you keep punishing me, punishing me, punishing me, then who’s the criminal? #Unlocked18 https://t.co/R2JXh02761
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
https://twitter.com/FreedVoices/status/1067400908450013184
Q from @FreedVoices : What is your best and worst memory of being detained?
DAK: The best is people getting released. There’s the hope that one day this might come to you. The worst is that detention is unlimited in a country that is a democracy. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/RyQ4VMixnu
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
https://twitter.com/FreedVoices/status/1067447291898970112
@FreedVoices ask about Home Office treatment…
DAK: It’s barbaric. They think they’re above the law. They do what they believe is for their benefit and nothing else. If I do a mistake and you keep punishing me, punishing me, punishing me, then who’s the criminal? #Unlocked18 https://t.co/R2JXh02761
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
@FreedVoices ask: how long will you be detained?
DAK: The problem is in #detention it’s not like a prison, we don’t know how long we’re going to be detained. It’s not time limited – we don’t know what will happen. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/phWLIi78cK
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
@Lauramaharris asks what gifts would be useful in detention.
Seed: There is a kind of product I used when I was outside detention that helped with the pain. But the most important thing is for me to get out. #unlocked18 https://t.co/i2amSftHeS
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
https://twitter.com/Lauramaharris/status/1068110906809298944
Detention Forum volunteer Alice asks about visits from friends or family in #detention
Seed: My family want to visit but me but there is a lot of stress people have to go through to visit – travelling, checking in. For me, there is no point. I will get out soon. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/6d5kRLGOXe
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK: I’ve got friends who visit and my girlfriend visits. It’s not too far to travel to Harmondsworth. Not as far as the Verne, where they had to drive for 5-6 hours and often the roads were bad. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
@SimonHilditch and @RefugeesAtHome asked about access to legal advice in #detention
DAK: I have a solicitor from Duncan Lewis. They’ve just changed the solicitor. The previous one was very good, the new one is just getting started. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/LgmiW7zM0b
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Q: What do you miss most in #detention
Seed: It is my freedom I’m missing most. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/Q1yRwtrvP9
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
This really gets to the heart of the matter. Please do follow #Unlocked18 for insightful and poignant commentary on #detention from people currently detained. https://t.co/3rD2Tv91D8
— ScotDetaineeVisitors (@SDVisitors) November 29, 2018
DAK is are currently detained in #Harmondsworth IRC, and is answering questions this morning about immigration detention. #Unlocked18
DAK tells us that he has already been detained for 16 MONTHS! https://t.co/U8jmbavsRX
— These Walls Must Fall (@wallsmustfall) November 29, 2018
DAK: There are people who work with dignity like @JRSUK @DetentionAction @BIDdetention
It’s very positive. At least you’ve got someone there to listen to you, to feel how you feel. If I don’t share my feeling with anyone else, it really affects my health. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/XuZ6XJG14h— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
A question from our quarterly meeting earlier this year: Describe a typical day in #detention
DAK: There’s not a lot of activities in here. The only thing you can do is spend time on the computer, the art room. I do a lot of research. #Unlocked18 pic.twitter.com/6aDcZnL2NP
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Seed (1/2): I’m totally stressed, so there’s little I can do. If I’m not working, I just eat and sleep. If there’s any casework, you can do that – sending emails or fax. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK: There are a lot of issues. Out of 16 nurses they have only 8 or 9. So appointments take a long time. It’s affecting people’s life. People have self-harmed because they couldn’t get sleeping tablets. There are people trying to hang themselves and for what reason? #Unlocked18 https://t.co/95gFYe3O0d
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
From @JRSUK : What advice would you give someone who's newly detained?
Seed: Detention centre is another world entirely. It’s different from the normal world. People should just gather their spirits and get out of detention. That’s it. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/qDZtwSxmev
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK: Be patient, that’s the most important thing. Causing trouble or being violent, it doesn’t make a difference. You can prove them wrong, try to prove yourself. If the Home Office is trying to score a goal, be a good goal keeper. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK's advice to someone who is newly detained: "If the Home Office is trying to score a goal, be a good goal keeper." #Unlocked18 #TheseWallsMustFall https://t.co/kaCMxmT1th
— Right to Remain (@Right_to_Remain) November 29, 2018
Q from Detention Forum volunteer @CCionnfhaolaidh ..
DAK: I want to meet an MP. We want to reach our voice into a place that could change a little bit. Our voice in detention speaking out, that could change my life and life of others in detention for the better. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/P40Db6E8xr
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Q: What is most frustrating about #detention
Seed: We are the oppressed at the moment. The oppressor will never see what he is doing wrong. I hear the words ‘human rights’, but in here I don’t understand what that means. I don’t see anything ‘human rights’ here. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/rSGjrsYWDo
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Throughout this #Unlocked18 Q and A with Seed and DAK – currently in #Harmondsworth – what has come through is how norms of democracy and justice are absent when it comes to immigration detention
"I hear the words ‘human rights’, but… I don’t see anything ‘human rights’ here." https://t.co/Fk4NVymUsH
— Right to Remain (@Right_to_Remain) November 29, 2018
DAK (1/2): They spend £36k a year detaining people. You could give that to me and I could become the most educated person, or you could give it to someone with poor mental health. Everyone should have the chance to prove themselves; in here you don’t have the chance. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/uC1KI6VZON
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK (2/2): I have an address, a surety, I’ve been for bail three times. Last time was 7 weeks ago. The judge gave them 4 weeks to make a decision and nothing has happened. The judge was fair and honest. But it doesn’t look like the Home Office is doing anything. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Q from @LisaMatthewsRtR and @hurleycat38 : what would you be doing now if you weren't detained?
Seed: One way or another you should be doing something positive for people in need. Before, I was working with a charity raising money for people with diabetes. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/Z6yViaiTc5
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Detention deprives individuals of their liberty, but it also deprives communities of those individuals… #Unlocked18 #TheseWallsMustFall https://t.co/9AC2HWmbv3
— These Walls Must Fall (@wallsmustfall) November 29, 2018
Q: What would you say to the Prime Minister?
DAK (1/2): I would say, if I was you I would have resigned a long time ago. But I never want to meet her. She’s hurt me. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/IV27UnvKkV
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK (2/2): She has ruined British foreign policy. And she’s still doing it, with Brexit. Your children will need to pay for a visa to travel to Europe. This won’t bother the rich people, it will only affect the poor people. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK: Most people get on with each other. I’ve been detained 16 months and never had an issue with anyone. We live in a place where you see the same people every day. So you have to make that work. Myself, I would do anything to help others. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/Ui2lcHLr2J
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Q: What gives you strength in detention?
DAK: To keep ourselves alive and push ourselves in a positive way we need activities to keep ourselves busy. Classes that help you to educate yourself and move forward. For me, I use the internet or go to the library. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/i4fPcPpk2E
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK: Her Majesty the Queen and the public should be aware of what is going on behind the bars of detention centres. Try to raise a voice so that people know that something’s going on in detention that shouldn’t be. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/MAr304l7F6
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK (1/2): It’s disappointing when you don’t know what’s going to happen with your life. Every day I have to think about whether I’m going to be released on the street with no right to work. We are stuck in the middle where we don’t know what’s going to happen. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/7RmVGxGqgK
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK (2/2): 16 months is a long time. There are lot of things we could do. Why do we not have any skills we can learn? I could become a lawyer in 16 months. I could have had a child, and that child could be walking by now. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
So much you could do in 16 months! Imagine all the cumulative time lost to detention instead spent in lives being led in our communities rather than stuck in limbo like this. Time for a better system that respects our individual humanity and freedom. #unlocked18 https://t.co/AFUwCTqDS7
— AVID (@AVIDdetention) November 29, 2018
Seed: When I was first detained, I was going from pillar to post to try to get myself released. I’ve put in a bail application. But I don’t have a lawyer, I’ll have to represent myself. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK's response to our question about how it feels to have your liberty taken away indefinitely and to be facing such an uncertain future. The system in this country is broken – no one should have to experience indefinite detention and the prospect of destitution #Unlocked18 https://t.co/WDzR6Vl6Qv
— AVID (@AVIDdetention) November 29, 2018
2nd question from @AVIDdetention
DAK: Keeping people so long, separating them from society, this is the worst thing that humans would ever do. Sometimes I just want to tell the Home Office, what kind of human are you? It’s abusive and humiliating. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/GWlcWrTnu8
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
.@libertyhq asks about people's state of mind in #detention
Seed: It’s affecting me mentally. I have been having problems with my health. I am psychologically stressed. I’ve never had this before. We are looking for protection and instead we’re seeing something else. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/RBmGGPwAMC
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK: I take good care of myself, I am tidy. Even if I’m stressed, there are officers I really get on with and I talk to them. So it’s not affected my life in a bad way. I will try anything to make my life move forward and be better. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
2nd question from @libertyhq : how many hours are you locked in your room?
DAK: We’re locked inside from 1-2pm, and in our rooms from 9pm-8am. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/RBmGGPObEa
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Q from Detention Forum volunteer @Gala_dr
DAK: I've shared a room with about 28 people. They all left after a few weeks. I’m used to being on my own. Outside, I had my own place. But I’ve never refused to share with anyone unless they are using drugs or self-harming. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/bjao8TR7pE
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
.@wallsmustfall ask what should change
Seed (1/3): People shouldn't stay in detention endlessly. They should let people know how long they'll be detained for. E.g., ‘you'll be detained for 3 months while a decision is being made’. There should be a legislative change #Unlocked18 https://t.co/nWVdZipteS
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Seed (2/3): Even if people are taken back to their country, you should rehabilitate them in detention and teach them one or two things. The system should provide rehabilitation for people who’ve been to prison, people who are addicted to drugs. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Seed (3/3): Staff should be kind and complaints should be dealt with promptly. They say they will respond to your complaint in 28 days – you might not even be here in 28 days! #Unlocked18
(Ok, so it's hard to pick just one thing!)
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Last question for today's Q&A: What do you think of the UK?
DAK (1/3): I love England. England has the most beautiful people I have ever seen in my entire life, and they’re not aware of what’s going on. Being in detention doesn’t change my view of the English public. #Unlocked18 https://t.co/azJ4WJQLiu
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK (2/3): But the policy against refugees is not fair. If you go to other parts of Europe, they don’t have detention like this. You’re supposed to be setting a good example, changing people’s lives for better in other countries, but you’re detaining people. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
DAK (3/3): We are not free in our land. That’s why I come here, to be free. I have enjoyed freedom in this country that I’ll never forget, but I’ve also been locked up for 2 years. The immigration system tries to be above the law. #Unlocked18
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
Thanks everyone for taking part in today's Q&A with two people currently held in #Harmondsworth #detention centre, including @JRSUK and @DetentionAction for putting us in touch.
Special thanks to DAK and Seed for contributing their time, insight and expertise.#Unlocked18 pic.twitter.com/Rvh2Tk575Q
— TheDetentionForum (@DetentionForum) November 29, 2018
https://twitter.com/FreedVoices/status/1068136771588943874