ON 9 February, there was a successful lobby of the Home Office
against the threat to deport Pakistani journalist Mansoor Hassan. After
the lobby Mansoor Hassan told Christian Bunke of Manchester National
Union of Journalists (NUJ) why his family had to flee to Britain.
The Home Office, ignoring known threats to his life and safety, had
turned down his asylum claim. Mansoor explains how his family and the
NUJ were campaigning to reverse that decision.
"I COME from a farmer family and my investigative journalism
started with writing about companies, linked to high-ranking officials
and politicians, selling adulterated pesticides to farmers. I then
started writing about other issues such as honour killings – the many
cases of young girls being killed, forced marriages and domestic
violence – and also how drug trafficking trapped local youths.
The people involved in things like adulteration of pesticides and
honour killings are very powerful, with links to the police. Very
low-paid Pakistani police depend on these politicians and are given
money as a bribe.
I wrote about these things. As a result, they torched my home, they
tried to kill me and my son and my wife. I am a journalist, I can live
with this. But my family have nothing to do with this. They want safety.
This is why we fled to Britain.
Basically, the British government accepted everything I said. The
Home Office admit: ‘Yes, you were persecuted. Your house was burned
down. You were sacked by your employer. You were threatened.’ But they
don’t want to accept my case as they don’t want to see an asylum case
brought against Pakistan, which could damage the relationship between
the British and the Pakistani government that supports the USA and
Britain in the so-called ‘war against terror’.
I joined the NUJ when we came here. I put my case to the union and
they are campaigning for my right to stay here. My wife and myself do
voluntary work. Today we had a case of a Pakistani woman, a victim of
domestic violence and human trafficking. Her asylum case got refused.
Today, we went to a solicitor with her.
Hopefully we can link up all the families seeking asylum and start
fighting for our right to stay. Many families are contacting us. When we
were lobbying the Home Office, a Zimbawean group contacted us, asking
whether we can have collaboration. I said ‘yes’.
The 2 April demonstration* will be a great event. The NUJ will play a
leading role in building for that. As an NUJ member, I am extremely
grateful for what they did for me. We should get other trade unions
involved in the campaign.
This is not only about asylum. This is about basic human rights.
Trade unions fight for ordinary people and are very effective
organisations. We have to keep them involved."
- More details from Mansoor Hassan and Family Defence Campaign, NUJ,
5th floor, Arthur House, Chorlton Street, Manchester M1 3FH. - Demonstration against deportations: Stop attacks on asylum rights,
civil rights and social rights. Saturday 2 April, 12.30 Whitworth
Park, Oxford Road, Manchester.
