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Protest to shut down Yarl's Wood Women's Immigration Detention Centre, Town Hall, Manchester, UK. © Linda Dawn Hammond / IndyFoto.com March 1, 2014.

Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre is a notorious immigration detention centre at Milton Ernest in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire. Privately run by Serco and with mostly female detainees, there have been reported deaths and allegations of physical and sexual abuse. Women are being deported back to countries where they face risk of imprisonment, torture and /or certain death, in particular those identified as belonging to the LGBT community.

 

Demo in Manchester UK - Three Videos Copyright Linda Dawn Hammond / Indyfoto.com 2014 from demonstration, including songs.

Song of home to Shut Down Yarl's Wood Women's Immigration Detention Centre, Demo in Manchester UK

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9c8GCHJiQo

 

Singing to Shut Down Yarl's Wood Women's Immigration Detention Centre, Demo in Manchester UK

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3K8Ax5o4cxA

 

Shut Down Yarl's Wood Women's Immigration Detention Centre, Demo in Manchester UK

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1t6n2tEk34

 

 

Info from the WAST website-

 

Yarlswood Action 1st March

 

Start International Women's Day with Action in Manchester

Shut down Yarl's Wood Women's Immigration Detention Centre!

 

Why is the UK locking up women and exposing them to further abuse and degradation, when they have stood up for women's rights, fled sexual violence and abuse and have been denied basic human rights in their countries of origin?

END THE SYSTEMATIC ABUSE IN YARLSWOOD:

DEMAND A FULL PUBLIC INQUIRY

 

SATURDAY 1ST MARCH AT 5PM

MEET OUTSIDE MANCHESTER TOWN HALL ON THE ALBERT SQUARE COBBLES

 

COME AND SHOW YOUR SUPPORT AND SIGN THE PETITION HERE www.gopetition.com/petitions/public-inquiry-into-yarls-wo...

 

Find out the real story from women who've been there Join WAST, Safety4Sisters and Movement for Justice Campaigners. Bring ANY Musical Noise Makers

 

Women detainees and ex-detainees have been coming forward to speak out about the abuse they suffered and witnessed, and to demand redress. The racist and sexist regime, of legal, psychological and physical abuse which women frequently describe as mental torture at Yarl's Wood, has been covered up for far too long.

The women imprisoned in Yarl's Wood are systematically set up for abuse by the fact that they are treated as liars, who must prove themselves truthful whilst being detained indefinitely.

By law the 'burden of proof' in the asylum & immigration system means they are guilty until proven innocent. The women in Yarl's Wood have between them successfully escaped every kind of abuse and violence that women commonly face around the world -- rape, sexual abuse, forced marriage, Female Genital Mutilation, trafficking, domestic violence, child abuse, anti-gay persecution. It is known that violence against women and girls is common worldwide. Yet their claims are routinely disbelieved, and their credibility attacked. Is it any surprise that they are targeted for sexual abuse by guards in detention? The sexual abuse and its cover-up that was publicly exposed by The Observer (14th September 2013) are the inevitable products of this regime.

The public exposure of sexual abuse has come about because of the strength of a detainee who refused to be silent. There are many more ready to follow.

 

MORE DETAILS EMAIL:

WAST -- womentogether@wast.org.uk

MFJ -- mfjmanchester@googlegroups.com

 

- See more at:

 

www.wast.org.uk/yarlswood-action-1st-march/#sthash.CnPs1O...

www.wast.org.uk/

 

ARTICLES

 

www.politics.co.uk/news/2014/03/31/labour-demands-urgent-...

 

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/yarls-wood-immigr...

 

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/yarls-wood-death-...

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Uploaded on May 23, 2014
Taken on March 1, 2014