- guardian.co.uk, Friday 11 February 2000 01.36 GMT
Hijacking an aeroplane and risking the lives of its passengers can never be recognised as an acceptable route to asylum. It is largely due to the professionalism of the emergency teams at Stansted that this situation has been resolved peacefully and the passengers released from their terrible ordeal unharmed. The hijackers now face serious criminal charges and the possibility of long prison sentences.
The home secretary has promised personally to decide on any application for asylum emanating from the flight. However, whether the decision is made by the home secretary or an immigration officer, it has to be made objectively and in accordance with the law.
There appear to be three groups of potential asylum seekers:
• The hijackers themselves, who will have to wait until the judicial process is completed and any sentence served before an asylum claim can be considered.
• The hijackers' families - many of them women and children who face real danger if returned to either Pakistan or Afghanistan.
• Ordinary passengers who have taken advantage of their unexpected arrival in the UK to claim asylum.
The fare for the internal flight these people were on was three times the average monthly wage. Those on the flight were almost certainly affluent professionals - precisely the type of people under pressure from the current regime. This may not be enough for them to qualify as refugees, but it does make their actions more understandable.
Whatever else these individuals are, they are not "economic migrants" involved in some frivolous action to gain the dubious joys of a dodgy bed and breakfast hotel in one of Britain's inner cities and a long wait on vouchers.
Hijacking this aircraft was a desperate act by desperate men who would appear to have had good reason to fear for the safety of themselves and their families. This does not excuse the hijacking - but it does put the media hysteria into context, where the hijackers are simultaneously portrayed as Islamic fundamentalists, international terrorists and dole scroungers - a Daily Mail leader writer's dream. The simple truth is that asylum seekers in the UK live on more reduced levels of support than ordinary citizens and are entitled to only the most basic accommodation.
But, to those who want a credible asylum system which produces fair decisions quickly, this whole affair and its media coverage is a body blow and could not have come at a more critical time. We are only weeks away from the implementation of the government's new system, which will support asylum seekers as they await a decision on their asylum application.
Throughout the passage of the immigration and asylum act, we have consistently stressed that the key to restoring the credibility of the asylum system is making good-quality decisions quickly. What taxpayers and refugees both want is a system which will ensure that refugees are quickly recognised and helped to settle into the community and those who do not fulfil international criteria for protection or other humanitarian grounds should be removed following due process.
A key plank of the new system is to disperse asylum seekers away from London and the south-east. Support will mainly be provided through a voucher system which will humiliate and stigmatise the recipients. Asylum seekers are likely to be isolated from the support of their communities and in consequence many will drift back to London
It may be tempting for critics of the government's proposals to hope they fail. In my view that would be the worst disaster yet. The new support system is going to happen. If it is seen to fail this would be a further huge blow to public confidence in the asylum system and likely to lead to even harsher measures.
The Refugee Council has been vigorous in its criticisms of the home office. However, it does also need to be said that those responsible for establishing the new support system have been genuinely open and responsive. If anyone can make the system work, they can - but they cannot do it on their own. We need to do all we can to ensure the new support system does not fail.
Local politicians outside London have a particular responsibility to ensure sufficient accommodation is provided in appropriate locations and stand up to local prejudice against asylum seekers. Other service providers such as health and education need to make sure they have taken the steps necessary to provide an appropriate service.
We need to take the crisis out of the asylum system. It beggars belief that one of the richest countries in the world cannot deal with the tiny proportion of refugees who come to us without becoming hysterical. We all have a responsibility to restore some sanity to the situation.
Nick Hardwick is chief executive of the Refugee Council
