Post by Dan Dare on Nov 20, 2023 10:36:05 GMT
Members may recall the case of the convicted rapist who was removed from a deportation flight to Somalia via Turkey after other passengers (British holidaymakers) demanded he be hauled off a Turkish Airlines flight at Heathrow.
Five years later he has finally been removed, but only after officials offered a 'care package' in the form of mental health medication and psychological services at a clinic in Mogadishu, as full-board accommodation in a local hotel.
This extraordinary measure was apparently necessary to avert a last-minute attempt to have the deportation cancelled on human rights grounds.
This extraordinary measure was apparently necessary to avert a last-minute attempt to have the deportation cancelled on human rights grounds.
According to the Times, "Ahmed dragged his deportation fight through at least 24 tribunal or court hearings, in front of 20 or more judges, while his lawyers attempted to keep their names secret. His appeal was aided by Mary Harper, the BBC’s Africa editor, who was hired as an expert witness." Legal and other costs are reported to total over £1 million.
The involvement of a BBC employee in his defence, for which it is said she received a fee of £ 3000 is an interesting aspect of the case, but apparently not an unusual one. Evidently she has appeared as an expert witness in at least eight other deportation cases while employed by the BBC as its Africa Editor. Nice work if you can get it.
