UK government lost 176 Albanian child asylum seekers, didn't notify Tirana

Out of 200 asylum-seeking children that have gone missing from hotels provided by the British Government, 88% were Albanian, according to Minister Lord Murray, sparking outrage in Tirana over the lack of responsibility from UK authorities and the fact that they were not notified.

“The Home Office have no power to detain unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in these hotels, and we do know that some of them go missing. Many of them that go missing are subsequently traced,” he said in response to Liberal Democrat peer Paul Scriven.

He added that a total of 176 of the children were Albanian. British NGOs have continually sounded the alarm over children going missing and being abducted from accommodation provided by the UK Home Office to keep them safe.

Philip Ishola, chief executive of anti-child trafficking organisation Love146, told The Guardian they had offered to assess accommodation to ensure it was safe. This was rejected, and subsequent warnings have been ignored.

“This is more than a year ago, and it was obvious then that there were serious concerns about the safety of young people in these hotels. Since then, the Home Office has repeatedly warned that children are going missing, potentially to be trafficked and exploited, yet these concerns have been ignored,” he said.

Police told The Guardian that out of all reported missing cases, less than half had been found. It is reported that those missing could be at risk of trafficking as cars were spotted near the hotel, picking up children from the street and some arrests were made.

Daniel Sohege, the Director of Stand For All, a human rights advocacy organisation with a particular interest in refugee law and protection, condemned the revelations.

“The [UK] government has done nothing but attack Albanians, ignoring how Albanian young people are one of the most at-risk groups of child trafficking. Its rhetoric, its hostility and its indifference to their safety have led to so many going missing and being exploited,” he wrote on Twitter while calling on the Home Office to ensure all children, including Albanians, are provided with protection under existing child protection frameworks.

The Child Rights Centre in Albania (CRCA) told EURACTIV that the UK government has obligations under the law to protect them and questioned whether it was because they are foreign that they do not care.

“These facts raise a very serious question on the ability of the UK Government to protect children. International law requires from UK to protect unaccompanied children same as British children. One has to wonder if this lack of care and responsibility comes from the fact that they are foreign children.”

Relations between the UK and Albania have faltered over the ongoing migration issue. Last year saw an uptick in Albanian asylum seekers filing applications in the UK, with several thousand arriving by boat during the summer and autumn.

This led to the British Government announcing crackdowns on Albanians and Home Secretary Suella Braverman likening their arrival to an “invasion”. This sparked outrage in Tirana, with Prime Minister Edi Rama calling the rhetoric xenophobic and telling the UK government not to blame Albania for its policy failings and internal strife.

At the time of the apparent crackdown on Albanians, the ruling Conservative Party was facing historic lows in popularity polls and was reeling from the departure of former prime minister Boris Johnson, followed by Liz Truss, and then the arrival of current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

But by January, the situation was tense once again as Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick posted a video stating the government is working to “find the Albanians, detain them, to take them to the airport and get back to Tirana” for “gaming the system” and adding they included “dangerous criminals.”

Albanian Foreign Minister Olta Xhacka reacted with shock, stating Jenrick was just using such language in return for votes.

“A verbal lynching of a whole nation in language that sounds like the Minister is declaring open season on #Albanians mere weeks after a Joint Communique UK & Albanian Prime Ministers praised the role of the #Albanian diaspora in the #UK & its significant contribution to the culture, economy & society of both countries. A shameful singling out of a community from a minister of a great democracy that brings back horrifying memories with an unbearable brutality!”

As for the missing Albanian children, a government spokesperson told EURACTIV that they had no notification of the matter and the first they had heard about the concerning situation was in the media.

(Alice Taylor | Exit.al)