SOAS Detainee Society URGENT – Protest and Hunger Strike
Immediate Protest against yesterday's abuse of women in Yarl's Wood IRC
Hunger Strike in solidarity with those detained
Yesterday afternoon officers working at Yarl's Wood – an Immigration Removal Centre run by SERCO - violently broke up the Hunger strike that started on Thursday evening.
- The women were trapped and effectively kettled in a corridor for 8 hours with no food, water or toilet facilities
- Others ended up being trapped outside in the snow for hours without jumpers, shoes or socks
- Many were subjected to verbal assault and racial abuse
- Many suffered serious physical assault –in one known case a woman was left unable to stand and another woman's finger was almost severed and many collapsed out of exhaustion
- Furthermore all the women involved were (and in most cases still are) denied access to medical treatment
- Ambulance and police were denied access to the centre
In response to this horrific violation of human rights and blatant abuse of power we are staging an immediate demonstration from 8am to 8pm on Wednesday 10th and Thursday 11th outside Serco, this will culminate with this Fridays previously planned, large scale protest.
There will be drums, media presence, t-shirts and banners, but we need a lot of people to make an impact.
Please come to show support and solidarity with the women, children and families in Yarl's Wood and publicly condemn SERCO who are subcontracted by UKBA to run the centre.
The office is less than 15 minutes walk from SOAS, off High Holborn. See attached map for exact location.
Guardian have briefly covered this:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/feb/08/hunger-strike-women-detention-yarls-wood-protest
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