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Meltem Avcil

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Ranked #7858 in People, #107789 overall

Rated G. (Control what you see)

Fight For Meltem!

 

If you want to help out email Prime Minister Gordon Brown to protest

browng@parliament.uk

and the Home Secretary at homesecretary.submissions@homeoffice.qsi.gov.uk.

A letter from Meltem Avcil, aged 13 behind the Wire at Yarl's Wood IRC 

My name is Meltem Avcil. I have lived in the UK since September 2001. Our family was initially dispersed to Bradford where we lived for six months and then to Doncastor, where we have lived ever since. I am due to be deported with my mom to Germany tomorrow Friday 12th of October.

I was born in Turkey. In Turkey the life was so difficult in our village my mum and dad got persecuted like everyday. They were living in the fear of persecution all the time and that fear never stopped.

One day they thought if we live like this there is no point of living. Finally I was born. My parents said to themselves we have to do something about this. They moved to Germany when I was 6 year old. Germany refused to give us asylum, so our family made their way to the UK - this was in September 2001.

Please think for a minute - if we had not come to UK, Germany would have sent us back to Turkey. From there I would have the same persecution. I know you might be thinking how can they persecute a little girl but I'm sure they do. Because in this country, the UK, there is something called human right. But in Turkey they don't have that so then we moved to UK and claimed for asylum but they refused that in 2005.

Immigration 'Snatch squads' first came for us at 7 o'clock in 2005 and bought us to Yarl's Wood removal central. I was small then I did not know anything, after three days they released us. From that day I could not get a bit of sleep in my eyes as I was growing up. Can you feel how I felt always thought what's going to happen to us tomorrow?

My dad ran away in 2006. I didn't feel anything. My mom was sad about it. We have never heard from him and have no idea where he is or why he left.

Was thinking again and again there is a big difference between asylum child and child who has leave to remain in UK. I never thought they were different.

When a friend asks you "can you come to my party next week" the child that is an asylum seeker thinks first what is going to happen tomorrow? All day all night always asking them, what is going to happen? But when it comes to the party day. You feel nothing happened. Why do I have to live with this feeling all the time? And you start thinking about that as well you think the questions get more and more you can't concentrate on your work.

In August 2007 the immigration came for us again in the morning at 7 o'clock. My friends were sleeping in our house. As soon as my mom opened door they rushed in. They do that to all families but can't they think why do they have to come in the morning? Sometimes they awake small babies from their hot bed! Even sometimes they get teenagers to think y future is down. They said to us to be quick, they were shouting in our ears. One time they lead my friends away with out her saying bye to me! How do they feel that I'm never going to see her again?

Anyway they took us to the car and drive us to the police station, told us to stay there and wait, there is another car going to come and take you to the removal centre. The car came and it was awful. For a minute I thought to my self am I an animal? They even treat animals better then that. The car had a cage. I said to myself I wished I had died and never saw this day.

The escorts bought us to Yarl's Wood. And since that day I haven't seeing no friends. It has been 1 month and 3 weeks I'm here. I tell you it has no difference than a jail. Put your hands to your heart and think this girl's family, friends and loved ones are all in this country.

What would this girl do in a different country? How would she survive in different country one that she doesn't even know?

Now I need your help for the first and last time. Please help me!

I need a solicitor for myself

Also an appeal to the Home Secretary not to remove my mom and me and probably the airline as well

I can't do this from Yarl's Wood, I don't even know how.

Please anyone, any groups if you read this message, contact me immediately.

Meltem Avcil,
Yarl's Wood IRC Thursday 11th October

From PAIH 

If you want to help out email Prime Minister Gordon Brown to protest browng@parliament.uk and the Home Secretary,homesecretary.submissions@homeoffice.qsi.gov.uk.

'We have just been informed that government authorization has been granted to Home Office officials to charter a private jet to remove 14 year old Hall Cross Lower pupil, Meltem Avcil, and her mother, either today or first thing tomorrow. We have been informed that removal is IMMINENT and "use of force" has been authorized.

Meltem Avcil, whose 14th birthday is today, had been assessed by doctors from Medical Justice yesterday. There was concern about Meltem's psychological state, as a result of being incarcerated for three months at Yarlswood Detention Centre, after being dawn raided by an immigration snatch squad at their flat in Doncaster, their home for the past six years. Doctors requested she be transferred to Bedford hospital for assessment.

Until literally minutes ago, Meltem's supporters believed she had been transferred to Bedford hospital along with her mother. Unfortunately, our sources have informed us that it was "extremely worrying" that Meltem was being taken from Yarls Wood WITH her mother.

What is most worrying of all is that the Children's Commissioner has taken up Meltem's case and Dianne Abbott MP raised her case in the House of Commons yesterday. Meltem's case was also highlighted in today's Independent newspaper.

Meltem's mobile phone has been cut off. During her time at Yarls Wood she says she was denied access to newspaper coverage of her case. The Home Office has cut off all communication with Meltem's lawyers, despite counsel standing by to carry out a judicial review of her case.

We are concerned that Meltem's school, Hall Cross Lower, responded to Meltem's predicament by saying they "wish her the best of luck for the future" . We are also concerned that the National Union of Teachers, where protests were held today in Doncaster, have issued no statement on the treatment of Meltem Avcil.'

PAIH News 

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Google Blogs 

Joy as Meltem given permission to stay
A FORMER Doncaster schoolgirl who was snatched from her home by immigration officials has been told she can stay in the country. Former Hall Cross School pupil Meltem Avcil, aged 15, and her mother Cennet were removed from their ...
Told you we could change the world!
Do you remember Meltem Avcil? (See my posts here and here.) Meltem personified the evil and inhuman practice prevalent in this country of treating vulnerable refugee children like unsolicited junk mail. ...
LATEST NEWS: MELTEM AVCIL 11.30AM UPDATE
The UK childrens commissioner Sir Al Ainsley-green is at this moment visiting Meltem Avcil at Bedford Hospital NHS trust. Prior to this visit, Meltem said: ?I hope he can stop what the government is doing to us. ...
What happened next Kurdish girl wins asylum
A 14-year-old Kurdish refugee has won her claim for asylum in the UK after the Government agreed to end attempts to deport her family to Turkey. Meltem Avcil and her mother Cennet spent three mo...

Meltem's Testimony 

Meltem Avcil's Testimony

At 3.25 am, some officers came into the small room I share with my mother. Ten minutes later, they took us down to the reception.

At 3.45 am, five escorts, one woman and four men arrived; the woman searched our bodies in front of the waiting men. Then, one of the men escorts, came up to me, he was talking loudly, looking with a mean face, and said:

"If you refuse to go on the plane we will handcuff both of you and tie your legs. Okay?"

They took us to a black van, two escorts next to me, one next to my mum, the other two in the front. They chatted by themselves during the journey. I could hear my mum crying very quietly. I wasn't crying. The lady escort asked me what year at school I am in, it was a strange question because I was locked up, not in school. I said

'Year 9'. Then, she said,

"You must be looking forward to your GCSEs".

I didn't answer, but my tears came I couldn't help it so I looked out the window. Then she said,

"well, obviously not.".

They started chatting amongst themselves. Then that male escort said to me:

"You know if you refuse to go on the plane, I will handcuff your mum and tie her feet."

I did not answer, I didn't like him saying things about my mum. They went quiet, and he told the escorts to talk to me. I said to the lady,

"is that man your manager?

She said:

"yes".

After a while the escorts fell asleep, I looked out of the window, but it was dark. I was thinking what were my friends doing, would I see my school again. I was saying to myself why do I have to be here when my friends are outside, why do I have to go into a country I don't know. I felt angry with everyone.

Then they woke up and started chatting again, it became daylight, they stopped somewhere. The manager went for a cigarette, we waited in the van, he got back in, and they kept driving.

We arrived at Heathrow, the manager took my mother through security, but not normal security like other passengers, he came back with my mum to the van, he had another cigarette. Another man took me through security. When he brought me back, the manager was waiting, then he said to me very loudly,

"You know if u refuse to go on the plane, we'll put handcuffs on you and tie your feet, tell your mum what I said."

I told my mum. They drove us right next to the plane, we stopped, and the manager said to me that,

"Germany faxed a letter through saying that they are going to look at your asylum again, then you might be successful, and get your status and Leave to Remain in Germany, and come back to this country."

And then, obviously, I didn't believe that, and I told this to my mum, and she didn't believe it either.

Next to the plane, the manager and another male escort, they took my mum out, and my mum started crying more and tried not to go up the steps. The manager went on top of my mother, held her legs down, and went to handcuff her, but the handcuffs hit my mothers face badly, and she was bruised and cut. He handcuffed her, and dragged her off the [tarmac] and up the plane steps to the very back of the plane. I started crying, I was scared. Two escorts held me by the hands but I kept saying 'let me go' but one of the escorts pinched my hands to make me go. And then they put me in the plane, I was crying.

Passengers were looking at us. The manager sat with my mother on one side, she kept crying, he kept telling her "shut up, shut up". Two or three passengers looked a bit worried, but the ones in front of us just kept reading their newspapers as if we were invisible, but my mother was crying. They sat me between two escorts who kept squeezing my hand very hard like to break my fingers. I kept crying and saying,

"I want to speak to the pilot".

They closed the plane doors. I could not stop crying, and then the two escorts kept squeezing my hand hard.

Then the pilot came. He told my mum "SHUT UP".

He never asked what the matter was. Do you know, the manager he kept squeezing my mums hand with the handcuffs on, i could see he was hurting her, I felt sick. I said to the manager

"stop hurting my mum",

and the woman escort told me, it wasn't hurting, but she kept squeezing my hand as well.

A teenage passenger started taking mobile phone pictures. The plane moved a bit, then the pilot said:

"We are sorry for the disturbance, the deportees should be off loaded".

Then the pilot came to the back of the plane, he looking straight at me, and said to the air-hostess,

"bring the steps".

We went down, and went in the van. They put us in the van quickly, they kept staring at us angrily, one of the men kept saying to me,

"you're going back to Yarlswood, are you happy now?"

We drove for hours, they stopped a couple of times for cigarette breaks and burgers for themselves. One of them asked us if we wanted one, but we said no. We got back to yarls wood at 3.30pm.

 

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corebizstyle

I really enjoyed the letter. 5* Thanks Denver Colorado

Posted November 28, 2007

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