News
Monday, June 14, 2010
Britain looking to introduce controversial new immigration law* Move attracts widespread criticism, only Pakistani government opting for silence on issue
* New law would look to test potential immigrants by conducting English language testLAHORE: Terrorism is a cause for concern for any nation on the planet. With Pakistan being one of the states leading the struggle against terrorism, one would expect the country to be recognised for its efforts and appreciated. However, due to the ‘disturbing’ situation in the country, all the major developed countries of the world have revised their immigration rules when it comes to Pakistan and have increased security checks to negate the arrival of any ‘unwanted people’.
On the other hand, every government in the world has relaxed immigration rules and regulations and made them flexible for those who are seeking to immigrate only to be with their spouses.
New rule: A new proposal by the UK government in the current climate is worrying for several prospective brides in Pakistan and India since it attempts to introduce an English language test that would be made obligatory if one is seeking to join their spouse who is living in the UK. The move has attracted strong criticism from people both within and outside Britain, however, the only party who has decided to stay quiet on the issue is, wait for it, the Pakistani government.
A large number of Pakistanis and Indians living in the UK contribute to the British economy on some level and are understandably concerned about the prospective marriages of their children with their relatives living in their home countries.
The move could put the British government at odds with Pakistan and India as well as the European Union.
Britain has one of the largest Pakistani and Indian populations in Europe, but the proposal to make an English language test mandatory for spouses who wish to join their significant others is being considered as one of the moves that was expected of the Conservative party to clamp down on immigration, especially from the subcontinent. Many allege the move is a violation of basic human rights. According to a published report in a section of the British media, Labour Party MP Virendra Sharma says, “I think the move will be demoralising and will give a wrong message to the people of the subcontinent that they are not wanted here… the move will also give the people living here the message that we will decide as to when, where and how you get married.”
The present rules already state that spouses from India and other non-English speaking countries need to pass an English language test within two years of coming to Britain. While many new immigrants are likely to have sufficient knowledge of the English language, the debate is over the legality of the new rule and not whether it makes immigration hard or easy. Solicitor Hari Singh said, “If a spouse is not able to join the other spouse, it stands as a breach of family life, which is in violation of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights… because everybody has the right to get married and live as a family unit.”
So far the rule has been ‘marriage first and English later’. The government wants it the other way round, but the EU might step in and quarrel over the legality of the move, presumably in English.
At first glance, this seems like an uncontroversial proposal. For immigrants to speak the UK’s official language would, indeed, in the words of British Home Secretary Theresa May “help promote integration”. But this new law, which requires a command of English to the level “of a five-to-seven-year-old”, will discriminate against some of the world’s poorest people.
The law will not apply to EU citizens, so the people who will most likely be affected are those coming from Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. People in these countries are the least likely to know the English language, which is widely spoken among the countries’ urban elites. The right to marry and establish a family is protected by the European Convention on Human Rights, but the British government is effectively telling its people that they can marry anyone they want, as long as they are not poor or uneducated.
Following the move, people from several quarters are commenting on and criticising the issue on the Internet. As a UK citizen put it, “This is nothing but a figment of Britain’s age-old racist approach towards other nations. Instead of camouflaging their stone-age old discrimination and racist mindset under various unreasonable laws, why can they not simply accept that they are trying to relive the same old ‘Gora Sahibs’-age when they ruled over almost the entire world through colonization.” The citizen went on to add that the move was a clear violation of the very basic human rights; of which Britain ‘pretends to be a flag-bearer’.
Another blogger wrote on the Internet, “Of the 900,000 Britons who live in Spain, how many speak reasonable Spanish? Do all of the 500,000 British people living in France speak French to the level of a five-to-seven-year-old? Perhaps many of them simply follow the time-honoured tradition of Brits living abroad by going red-faced in the sun as they slowly repeat ‘where is the nearest toilet’ in increasingly loud and exasperated tones.”
“The truth about immigration is that these people coming from other countries have been effectively running the British economy. This is a truth that British politicians will never talk about,” another blogger said.
According to reports published in different quarters of the media, decision makers in India and Bangladesh are set to address the expected move with the British government But unfortunately the decision makers in Pakistan seem to prefer staying quiet on the issue, much like they do on every public issue.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk