History will judge UK and US for ‘appalling lack of leadership’ over refugee crisis

Britain and the US have been accused of showing an “appalling lack of leadership” over the international refugee crisis.

Amnesty International claimed the UK Government has shirked its duty in relation to the emergency, pushing thousands of vulnerable people into the hands of people smugglers.

It attacked the closure of the Dubs Amendment scheme to bring unaccompanied children to Britain from Europe as “shameful”.

Kate Allen (pictured), Director of Amnesty International UK, said: “We are witnessing the worst refugee crisis since the Second World War and wealthy nations like the UK and the US have shown an appalling lack of leadership and responsibility.

“History will judge us for this.

“When language around ‘taking our country back’ and ‘making America great again’ is coupled with proposals to treat EU migrants like bargaining chips or to ban refugees on the grounds of religion, it fosters deep hatred and mistrust and sends a strong message that some people are entitled to human rights and others aren’t.

“This toxic rhetoric being used by politicians around the world risks taking us into a dark age of human rights and could lead to profound consequences for all of us.”

On Wednesday Amnesty will publish its annual report on the state of human rights around the world, covering 159 countries.

The organisation said its analysis “shows how divisive fear-mongering is having an increasingly pervasive impact in our societies”.

It claimed that 36 countries violated international law by sending refugees back to a country where their rights were at risk.

A chapter on the UK cites a number of developments, including the entrance into law of the “extremely broad” Investigatory Powers Act on surveillance powers.

The analysis also notes an increase in reported hate crimes seen in the immediate aftermath of the EU referendum in June and highlights proposals to replace the Human Rights Act with a British Bill of Rights.

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