Protests in UK as India-origin Braverman defends refugee plan in Rwanda

Britain's interior minister has defended a controversial plan to deport refugees and migrants entering UK illegally to seek asylum to Rwanda during a visit to the country, saying it was "compassionate".

"I sincerely believe that this world-leading partnership between two allies and two friends, the United Kingdom and Rwanda, will lead the way in finding a solution which is both humanitarian and compassionate," Home Secretary Suella Braverman said in Kigali on Saturday.

Braverman spoke alongside Rwandan Foreign Minister Vincent Biruta, who said the move "will not only help dismantle criminal human-smuggling networks, but also save lives".

Braverman, who is of Indian origin herself, has been targeting refugees since she was in former prime minister Liz Truss' cabinet.

In an interview with The Sun newspaper in October last year, she said the UK has too many "low-skilled" migrants.

The UK's conservative government has made tackling "illegal" immigration a priority, and it was a key promise as the country left the European Union.

It is seeking to outlaw asylum claims by all "illegal arrivals" and transfer them to "safe" third countries, such as Rwanda, in a bid to stop thousands of refugees and migrants from crossing the English Channel on small boats.

More than 45,000 refugees and migrants arrived on the shores of southeast England on small boats last year — a 60-percent annual increase on a perilous route that has been used by more people every year since 2018.

READ MORE: UK to Rwanda: Why Britain’s new refugee plan is unethical and inhuman

'Safe passage, not Rwanda'

The government, which is trailing in opinion polls, has been striving for years to tackle the crossings.

It had hoped the threat of a one-way ticket to Rwanda, where refugees and migrants would remain if accepted for asylum, would deter the cross-Channel journeys.

But that plan, announced by former prime minister Boris Johnson last year, was blocked at the last minute by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), which is separate to the EU.

It was then upheld by the High Court in London, but has been mired in appeals. No flights to Rwanda have yet taken place.

Rights groups accuse Rwanda — ruled with an iron fist by President Paul Kagame since the end of the 1994 genocide that killed around 800,000 people — of cracking down on free speech and opposition.

In Britain on Saturday, thousands of people took to the streets of cities including London, Glasgow and Cardiff to demonstrate against the plan.

Anti-racism protesters in the British capital carried signs reading "no human being is illegal" and "Safe passage, not Rwanda".

Some British media including the BBC and The Guardian newspaper were not invited to cover the interior minister's visit to Rwanda.

READ MORE: 'Behaving like Russia': Critics slam UK for 'inhumane' refugee bill