Your Support Matters: Fund Our Judicial Review

by Baobab Women's Project in Birmingham, England, United Kingdom

Your Support Matters: Fund Our Judicial Review

Total raised £630

£6,000 target 35 days left
10% 12 supporters
Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 14th March 2025 at 3:25pm

Support the claims of two women who are challenging the Home Office decision to treat them as citizens of Ethiopia rather than of Eritrea

by Baobab Women's Project in Birmingham, England, United Kingdom

We are seeking to raise £6000 to support the claims of two women who are challenging the Home Office decision to treat them as citizens of Ethiopian rather than of Eritrea.  From that, we immediately need £340 to pay the first court fees.

These cases have implications beyond these two claims as they are arguing that it is wrong for the Home Office to determine nationality on the basis of the language spoken (Amharic rather than Tigrinyan) and by ignoring the historical country evidence of changes in country boundaries, conflict and the movement of people between countries.  The Home Office is making decisions only on the basis of the current situation and not setting their findings in the context of what happened in the past at the time that these women, and many like them, were young.

Both women have been refused a second application for asylum and have not been given a right of appeal against the decision. This is even though they submitted important information about Eritrea and Ethiopia which demonstrates that they are not only most likely Eritrean but have no right to enter and live legally in Ethiopia. The only way to challenge the refusal is to ask for the decision to be reviewed and therefore hope to get a right of appeal to bring this new evidence to an independent Judge in the Tribunal.  Unfortunately, legal aid has been refused. The Legal Aid Agency has simply agreed with the Home Office decision without undertaking a review of the new evidence and why the decision to refuse a right of appeal is wrong.

The lawyers involved are working on the basis of a 'no win, no fee' agreement but there are court costs to be paid and a contingency fund needed to continue beyond the first stage if the Home Office does not back down.

It is also important to show that the Legal Aid Agency (LAA) is not acting independently to secure fair representation before the courts.  Success in these cases will hopefully lead to a more positive approach  from the LAA to similar cases in the future.

Please give what you can, no matter how small, to try to secure the right to challenge these unfair decisions.

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