Feature Focus
The growing refugee crisis
As a Kurd in Turkey in the Nineties, Barnet resident Deniz Dren found herself drawn into the dangerous domain of ethnic politics.
The ongoing dispute between the Turkish authorities and Kurds who live within Turkish borders, is one of the most volatile in Europe. After her boyfriend was killed in a police station and her brother disappeared, friends advised her it was time to leave.
In 2000 Deniz fled to the UK, applied for asylum and found herself in Barnet. But she was soon prevented from working, and alone in a big city.
"I was isolated," she said. "I don't have any family here. I became depressed. As a woman, if you don't have any money or a proper life, people don't want to make friends with you."
After two years her claim for asylum was rejected and she appealed.
Her already desperate situation was then compounded by Government legislation which prevents asylum seekers working while the appeal process takes place.
To make matters worse, asylum seekers receive only a fraction of jobseekers' allowances while the appeal runs its course.
So, despite being willing to work, she did not do so for six years. Consequently, the hard times deepened and Ms Dren attempted suicide on four occasions.
"I have been trying to improve myself and to learn English. I want to be useful but the system has made me
useless," she added.
A report by the Independent Asylum Commission (IAC), which scrutinises the Government's asylum policy, last month highlighted enforced destitution and loss of dignity as two of the key problems with the system.
The report, compiled by a group of commissioners co-chaired by former High Court Judge Sir John Waite, argued destitution was used to drive out people who had failed in their application.
Sir John said: "The overuse of detention, the scale of destitution and the severity of removals, are all areas which need attention before the system can be described as fit for purpose."
Deniz started attending a women's group at Barnet Refugee Service in September 2006.
Nazee Akbari is the director of the Barnet Refugee Service (BRS), a charity which helps asylum seekers acclimatise and addresses the problem of isolation.
She believes asylum seekers cannot get adequate legal representation, due to poverty and cuts in legal aid.
She said: "We have drop-in sessions in partnership with local churches and we
come across so many sad stories.
"People come in who have been sleeping rough for days. How can these people get adequate representation to achieve a positive outcome
to their asylum claims?
"Also, asylum seekers whose applications have been rejected don't have access to the NHS."
At the time of the 2001 census around 13,000 asylum seekers and refugees called Barnet their home.
Ms Akbari cites the increase in the number of clients helped by BRS from around 600 in 2006 to 870 last year as evidence of the rise in the number of struggling asylum seekers.
She said the task of BRS was getting harder, with funding becoming increasingly difficult to secure across the voluntary sector.
Her perception is asylum seekers are "not the flavour of the month", but she added they do receive significant donations from the
Jewish community because of its affinity with refugees.
One of the successes
of BRS, according to Ms Akbari, has been in addressing the social isolation faced by refugees through its workshops, which range from art classes to those aimed at teaching new arrivals about this country.
"It's our role to bridge the gap and try to educate all parties involved. They have to work hand-in-hand."
Ms Dren is just one refugee who has been able to refocus her life, with help from the BRS.
Photographs taken by her feature in an exhibition that opened at the artsdepot, in Nether Street, North Finchley this week.
Roots and Wings' focuses on the cultural identity
and heritage of refugee women.
6:17pm Tuesday 8th April 2008
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