Lankan student in Wales, refused asylum to be deported

A Bangor University student in North Wales could be deported to Sri Lanka just three months before completing her Electrical Engineering degree, Wales online reported today. Shiromini Satgunaraja, who is predicted to graduate with a First Class Honours, has been refused asylum. NUS Wales explained that Shiromini first arrived in the United Kingdom in 2011. She and her mother were granted Discretionary Leave to Remain while she completed her GCSEs after her father passed away. 

Further Leave to Remain was then granted on appeal which enabled Shiromini to complete her A Levels and start a university course. When that expired, further grants of Leave to Remain and of asylum were denied, but Shiromini has been allowed to remain in the United Kingdom to continue her university course while appealing. A member of the family explained that the mother and daughter were arrested shortly after their visa applications were rejected.

 “They got arrested on February 21 because their visas were rejected,” the family member explained. “They were at the police station until roughly 6pm on Thursday. They then got taken to Yarlswood Detention Centre. “We don’t know how what will happen next but I know flights have been booked for them to go back to Sri Lanka at 9pm on February 28.” 

But their family are concerned they will not settle in Sri Lanka. “She was studying her third year at university and she was progressing well,” the family member added. “She achieved 82% last semester and was expected to achieve a first in her degree. She doesn’t really know anything about Sri Lanka. “They could at least let her stay to finish her degree otherwise her two years of studying will go wasted. “Her dad was a maths teacher so she’s always been very interested in learning.” NUS Wales Deputy President, Carmen Smith, and Undeb Bangor Students’ Union Vice President Education and Welfare, Helen Marchant, have written to the Home Secretary, Amber Rudd MP, to request that she use her discretionary power to stop the deportation. In their letter, Ms Smith and Ms Marchant said: “We remind you, Home Secetary, that Shiromini has lived in and contributed to the United Kingdom since 2011, yet she is still only 20 years old. 

“It is our belief that it would be particularly callous to remove her to a country where she has no social or cultural ties, at an age where it is generally accepted that if she were a British national, she would still be able to live at home with her mother. “We also remind you of the value that Shiromini can bring to her local community and to the United Kingdom. We know that the United Kingdom is experiencing a concerning skills gap in STEM subjects. 

“As Home Secretary, you have the power to intervene. We request that you act urgently over the weekend to stop the deportation of Shiromini and her mother.” Hywel Williams MP added: “Sri Lanka is still a very dangerous place and Shiromini has had no real ties with the country since she was a child. “Her imminent deportation is not only unjust and unfair but will deprive Wales and indeed the UK economy of the contribution she will make. 

“She would be an asset to this country at a time when we may be facing severe shortages of highly-skilled and educated specialists. “This makes no humanitarian sense and no sense at all in terms of the business needs of our country.” 

A Home Office spokesman said it does not routinely comment on individual cases, but he also said the UK has a proud history of granting asylum to those who genuinely need it. The Home Office assured that every case is “carefully considered” on its individual merits, and refuge is granted where people establish “a genuine need for protection or a well founded fear of persecution”. Shiromini’s family have now set up a campaign on social media to fight for her right to stay in the UK.