Another twenty nine Sri Lankans who sought political asylum in Britain were deported back to the Island accompanied by British Immigration/Emigration and police officers yesterday morning.

After the rejection of their applications for refugee status they were kept in several migrant refugee camps before being sent back on a special chartered flight from Heathrow airport under strict security.

British High Commission and the United Nations International Organisation for migrants had mediated in this deportation process. Each returnee was escorted by two officers of the British Immigration authorities and the British police.

Twenty five Tamils, one Muslim and three Sinhalese were among these returnees identified as residents of Kilinochchi, Jaffna, Vavuniya, Colombo and Wattala.

Some of them had visited the UK on student visas and overstayed. Some others had arrived in the UK during the war and sought political asylum while being employed in various sectors.

The majority of them had been in the UK for periods ranging from a year to ten years and reluctant to return to their homeland.

Since Britain commenced deporting asylum seekers in 2011, more than 200 Sri Lankans had been sent back on special flights.

After these returnees were handed over to the local Emigration authorities by their British counterparts, they were directed for further investigations by the CID unit of the Airport.

They were to be released after questioning by the state intelligence division. (Deepa Adikari)

Source: Daily Mirror (Sri Lanka)