Should I stay or should I go...or should I go to Rwanda?

Current Law student Amy Klosek writes about the recent Street Law workshops delivered to secondary school pupils in Ireland. 

Following the success of the first Street Law project in collaboration with St Giles Trust SOS+, the Open Justice Centre embarked on a fabulous second project aimed at raising awareness of migrant rights. This time, the OU teamed up with Atlantic Technological University (ATU) to deliver interactive workshops to 150 secondary school pupils in Ireland over three days. 

The fast-paced two-hour sessions set out to give pupils the opportunity to explore what international protection laws are in place and decide how important they were and what they meant to them.

The students were wonderfully engaged during the activities and made thoughtful contributions to the discussions around the notion of ‘Liberty’ and which of the human rights contained in the UN Declaration they prioritised as being the top five most important.  This led effortlessly into the next activity which was centred on the controversial ‘tweet’ posted by Gary Lineker. 

When the football pundit retweeted the Home Secretary’s post about the Governments partnership with Rwanda, it resulted in him being suspended from presenting Match of the Day by the BBC.  The visiting school pupils were given an outline of the Illegal Migration Bill and the UK Governments agreement with Rwanda which has been created to ‘tackle global migration challenges’

The Government published a report in March 2023 which celebrated the ‘innovative’ new regime to deter migrants from attempting to make the treacherous illegal journeys, into the UK.  In her promotional video Home Sectary Suella Braverman stated that Rwanda is ready to receive thousands of individuals, process claims and offer both temporary and long-term accommodation as well as all the necessary support services including health and education.  The students actively debated this notion and the new Bill, (which will not be applicable in Irish law) with maturity and made some interesting points.

The students looked at what constitutes persecution and several different scenarios about why individuals may become asylum seekers and seek refuge in other countries.  This led onto them taking part in a mini mock trial to decide if migrants should stay, go home, or be sent to Rwanda.  Based on a fictious case study, students were either representing Meera, who had applied for international protection after fleeing from her home in fear of her life, the State, or acting as the Judge.  Unsurprisingly, Rwanda was not a popular option!

At the end of the workshop, the secondary school pupils were asked to write one word that summed up their feelings about asylum seekers and the word most common used was ‘people’. 

‘People’, like you, people like I and people like us.  As people shouldn’t they be entitled to enjoy the same civil liberties and international protection as us?

(image of Amy delivering the workshop online)

The feedback afterwards from those participating in the sessions was excellent, using expressions such as ‘understanding’, ‘empathy’ and ‘interesting’. Paul Kernan CEO of Donegal Intercultural Platform, who was in attendance and summed up the value of this street law workshop with these comments:

'The Street Law project makes a valuable contribution to challenges and responses to the greater inclusion of migrants and an understanding of the opportunities afforded by a more diverse population'.

Street Law provides an enriching opportunity for OU law students and academics to engage with their communities and is a powerful mechanism for providing public legal education in schools and community groups and there is no doubt that the secondary school students gained immensely not just in knowledge of the law but also the importance of advocacy.   The fact that it was delivered online to a live class of students is a great example of how online delivery can potentially broaden the reach of public legal education delivery.

As an OU law student, taking part in street law projects will be give you the opportunity to develop skills and knowledge in a way that you cannot possibly gain from the confines of the module materials or textbooks.  Street law enables you to explore legal boundaries, research important and relevant legal topics and take part in discussions regarding the law, our society and culture.  Whether you plan a career in practice, academia or you are studying law for any other purpose, Street law will give you practical experience in working both independently and with colleagues doing something that will benefit you, I, us, ‘people’.

Amy Klosek

Amy ( pictured on the right together with law school academic Emma Curryer outside The Supreme Court in London, April 2023) is currently studying her final year of the law degree.