Memorial bench erected in Glasgow for people who 'lost their lives to UK asylum system'

A Glasgow-led refugee campaign has erected a bench in Glasgow in memory of asylum seekers who "lost their lives" to the British asylum system.

Refugees For Justice - a team made up of Glasgow-based refugees, asylum seekers and community members - unveiled the addition in George Square on Saturday.

They called for "change, accountability and justice" while advertising their latest move. 

Crowds also gathered to protest against the Nationality and Borders Bill - which was updated last November allowing for British citizens to have their citizenships removed without warning - and hotel 'detention', where asylum seekers have been evicted from their residential homes and placed into hotels and guest houses instead.

A report by The Guardian indicated that dozens have died in such accommodations used by the Home Office across the UK in the past five years, as a report by academics at Edinburgh Napier University revealed many asylum seekers felt some of the hotels were "unsafe and often... detention-like spaces".

Some pictures from today's bench dedication in #georgesquare. Moving testimonies from #asylumseekers@refugee4justice @scotrefcouncil @RefugeeSurvival pic.twitter.com/CG4s0RIIAL

— Kaye Nicolson (@KayeNicolson) January 29, 2022

According to the Glasgow Times, the new bench reads: "Care, justice and fairness. With peace and love. Refugees for Justice, Justice for Refugees. 2021."

The organisation tweeted: "We came together this weekend because we know that we need a system based on human rights, compassion, care, justice and fairness. We remember and we continue to fight."