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Let Isabel da Silva stay! Isabel's Story Isabel, now 20, is from Angola. She
is the youngest child of a large family that lived in the capital city,
Luanda. Her father was an officer in the UNITA army during the long civil
war. In 2000 the MPLA forces overran Luanda.
Her father disappeared and was never seen again: He is assumed dead. Isabel's
mother, Maria, was also arrested. After her release she paid an agent
to get her out of the country to Europe. Isabel stayed with a friend in Malanje
until the war ended in 2002, when she returned to Luanda hoping to find
her family. She stayed there for several weeks, until she found a friend
of her mother. Believing that Maria was in Portugal, this lady arranged
for Isabel to fly there on a false passport. Because Isabel was still
only 16, her age on the passport had to show her to be 18, in order for
her to be able to travel alone. Once in Portugal, Isabel discovered
that her mother had in fact gone to the UK. Wanting to be re-united, she
did not apply for asylum in Portugal, preferring to survive by doing some
illegal cleaning work and staying wherever she could. Because her accommodation
was insecure, she had her passport stolen. Eventually she found her mother's
phone number, and was able to get in touch. She discovered to her joy
that her mother had been given Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK. At this point you would think that
the story was bound to have a happy ending. Not so. Despite frequent representations
to the British Embassy in Lisbon, they would not give Isabel a visa to
join her mother, refusing to believe that she was still under 18, and
therefore a dependent. Emails and letters of support, and even a visit
from Maria herself, did not alter the stance of the Embassy, who told
them that either Isabel would have to return to Angola, or Maria would
have to go and live in Portugal. Frustrated by the lack of compassion
of the Home Office, and desperate to be with her daughter, Maria paid
an agent to bring Isabel to the UK on November 6th 2003 - on another false
passport. When she arrived in the UK, Isabel
applied to join her mother under the Family Reunion legislation. The Home
Office has refused this request, and have told her that she must return
to Angola and apply from there. We believe that this decision is against
all sense of natural justice, and are calling on the Home Office to use
their powers of discretion and allow Isabel to stay with her mother. Why can't
Isabel go back? Despite improvements, Angola is still
not safe, especially for a vulnerable, attractive 19 year old girl. Isabel
has no family or home to go back to (it was destroyed during the war),
and no money to live on. Violence against women and sexual exploitation
are rife in Angola. Who will protect her? Who will support her until her
application is successful? Isabel is the only known surviving
child. What will it do to her mother if they are parted again? Maria has
struggled with great sadness and, despite nearly 4 years trying to learn
English, still has a mental block as a result of the trauma she has suffered.
Her mother needs Isabel's physical
presence. For the past year Maria has been unable to work due to high
blood pressure and kidney stones, for which she is awaiting an operation,
Recently she had a blackout and came to on the floor with a badly bruised
head. In March 2006 Maria will turn 60. Surely she deserves to have her
daughter with her as she enters old age? Isabel is a popular, hard-working
student, who has learned English incredibly quickly. She will be able
to get a good job and contribute not only to the household but society
as a whole How you
can help :: Sign
the Petition. If you are able, take a sheet and get your
friends and family to sign up too.! Send the completed petitions to the
campaign address below, so we can send them together to the Home Office. :: Write
to Tony McNulty, the Immigration Minister, requesting that
Isabel is allowed to stay. There is a model letter available to help you,
but please add your own comments, or even better, write your own version.
The address is - Tony Mc.Nulty, Minister for Immigration, Home Office,
50 Queen Anne's Gate, London SW1H 9AT. Or fax him on 020 7273 2043. Please
let us know if you have done this, or, better still, send us a copy! :: Distribute
this leaflet to as many as you can. This leaflet has been distributed
by the Let Isabel da Silva Stay Campaign, c/o the Boaz Trust, Kingsburn
Hall, 814 Burnage Lane, Manchester M19 1RS.
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