On a wet and windy Sunday (30 October), 75 people including families gathered in Bottle Alley to make brightly coloured orange paper airplanes carrying messages of hope and welcome to refugees. They were then launched, Filling the Skies with Hope. Polly Gifford writes.
A vigil was held and letters handed in at the Conservative Party headquarters in St Leonards yesterday in a last-ditch attempt to persuade MP Sally-Ann Hart to reverse her support for the government’s Nationality and Borders bill, which looks likely to come up for a final vote in the Commons next week. Nick Terdre reports.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has provoked among the local population strong reactions of revulsion against the Putin regime and expressions of solidarity with Ukrainians, as evidenced by the unexpectedly large turnout for a march and rally held on Sunday at short notice. Nick Terdre reports.
Hastings Borough Council is set to discuss the council’s commitment to supporting Afghan refugees arriving in this country for resettlement. The matter is on the Cabinet agenda for early January. Nick Terdre reports.
It was national news recently when it was reported that people on Hastings beach shouted ‘horrible’ abuse as they tried to block the launch of the local lifeboat on the way to assist a small boat in distress carrying refugees. One consequence of this was that donations to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) shot up. Another was that the Council statement on the matter had no Councillors’ names on it.
Hastings Festival of Sanctuary is back – the annual event expressing local solidarity with those come to these shores seeking refuge from persecution will take place at Hastings Museum on Sunday 12 September. Local musicians and artists will contribute to a day of community, creativity and hope, says the organiser, Hastings Community of Sanctuary. Nick Terdre reports.
The Nationality and Borders Bill currently going through Parliament will drastically reduce the rights of asylum-seekers, yet it is wholeheartedly supported by Hastings & Rye MP Sally-Ann Hart. Pal Luthra, a member of Hastings Community of Sanctuary, East Sussex Freedom From Torture and Amnesty International, explains why he equally wholeheartedly opposes the MP’s stance.
With the start of Refugee Week approaching on Monday, Home Secretary Priti Patel’s ever harder line against asylum-seekers, backed by her apparent unwillingness to abide by the UK’s international commitments, has prompted refugee support groups to mount a collective campaign for a fair and humane system, as Felicity Laurence of Hastings Community of Sanctuary Campaigns team explains.
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