News[JURIST] The UK House of Lords ruled Thursday that immigration controls set up by the British government had systematically discriminated against Roma Gypsies trying to enter Britain, largely from the Czech Republic where many faced prosecution. Roma, known for their nomadic lifetsyle, have traditionally been a suspect social group across Europe, and have frequently been victims of discrimination and oppression. Statistics presented to the Law Lords showed that Roma applicants for asylum in Britain were 400 times more likely to be turned down than other claimants. The controls at issue in the case have since been removed following the admission of the Czech Republic to the European Union. The UK human rights group Liberty, which brought the case, has issued this press release, saying that the ruling exposed "the racism at the heart of the Government’s asylum policy." The Houes of Lords judgment is here. The UK Guardian has more.
