Paper short abstract:

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Paper long abstract:

The views of the British state on this issue are so well known as to not require repeating. This paper looks at this issue from the perspective of those individuals who sought and failed to obtain asylum and also the perspective, where relevant, of refugee organizations. Significant caveats need to be made in regard to the views of 'failed asylum seekers', most notably few of those we interviewed had the faintest idea of how the asylum system worked even as their claim was being processed, and very few spoke sufficient English to understand must less respond adequately to the questions asked by lawyers and officials. Finally, many of the individuals we talked to were reflecting back on a process that occurred years ago; their ability to recall details was clouded by a life of enforced destitution and, just occasionally, by an unwillingness to divulge too much. Nevertheless their candor in answering questions about their asylum case is remarkable and their answers, which conform to a common pattern, strongly suggests that 'failure' to obtain asylum is as much a product of an adversarial system that disadvantages asylum applicants as it is a result of the attempts by individuals to enhance the prospects of their success.

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