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Mike. This is the real version of the matrix film. Hope people would understand. Andy ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mike Higgins" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Friday, May 16, 2008 3:48 PM Subject: Claude, in his own words > "My family consists of myself, Claude Ndeh; Majolie my wife; my eldest > child > Cyril Jason Yiah who was born on 18/03/2005, he has sickle cell anaemia; > and > my youngest two children who are twins, Tchos Michel Kirsty who also has > sickle cell anaemia; and Atchom Lionel Gael, both of whom were born on > 23/10/2006. > > > > I will tell you firstly how we were arrested. There was a loud knock at > the > door at 6 O'clock on Sunday morning, 11th May. The door would have been > broken if we hadn't opened it quickly. Majolie saw from a window that it > was immigration and police officers. I said that there was no point in > hiding. > > > > Majolie opened the door to ten or eleven of them. All 5 members of the > family were in the house at the time. We were ordered to sit on the sofa > in > the living room, then Majolie was told to follow officers upstairs to pack > some belongings. Majolie followed, but was then told to return downstairs > as she wasn't allowed to take anything. An officer said "It's a waste of > time." Instead one of the officers went upstairs to pack some things. > > > > I asked for my phone so that I could call my solicitor. I already had a > letter from her agreeing to a meeting on the 19th May to make a fresh > claim. > The officers asked where my phone was and I told them, thinking that they > wanted to help phone my solicitor. After that, I saw nothing. > > > > One of the officers told another to take the bags outside. The bags only > contained clothes for Majolie and the twins. Then there was an order to > Majolie for her to come outside. I asked "can I bring anything from > upstairs?" I couldn't find my phone. I wanted to call my solicitor. An > officer said "I have the phones (mine and Majolie's). You aren't allowed > to > call anybody until you're at Yarl's Wood." > > > > I didn't get my phone back. When we got here I got a phone but it wasn't > the same phone, though, because my phone had a camera in it. I got my SIM > card inside a different phone. > > > > The whole family was put into two prison vans. I was on my own and > Majolie > was with the children in a different van. We were taken to a police > station > near the Don Valley Stadium. > > > > I asked an officer if the medicine for the children was in the bag. The > officer said yes. > > > > We stayed in the two vans at the police station waiting for many hours. > We > didn't have any changes of clothes and there were no nappies for the > children. We were allowed to use the toilet once. > > > > At the police station an officer filled in an arrest form in front of me. > He didn't explain anything or why the arrest had happened. Neither I nor > Majolie had a clear view of the form and we didn't understand what it was > about. > > > > I asked the officer "where are you taking us?" The officer said "I don't > know, but it's somewhere near Norwich." > > > > The Police Officer filling in the form was asked why he was only filling > the > form in now. He said "we keep postponing this." > > > > I was told by my friend Fred that the search [or arrest?] warrant only > appeared in my house after we were taken. He discovered this when he > called > around after we had gone. Whilst I was in the Police Station with Majolie > filling in forms, our children were still out in the van. > > > > We left the Police Station at about 1pm. This time we were all in one van > with two officers - a male driver and a female officer. The children were > given some biscuits and juice before leaving. Majolie and I were offered > something, but we didn't want anything to eat because we didn't have any > appetite. > > > > We arrived at Yarl's Wood at about 4pm, but we stayed in the van for > nearly > an hour after that. It was very hot in the van so I asked if the windows > could be opened. The driver did so. > > > > After getting out of the van, we stayed in reception for around 2 hours. > They searched our bags and took photographs of us all. They went through > the protocol, which involved an intimate body search. > > > > Majolie told the medical staff about sickle cell and they filled this in > on > a form to inform the authorities. Majolie asked for the children's > medication and the medical staff said they would see if they could get it. > > > > The medication the officers took in the morning is still being held and we > have never seen it since we left the house. This includes cosmetics. The > medication has been here all the time, but they say they have been > "checking > it" before they will give it out. > > > > I put pressure on staff to bring the medication, but when they did bring > it > eventually on Wednesday,it was no good as it was warm. It should have > been > kept in a fridge. The medicine also only lasts for 5 days, so by now > [Thursday] it is no good. Now [Thursday] there is no evidence that there > is > new medicine. They are simply trying to give us the old medicine which > they > have now started to keep in a fridge, again after pressure from us. > > > > We asked for a doctor to come and see our two disabled children on Monday. > He did call on Monday to make sure that the medicine he'd prescribed was > being taken. He was told that it wasn't being given to us and he became > upset. He prescribed more medicine on Monday, but this hasn't turned up > yet. Today [Thursday] is the first day that any medicine at all has been > given (in the morning). > > > > Staff here promise that the medicine will be kept in a fridge and given > regularly. This remains to be seen. We need to administer the medication > to Kirsty with a syringe, but they won't give us one. > > > > We would like our visitors to be allowed to take Jason to the hospital > today > in Sheffield under the direction of Jenny Welch. She has told us in the > passed that if anything goes wrong with the children, take them straight > to > hospital. > > > > I can't trust the medical staff here as they have never done a blood or > urine test on Jason, which is always done at the hospital. > > > > Jason isn't eating or drinking and has lost weight. This is dangerous > because of his sickle cell anaemia. We are very worried that he might not > survive. The medicine controls the sickle cell, it cannot be cured. He > has > a high temperature and is shivering a lot, especially at night. > > > > The other children aren't eating or drinking properly either. They are > all > fatigued and lethargic. Kirsty also has sickle cell anaemia, but it > hasn't > manifested itself like it has in Jason. > > > > The medical centre is about 100m away from our cell and up some stairs. > Jason can't walk at all at the moment because he is so tired and has no > energy. He doesn't make any noise at all, which is very unusual for him. > > > > Our room here has 2 single beds. It is about 4m by 5m. I mostly sleep > on > the floor with Kirsty and Gael. Now because he is so ill, Jason has a bed > and Majolie has the other bed. > > > > We can't drink the water in our room because the water from the tap is > dirty. We have been given no towels. Nothing. We have one towel meant > for > one of the babies, which we brought with us. This is all we have. > > > > There is no soap and no hot water. This means that the risk of infection > is > high - especially for the children. > > > > It gets too cold to sleep at night. We have no blankets. We were given > two > sheets which are made of nylon. They are very thin and you can see > through > them if you hold them up. 2 days ago I said that this wasn't enough and > explained that the children needed to be warm. They brought two more of > the > same blankets. Jason has only been able to where the twins clothes up > until > now (Thursday) as we didn't have any of his or a change of clothes for me. > Our visitors brought these today. > > > > There is a canteen here. There is milk available from the shop, which is > all Kirsty is having. It costs 50p for half a litre and is always past > its > use-by date. > > > > There is hard rice and cooked potato available from the canteen. The food > here is unacceptable. It doesn't taste nice and people only eat because > they have to. The bins are full of food because people don't want to eat > it. > > > > Majolie and I are under a lot of stress and haven't eaten much at all. > This > is a prison and people are ordered back to their rooms for a head-count > regularly. > > > > I am not even allowed to call my solicitor. I have credit on my phone, > but > it is being controlled. If I try to phone my solicitor the answer comes > "you cannot call this number." My phone has been blocked. I gave the > number for my solicitor to a nurse when I came here and I think this may > be > how they know which is my solicitor's number. > > > > I came over to the UK on a boat in 2002. Majolie came on the 1st October > 2004. She made an asylum claim when she came over, but she could produce > no > evidence that she was being persecuted because of my political activity, > so > her claim was rejected. > > > > Majolie faced problems in Cameroon because of her relationship with me. > She > was persecuted because of this. The authorities here didn't believe her. > The solicitor said that this didn't matter as my claim was good and that > Majolie could stay as my spouse. > > > > I was the secretary and tract writer for the demonstration against the > state > killing of 9 children in Cameroon. I also dispatched the leaflet in the > city. The chairperson of the campaign was called Bethuel Kouatou. His > claim for asylum in the UK because of his persecution for organising this > demonstration has been accepted yet mine hasn't. He has got refugee > status. > It's not normal. It's not fair. I don't know why they are treating me > differently. I have all the evidence, the newspapers and have given it to > the Home Office. > > > > When I came here on the 20th January 2002 I was in contact with the > British > Red Cross. They brought the evidence here. Still nobody believes me. > The > Home office has all the evidence. > > > > Majolie remembers that in the first claim, the judge believed everything I > said, but nothing of what she said. I am frightened of being deported. > > > > Before I escaped from Cameroon, I was in prison - as was Majolie. If I am > deported, as soon as I land back in Cameroon, I will be put straight back > in > prison, as will we all. > > > > We don't know exactly what would happen to the children. They would most > likely end up in prison with us. They would most certainly die. We would > all end up in the same room. There is a high risk of infection > (especially > malaria) and this risk is heightened by sickle cell anaemia. Prisons in > Cameroon are dirty and over-crowded. In prison in Cameroon inmates get > beatings for breakfast! > > > > We want help to get out of here [Yarl's Wood]. We also need urgent help > to > get the two disabled children into hospital as soon as possible. They > randomly fall asleep and urgently need blood and urine tests." > > ________________End of message________________ > > This Disability-Research Discussion list is managed by the Centre for > Disability Studies at the University of Leeds > (www.leeds.ac.uk/disability-studies). > Enquiries about list administration should be sent to > [log in to unmask] > > Archives and tools are located at: > www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/disability-research.html > You can VIEW, POST, JOIN and LEAVE the list by logging in to this web > page. > ________________End of message________________ This Disability-Research Discussion list is managed by the Centre for Disability Studies at the University of Leeds (www.leeds.ac.uk/disability-studies). Enquiries about list administration should be sent to [log in to unmask] Archives and tools are located at: www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/disability-research.html You can VIEW, POST, JOIN and LEAVE the list by logging in to this web page.