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Originally Posted by dizzybint
Mistakes are made sadly, when families might be being persecuted in their own country and its heartbreaking , however.. we have old women out begging on the streets in the cold.. some trying unsuccessfully to play a musical instruement.... and its sad.. as we know theyve been forced out on the streets to do this... but how the hell did these very old looking women get into this country , what did they say they had to offer the UK....
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It sounds like you're referring specifically to Roma beggars, most of whom are Romanian nationals. That specific group aren't subject to immigration control as Romania is now part of the EU. As to how they got here, they most likely got on the train to Budapest in Hungary and from there an Easyjet flight to Glasgow via Stanstead.
They find themselves in an awkward situation, as in Romania they're quite badly persecuted so somewhat understandably many of them leave. However, once in the UK the men find themselves in the position that the only work they can get is manual work for less than minimum wage. They aren't entitled to state benefits and the only housing available to them on their meagre budgets in Glasgow are the slum landlords in Govanhill. It's to pay these slum landlords the rent on less than minimum wage jobs that leads these women to being out begging on the street. I read quite an interesting report on them available here:
http://www.bemis.org.uk/resources/gt...%20Glasgow.pdf
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and then we have the people trafficking caused by many of these same immigrants..... Ill admit their not all the same. but arent we just a soft touch compared to other coutnries allowing so many in....
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Well in the case of the Roma, we actually have harsher rules than most of the EU. In most EU countries they can claim state benefits, something they are not able to do here until they can demonstrate that they've worked unbroken for at least 12 months. (This forms a problem for them, because they generally work for less than minimum wage and therefore cannot get their employers to vouch that they've worked.) The UK is not affected by the Roma anywhere near as much as in countries closer to their homeland like the Czech Republic, it's a pan-European problem. It's simply not true that we're a "soft-touch", that's just Daily Mail nonsense.
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a woman on the news on Sunday said it was racist to tell ILLEGAL immigrants to pack up and leave or be arrested.. now wheres the sense in her statement.
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You've mis-understood the context. The Government have recently trialed sending around vans with billboards on the side saying, "
In the UK Illegally? Go Home or Face Arrest." There is nothing racist about arresting or deporting illegal immigrants. That isn't the problem. The problem is that these vans are a publicity stunt by the Government to
appeal to racists, and by appealing to racists the Government is itself legitimising the views of racists. The idea that an illegal immigrant is going to actually leave the country because they see a van driving around telling them to "Go Home", is beyond stupidity. Imagine if you sent out a van saying, "
Are you a rapist? Turn yourself in or face arrest." You'd have to be a complete
moron to expect that the UK's population of un-prosecuted rapists would read the sign and decide to head for their nearest police station.
The truth is, these vans aren't a serious attempt to try and convince illegal immigrants to leave the country; they're purely a publicity stunt targeted at people who have a problem with immigrants, so that the Government can be
seen to be taking a 'hard' line on immigration. The very phrase, "
Go Home" is the language of the National Front and the BNP. It's the expression that's been used by every fascist political party across the world for a century towards
all immigrants. Its use by a Government can only be an appeal by the Government to racists.
Eoin
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