London Chinatown shut down in a mass protest against Home Office illegal immigration raids.
Restaurants and businesses in London Chinatown shut down on Tuesday in protest against immigration raids by the Home Office, according to the Guardian.
The protest was led by business and community leaders, whilst restaurants shut for five hours. Placards reading “justice for Chinatown” and “no unfair immigration raids” were held by protesters.
Members of the community expressed outrage at the immigration raids in Chinatown by the UK’s Home Office.
Earlier this month, an immigration van in London Chinatown was halted by a woman who was lying down on the road in protest. Five men were arrested by the Home Office – four had overstayed their visas whilst one had entered the UK illegally.
Owner of the New China restaurant, Peter Ren, said the incident was one of the main reasons he participated in Tuesday’s strike.
“They (officers) blocked a street for three hours and we can’t even do business,” Ren told CNN. “It’s a small area, and the number of raids they’re doing is out of proportion and heavy-handed.”
“I’m not against immigrant checks. But treat the Chinese community fairly.”
The London Chinatown Chinese Association (LCCA) reportedly organised Tuesday’s walkout, claiming a thousand restaurants participated.
“The main issues we are fighting are aggressiveness, unprofessionalism of the Home Office,” said Joseph Wu, a spokesperson for the LCCA.“We feel Chinese businesses are being discriminated against and unfairly targeted for immigration raids. We are also worried about the changes to the search system. Now the Home Office can enter without warrants and it is very aggressive and threatening.”
“All this can be put into jeopardy if we are portrayed as a place of crime, which we are not. If Chinatown suffers, London suffers.”
Lawrence Lee, senior spokesman of LCCA added that 95% of businesses in Chinatown were shut. “A lot have come from the Midlands and further south. There is a lot of support. The main issues for us are how the Home Office has handled the raids. We have been very tolerant.” He said the atmosphere was good and “very peaceful.”
#Solidarity with all those protesting in London’s #Chinatown this afternoon to say no to racist immigration raids #JusticeforChinatown #StopRacistRaids pic.twitter.com/NgaOIpF5XQ
— Stand Up To Racism (@AntiRacismDay) July 24, 2018
#Chinatown in London is shut down today (for 5 hours) as staff and business owners join the rally against measures by the British Home Office against illegal immigrants. A protester told me: “they are deliberately targetting us” https://t.co/xgFVihdOJA pic.twitter.com/UDUHay5jNb
— Zhenya (@evgenia_fili) July 24, 2018
Joy Luck restaurant in #Chinatown is where the Home Office has confirmed 5 ppl were apprehended on July 5 – in an enforcement operation. @ukhomeoffice refuted claims it was “fishing” for immigrants, arguing the arrests were “intelligence-led” https://t.co/xgFVihdOJA pic.twitter.com/vCSHo95IYr
— Zhenya (@evgenia_fili) July 24, 2018
“No more illegal fishing raids. We are not saying you can’t look for illegal immigrants but you have to follow the law. If you don’t – you are stereotyping the whole Chinese community” – civil rights activist Bobby Chan said addressing the @ukhomeoffice https://t.co/xgFVihdOJA pic.twitter.com/iBDn3gAwhf
— Zhenya (@evgenia_fili) July 24, 2018
Protesters march from #Chinatown to @ukhomeoffice in opposition to “heavy-handed policing” by UK authorities https://t.co/xgFVihdOJA pic.twitter.com/udcuXgDkkl
— Zhenya (@evgenia_fili) July 24, 2018
Really moving to see venues across Chinatown shut down in solidarity against immigration raids and heavy-handed policing. #JusticeforChinatown pic.twitter.com/m9lRHliRKW
— S (@seanbgoneill) July 24, 2018
Chinatown on strike against immigration raids – amazing community solidarity from local restaurants #justiceforchinatown pic.twitter.com/DbYDdRr6Y0
— The Politics of NV (@politicsofnv) July 24, 2018
