Watford’s Al Bangoura Probable Deportation by British Goverment
The story of Alhassan Bangoura has been fairly well documented in the gathered media over in Britain over the last few days.
That article is probably the best description of the circumstances that Bangoura faced while living in Sierra Leone, from his inevitable execution, to his exile from the country of his birth, faced with human trafficking along the way, before ending up being scouted in a park by Watford, signing on professional terms with the club, and becoming a noticeable, if not necessarily integral part of the club’s push towards Premiership survival last season, and their rise to the top of the Championship table this time around.
He has been offered a contract with the promotion chasers until 2009, who clearly see him as a talent worth keeping hold of, believing he may well play a part a second time around in the Premier League if Watford continue to perform to the level which they can and have thus far this season, despite their recent blip in form.
As important as this is to the story, (it must be said that Bangoura’s case would be a non-issue were it not for the scope that a professional football club provides), it is all something of a side-issue, given what may be potentially at stake if the Asylum and Immigration Authorities enforce their ruling from the week.
Now, given the cirumstances that were stated within the BBC article, the mind boggles how the Immigration Authority can approve the deportation of any person who has been through an ordeal such as Bangoura’s.
Of course, life is not nearly as hard now for him, earning a good sum per week on a contract with a Premiership-chasing football club, married with a newborn son having arrived 10 days ago, but if Bangoura is deported, not only will he lose the life that he has earned by proving his ability and prowess as a footballer, he will probably lose his life.
As simple as it gets, if Al Bangoura is sent back to Sierra Leone any time soon, the Poro Secret Society will find him, they will almost certainly torture him, and then for their own personal retribution, they will mutilate him. It really is one of those situations where you have to put yourself in the position that Bangoura faces, and imagine what future, if any lies ahead for him if Britain sends him back to his ravaged home country.
Find the sense and justice in that, I’m lapsing away from the football side of the matter here somewhat, but there’s far more at stake than just sport.
Adrian Boothroyd is always a man who has earned my admiration for his ability as a manager and a person, he’s learning with every game what coaching a side is all about and if the Watford board back him for years to come, they may well be able to establish themselves in the Premiership, while his forthright views always managed to hit home, because it is clear that he knows what he is talking about.
In this respect, he certainly could have chosen his words a little better in some respects, but his view is embodied well enough through his words, and certainly you’ll have to go far to find anyone with half an ounce of sense that disagrees with what he has to say. He put it better than I ever could, so I’ll leave it to the man himself…
“After the immigration hearing I said that I had faith in British justice but obviously I was totally mistaken because it’s a completely ludicrous decision,” Boothroyd said.
“This country, great as it once was, seems to allow anybody in to send benefits wherever they fancy and we have one young man here who pays his taxes, has a fiancee and a newborn son and somebody somewhere thinks it’s a good decision to send him back to Sierra Leone. It’s ridiculous.
As highlighted in the Times article, the Labour MP for Watford, Claire Ward, has promised to take up Bangoura’s case up with the Immigration Minister, Liam Byrne, in a bid to ensure that Bangoura can remain in the country on a permanent basis.
Some of you cynics may question why he deserves such preferential treatment in comparison with other, perhaps even more damning cases dotted around the country.
The simple fact of the matter is that he doesn’t deserve preferential treatment in the same way that no-one does, and that every case should be taken on it’s merits, rather than the status of the individual involved. But this is the only case that will attain a media scope on this level, and in that respect, it brings the issue home to people of how bizarre rulings in cases such as these can be.
The Immigration Authority has condemned people to torture and death before with it’s decisions, they will do it in the future, long after the Al Bangoura case has been consigned to history. But now that a matter like this is in the public domain, it is important that everything is done to save at least one life, even if in the relative context of matters, it is a privileged life. If Al Bangoura is sent back to Sierra Leone, then it will be a black stain on the name of the Immigration Authority, and it will almost certainly be Bangoura’s blood on their hands.
I cannot tell you the ins and outs of Alhassan Bangoura as a player, and I am not going to pretend that I know everything about his playing style, his potential as a future star for Watford or anything else relative to his career. Simply put, the footballing issues need to be put to one side for now, despite the scope that they have provided in bringing his case to the attention of the local and national media, they are not important right now.
I implore readers of this article to sign up to the petition that Claire Ward will be presenting as part of her argument against the deportation of Al Bangoura, be it at the appeal which has been lodged, or at another point in the near future. Her parliamentary e-mail is wardc@parliament.uk, so I would urge you to send a brief message voicing your support for the campaign of Bangoura, be you a Watford fan, a Manchester United fan, a Hartlepool fan, a Motherwell fan, hell, even if you’re a Luton fan, register your support. It may well prove to be a futile effort in the end, but it is important to consider what is potentially at stake in this situation, not only for Al Bangoura, but for his friends, for his colleagues, for his club, and especially for his wife and baby boy. It’s a small contribution, but at least it’s something.
NB: Matthew from TheOffside, who runs the England and Leeds United blogs, brought this matter to light within his blogs before I wrote this article. His contribution to the matter must be noted and appreciated as well relating to this matter. You can find his brief piece on the matter at the link below:
British Government poised to condemn young African footballer to death
Thanks for this news. Hopefully the British public will raise enough stink to keep Bangoura safe. Very troubling.
I certainly do not know enough about this, but from this article alone, while I understand the value in “no preferential treatment,” its a lie to think that in practice, it never happens…and when the circumstances are as dour as they are in the case at hand, I find it to be ridiculous bureaucratic red tape that, while perhaps sending a “no preferential treatment” message, sends an even greater one of protecting form over substance. This would be a great opportunity for the IA to stop sending people back to countries were death for the individual is imminent.
Fortunately for Al Bangoura, he as a very marketable talent and some money. He would probably be able to be “deported” somewhere else, if it were to happen. The folks that don’t have any money to alter the situation are the ones who suffer. Hopefully, it will come to nothing. The PR would be terrible for the IA and they will probably go looking for lower hanging fruit.
Thanx for posting this. I had no idea something like this was happening(blame it on residing outside England). I dont I can petition Ms. Ward can i?
I don’t like Watford. I hardly saw Bangoura in action. But sending him back at a country where “his life would be at risk” is certainly an undesirable decision. Let me state that illegal immigration is a crime, but not a crime whose punishment can be leading-to-death. Forget about the loss of precious footballing income. Forget about the illustrious career he may have. Hell, even forget totally about football. But one cannot, no on can, forget about the importance of Life. I can even accept the decision of banning him to play football in England, but not his deportation.
I mean this is being wicked,the young man has never been a nuisance even when he was still roaming the streets of britain before he was discovered coz of his God given talent,I mean ebven the Bible says “A man’s gift will make a way for him,it shall bring him bfore great men and kings.the young man,through hard work,dedication and commitment has earned a living and a family,what more can you ask of? Claire should take take a few minutes,picturize n visualize herself to be in the young man’s shoes and come out to tell the public how it feels.
Think Woman coz this is ridiculous k.
It would be very, very sad if he was too be deported, He would have a huge possibility of getting murdered and his wife and son could be murdered too.
A very sad case, Hopfully the FA can come to their senses and help the poor bloke, after all this is more than football and actuyally is a matter of Life and Death.
I knew nothing of this at all, Since I do not live in the UK (Being an Australian resident), But this will be hige if he is deported.
Of course, Illegal immagration is a crime and sometimes can be a big threat to whatever nation it is, Usually it would be fine to send back a person to their homeland for a while until a Visa or something can be organized so they can reside in the country they want to; But when this is as huge as this is the FA and the English Immagration department should really work-out something for Al and his families life and well-being.
Really, a very very sad case it will be if he is deported and will show how football can be brilliant (In this case, getting a man from a terrible homeland to a place of oppurtunity and freedom) in some aspects, but sadening in others and can show (Throwing out an old cliche, sorry) that football really is a game and should not be worth a poor man’s life.
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Iv heard about this a few weeks back, but i havent read anything into it until now. Why is it an issue? When he returns talk of death! There should not be any doubts whether he should stay in this country, it is disgraceful!