Two teenage brothers living in Glasgow fear deportation back to Pakistan

Two teenage brothers have spoken of their fears of being removed from their home in Scotland and deported to Pakistan where they face death threats because of their Christian beliefs. Somer and Areeb Umeed Bakhsh, who are 15 and 13 respectively, said they were “terrified” that they would be killed by Islamic extremists if they and their parents, Maqsood and Parveen, are not granted asylum.

The Bakhsh family fled Pakistan to Glasgow in 2012 and have spent the last six-years seeking asylum but the UK Government has repeatedly turned them down, largely because officials do not believe they would be at risk in Pakistan.

Paul Sweeney, MP for Glasgow North-East, said it would be “inhumane” to deport two teenagers, who are effectively naturalised Scottish boys.

He has urged UK Immigration Minister, Caroline Nokes MP, to give the Bakhsh family permission to stay in the UK while the Home Office urgently re-examines their case.

Speaking on World Refugee Day,(June 20) Somer and Areeb said they regarded themselves as Scottish.

Somer, who is studying five Highers at Springburn Academy in Glasgow and hopes to be an astrophysicist when he is older, said: “I love Scotland and I do not want to go back to Pakistan.

“The thought of it terrifies me and it is very stressful to even imagine going back there.

“I wouldn’t have a future and I can’t even read or write Urdu.

“I want to live here in Scotland, it is my country and my home.”

The family are members of Possilpark Parish Church in Glasgow and Somer is involved in a national committee of the Church of Scotland, which is seeking new ways to engage with children and young people.

He has a wide circle of friends and enjoys playing football, cricket and playing the guitar in the school band.

Areeb, who plays the same sports and has a passion for art and astronomy, said: “I am so happy living in Scotland and I am scared to go back to Pakistan.

“I am really afraid and I can’t imagine living a normal life there.

“I am so happy living here, I am getting the right education and our lives are not under threat.

“I have spent most of my life in Glasgow and consider myself a Scottish boy.

“I do not know anything about Pakistan or the language.”

The catalyst for the family’s move to Scotland was the murder of two Christians who were gunned down outside a court, while in police custody, in the Pakistan city of Faisalabad in July 2010.

Mr Bakhsh, an elder at Possilpark Parish Church, claims the people responsible for their deaths believe he is in league with them, know exactly who he is and would kill him and his family if they had the chance.The 50-year-old said four of his friends have been killed by Islamic extremists, his sister in law’s brother is serving life in jail because of Pakistan’s blasphemy law, which carries the death penalty, and his nephew was kidnapped last month.

The family, who have been living in limbo for six years, have been told by the Home Office they have now exhausted the asylum seeking process and have no right to appeal.Mr Bakhsh worked as a data analyst in Pakistan and holds two masters degrees, while his wife is a trained neo-natal midwife with 17-years of experience.But both have been unable to work in Scotland and forced to survive on benefits and charity due to their immigration status.

Mr Sweeney, said: "I have met the family and was disturbed to learn that they are at risk of deportation to Pakistan where they have already faced discrimination and very real death threats for their Christian beliefs.

"This family have already contributed a huge amount to our local community of Possilpark in Glasgow through the parish church and are exactly the sort of people that our country should be welcoming with open arms, not casting out to a dangerous future.

"It is shocking that a highly skilled and motivated family like this have been kept in limbo for so long, unable to work or even drive a car.”

Mr Sweeney said the family have so much to offer to Scotland.

"I met Maqsood's sons again when I presented them with multiple excellence awards in front of their family, teachers and friends at Springburn Academy and they told me of their aspiration to study at Glasgow University.

"They are in every respect naturalised Scottish boys, having lived here for more than six years now and quite apart from the dangers they would face, it would be inhumane to deport them to a country they have barely any memory or knowledge of.

"I have written to the Immigration Minister asking her to grant the family leave to remain in the UK while the Home Office re-examines their case as a matter of urgency."

Minister, Rev Linda Pollock, described the family as “leading lights” at Possilpark Parish Church and said the situation facing them was “unconscionable”.

“I hope that the Home Office will re-examine the family’s case, stop treating them as numbers and acknowledge them as human beings because they have so much to give to Scotland.''