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| Britain |
| Britain transfers some migrants to docked barge |
| 2023-08-08 |
| [Dawn] Britannia on Monday began housing The "Bibby Stockholm", which has been moored for weeks in Portland on the Dorset coastline, accepted the first of up to 500 young, male inhabitants due to stay there, after a series of delays. The decision to dock the vessel in Portland, a small island with a population of about 13,600 people, has prompted a backlash from some locals, including its Conservative MP, who argue the area is ill-suited to the task. Rights advocates have also hit out at the policy, saying the barge is unfit for the purpose, with protesters from either side showing up at the waterfront site in recent weeks. Steve Valdez-Symonds of It was previously used by Germany and the Netherlands to house homeless people and asylum-seekers, but opponents in Britannia have noted it was previously described as an "oppressive environment". A number of "None of the asylum-seekers we are supporting have gone to the Bibby Stockholm today," said Steve Smith, chief executive of refugee charity Care4Calais, adding that they had suffered torture, modern slavery and had traumatic experiences at sea. |
| Posted by:trailing wife |