The United Kingdom’s High Court ruled this week that the government’s immigration policies regarding Czech Roma were lawful, rejecting the arguments of human rights groups that the screening methods at Prague Airport are discriminatory. Screeners routinely refuse “pre-clearance” to Czech Roma, preventing them from entering the UK and claiming asylum through the usual channels. The Court found no evidence that the methods violate the 1951 Geneva Refugee Convention, though the vast majority of Czech asylum seekers are Roma. Advocates for a group of Czech Roma denied admission to the UK noted that asylum is one of the few options open to Roma persecuted in their own countries, and that the decision removed the only legal recourse for many refugees. Liberty, the rights group pressing the case, has stated that it will appeal.
