Yahoo News Asylum seeker dies on board Bibby Stockholm in suspected suicide
An asylum seeker on board the Bibby Stockholm barge has died overnight in a suspected suicide, according to local sources.
The man was found dead in his shared cabin early on Tuesday morning by staff on the barge in Portland, Dorset, who alerted the police at 6.22am.
The asylum seeker, said to be in his 20s, had reportedly complained about his mental health the day before and, according to other migrants on the barge, had been heard shouting and banging on the wall of his cabin.
He was alive when the asylum seeker with whom he shared the cabin got up early to go to the IT centre on the barge. Staff discovered his body shortly afterwards.
Richard Drax, MP for South Dorset, said it was a “tragedy born of an impossible situation”.
“While I never agreed to, nor accepted the imposition of the barge on South Dorset, I believe it was at least a decent, safe haven for some of those cruelly trafficked across the Channel,” he said.
“One can only imagine the desperate circumstances which led to this sad outcome; we must do all that we can to end this evil trade in human misery.”
Police and the Home Office are investigating the death. Officials said they were providing the remaining asylum seekers on the barge with the “requisite” support including faith leaders and trauma specialists.
There are understood to be 300 male asylum seekers housed on the barge. It has a capacity for up to 506 migrants, who are expected to share two, three or four to a cabin.
The Bibby Stockholm has been blighted by problems since it was docked at Portland in July, including a series of health and safety issues. It had to be evacuated in the summer after the discovery of the potentially deadly Legionella bacteria in the water supply.
The death comes after a 23-year-old man tried to kill himself in a hotel car park in Essex last month, after hearing that he was due to be transferred to the Bibby Stockholm.
Steve Smith, chief executive of Care4Calais, said the charity had been “regularly” reporting suicidal intentions among residents but claimed no action had been taken.
“The UK Government must take responsibility for this human tragedy. They have wilfully ignored the trauma they are inflicting on people who are sent to the Bibby Stockholm, and the hundreds being accommodated in former military barracks.”
Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council, called for an independent review of the death to learn lessons. “It is imperative that an independent review is carried out into this death so that lessons are learned to avoid any further tragedies of this kind,” he said.
“A new approach that always sees the face behind the case and treats every individual person with the dignity and humanity they deserve is urgently needed.”
Nicola David, from the One Life to Live charity, which campaigns on behalf of asylum seekers, said six other migrants who were due to be transferred from the same hotel to the barge had said they would “rather kill themselves than be sent there”.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “Everyone arriving on Bibby Stockholm has a medical assessment, they are continually monitored when staying in the accommodation and are given any necessary support as you would rightly expect.”
Bouquets were placed outside Portland Port, including one from “your friends” at Portland Global Friendship Group. “May you rest in peace,” it read.
