Waiting to be deported, foreigners on hunger strike

At the Lampur Detention Centre, tired of waiting for months to be deported, five African nationals have gone on an indefinite hunger strike.

At the Lampur Detention Centre, tired of waiting for months to be deported, five African nationals have gone on an indefinite hunger strike.

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Not only this, they have been joined by six femal foreign nationals who are also awaiting deportation at a home on Jail Road in West Delhi.

“As promised, we have started our hunger strike. We will not stop it till we are deported,” said Jimmy Oteba (34), a Ugandan national, arrested in 2005 by the Customs Department. He was supposed to be deported in January this year.

Not just food, the five Africans have even stopped taking their daily dose of necessary medicines.

Inspired by the men, the six women have also gone on a hunger strike. Currently there are three Zambian and three others, one each from Indonesia, Uganda and Thailand at the home.

“We are sick and tired of waiting for justice. All we want is to go back home. We believe that this is the only way left to attract the authorities attention,” said Sipito, a Ugandan caught under the NDPS Act.

After these two groups began their strike, the FRRO officials hurriedly went to Lampur and Jail Road detention centres to pacify them and assure them that the procedures for their deportations have already been started and they should discontinue with their hunger strike.

“We will continue till some concrete steps are taken,” said Vincent Nwachukwu, a Nigerian arrested in 2002.