THE UK Home Office is set to launch a new bid to deport failed Zimbabwean asylum seekers in October when a new country guidance case is heard before the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal.

The Home Office has already started the groundwork to make a case for resuming returns after sending a fact-finding team of immigration officers to the country last week.

The deportation of Zimbabweans was frozen in November 2008 by the Court of Appeal decision in the country guidance case of RN (Zimbabwe) – which was reaffirmed in July.

In RN, Appeal Court judges said “those at risk on return to Zimbabwe on account of imputed political opinion are no longer restricted to those who are perceived to be members or supporters of the MDC, but include anyone who is unable to demonstrate support for or loyalty to the regime or Zanu PF.”

They added: “The fact of having lived in the United Kingdom for a significant period of time and of having made an unsuccessful asylum claim are both matters capable of giving rise to an enhanced risk because, such a person is in general reasonably likely to be assumed to be a supporter of the MDC and so, therefore, someone who is unlikely to vote for or support the ruling party ...”

The decision allowed asylum seekers previously rejected to re-open their claims based on the new findings – with many going on to be granted refugee status.

Rumbidzai Bvunzawabaya, an immigration lawyer and columnist for New Zimbabwe.com, said last night that the Tribunal would likely pick a random case in October, and with the agreement of both sets of lawyers – for the Home Office and the asylum claimant – set it down as the new test case to replace RN.

She said: “The decision in RN was handed down before the formalisation of the power sharing government, and so we can expect that the Home Office will be well prepared to present positives about the situation in Zimbabwe and argue for the resumption of deportations.

“If I had not yet claimed asylum, or was considering doing so, I would do this before October to try and get a favourable hearing under RN.”

Andrew Jones, the British embassy’s first secretary in charge of migration, said the UK government would argue at the October hearing for “those who do not need protection to return home”.

Jones said: “The aim of the mission (to Zimbabwe) was to ensure that the UK Border Agency has the most up-to-date information on the situation. This information will be presented by the government as evidence in a country guidance hearing in the UK Asylum Tribunal that will take place in October this year.

“The UK Government takes its international obligations to refugees very seriously. We will continue to grant protection to those who need it. But we expect those who do not need it to return home.”