An Ethiopian refugee evicted from a tent in St Peter’s Square this morning expressed his desire to be reuinted with his daughter.
Temesgn Petros, 45, arrived in the UK 25 years ago.
This morning he was evicted from his temporary home in St Peter’s Square as part of the clearance of the “red tent camp”.
In the midst of the clearance, he stood surrounded by bailiffs and police showing everyone a photo of his daughter, who remains in Ethiopia. He has not seen her since he came here.
He said: “After all this I do not wish for me, I wish for her.”
He hopes that his daughter will be able to come here and study, and that they will be able to see each other again.
Speaking to reporters at Mancunian Matters he said that he had asked to be returned home but the Home Office can’t help him.
He said: “My life is between Ethiopian government and the UK Home Office. Why [do] they do nothing?”
And of the council, he says: “We want back up. We don’t have any future to see.”
He claimed that the council did not explain enough what was happening, or how to access help – saying that those in the camp had been asking for six months, but the council was too busy making a case against them.
In a statement this morning Manchester City Council said: “We have conducted homelessness assessments for people camping there and offered temporary accommodation to everyone who we owed a statutory duty – anyone classed as vulnerable and in priority need.
“Others on site who were not classed as vulnerable were still offered advice and support, including a personal housing plan, to help them secure accommodation for themselves.”
Many of the refugees and homeless people living in St Peter’s Square have moved down the road in front of the Midland, a four-star hotel.
Feature image: The tents relocated at the Midland Hotel
