Emad sought asylum in the UK in 1982 after studying at Swansea University. He campaigned for democracy and freedom in Iraq during the regime of Saddam Hussein. He was active in the student movement in the 1970s, which drew a violent response from Iraqi government agents. In the 1990s he was director of the Iraqi Community Association in London. He now works for the Evelyn Oldfield Unit.
I finished my studies in Swansea in 1981. At that time I had some problems began with my stay which is in the country, you know. I came as a student my visa was as a student so the renewal was every year pending the Home Office receiving a document that I'm continue studying. So as I said I came here not as a refugee to this country; I came here as a student. Once I finished my studies, in fact before finishing my study you know because my scholarship it was three years, had been extended,
the Iraqi embassy, because of the deterioration of the situation in Iraq, all those… they think that we would be against their government activities; so they cut off my scholarships, so I immediately depending on some income of money and suddenly there is no money; I don't have a scholarship there was no way and then immediately I finished my studies and nowhere to go.
The Home Office they asked for …to prove them whether I am still studying or not. We sent with the help of my supervisor and the help of Students' Union we sent a letter to the Home Office at that time asking look, to extension, something special, exceptional that, because my visa expired; not only that it coincide with my, the expire of my passport, my Iraqi passport. So before even I wrote to the Home Office I send, couple of months I remember, I send my passport to the Iraqi embassy for renewal, and they embassy they seize the passport and they never return it and they never renewal. So it is really a problem. The Home Office then put pressure and I said I don't have a passport.
The passport is in the embassy; I wrote them many letters to send me back my Iraqi passport they ignored all my letters. I involve the Students Union my supervisor, until many months later, many months.
I received a letters from the Iraqi embassy, there is a copy of it, in fact answering my supervisor's letter telling "sorry we are not answering your letters many months ago. Now we found that Emad Al Hamadani's passport has a problem and he need to solve that problem only in Iraq. We ask him if he could come to send him back to Iraq on a one-way so he can sort out his problem in Iraq".
So I said this is a very obvious trick and stupid one. You know, to tell me that come to receive a temporary passport--as I could read from their letter, that "there is some problem with his contract and that he must return to Iraq and sort the matter out personally. In the meantime he will be issued with a temporary passport to enable him to travel to Iraq". This is really the most ...when I showed it to my supervisor and the student...even later on, I involved my MP, Ian Wells, to raise the issue with the Home Office and it become really a battle with the Home Office. I told them "I don't have a passport", they said "you have to leave, otherwise you will be arrested". And then it take a couple of months the Home Office at the end they grant me an asylum. It was in August 82.
So I have their letter saying you have been granted to remain until three years; they gave me three years at that time; and then from that time I because have nothing to do in Swansea and it become as well difficult to find a job, small town, so I moved to London, staying with some friend and we tried to seek some job in London.
So it was, when I moved to London sometime late 82; when I arrived to London it is another life. Difficult to find a job. We began to apply whenever there is a vacancies always we have this negative answer because for one reason which we find out because we are Iraqis.
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