Logging my findings

I have started researching asylum. Initially I am gathering information on where asylum seekers come from and why.

Having read a few bits of BNP literature it seems that they acknowledge that there are people who's lives really are in danger, however believe that it is not the British taxpayers responsibility. To which I can imagine a lot of people saying "well, fair enough - a bit selfish, but fair enough".

While I don't want to present a 'solution' with my design, I do think that I want to promote some kind of compassion. We are a wealthy country, we can afford to help.

I want to show that we have the responsibility to take asylum seriously, not just because its a nice thing to do, but because we as a nation owe it to the world. There are so many ways that Britain has (directly or indirectly) fucked so many things up, and continues to do so.

Whether it African countries that Britain colonised, semi-westernised, and then left in a mess (Nigeria, Eritrea, etc). Whether its the conflict between Isreal and Palestine (and Isreal and Lebanon) because of the way that the Western backed Isreal oppresses Palestinians. More recently, we should also consider sweat-shop labour. Lets use Bangladesh as an example. The British people are perfectly content in buying clothes from Primark which takes full advantage of what the Foreign Office calls "the worst [country] for corrupuption" to make cheap clothes. However, it is completely different if a Bangladeshi wants protection from the corrupt government. In fact Bangladesh is on the 'Whitelist' a list of countries considered safe, meaning that an asylum claim from a citizen of a whitelisted country is considered unfounded (however the Foreign Office advises us not to travel to Bangladesh as it is a dangerous country).

Anyway, I have started collating my information on a world map. It is far from complete, but whitlisted countries are coloured white and listed on the right and countries whos citizens come the UK are coloured black and listed down the left.



Close ups


Oops, is it Hezballah, or Hezbollah...? I'll have to check up on that.

First Post

I have pretty much decided on the subject of my FMP.

I want to look at asylum seekers and immigrants as these are areas that cause a lot of genuine concern and fear amongst the British population, mainly because there is little factual information available to the public. This lack of information results in the spreading of myths and lies, and ultimately the persecution of refugees and immigrants, the increased popularity of the BNP, and the attemps of other political parties to prove that they take a 'tough stance' on the issue.

I want to produce something objective that will inform people about the true facts of the issue. I do not intend to promote a certain point of view or solution - it is still a complicated issue with no clear answer of what is best to do - just try and encourage people to view it with intelligence and objectivity.

What better way to kick of my FMP blog than to show a video. This was posted on the BNP website, mocking liberals (it is interesting to note the use of the terms 'red' or 'communist' when describing liberals in fascist propaganda) and the government, accusing them of not allowing free speech, and comparing them to the Soviets. The British Nationalst are shown as kind, caring, down-to-earth folk.



Enjoy, and try not to get converted - I nearly was...