Our friend and a sister, Fatou Tamba, is still in detention, and her situation is growing more urgent by the day.

Fatou has now been detained for over two months. She is isolated, vulnerable, and increasingly broken down by a system that treats people seeking safety as criminals. In her own words, “They’re treating me worse than a murderer… I’m mentally losing it.”

And now, as if all this isn’t enough, the Home Office has issued another deportation order, this time for 17 June.

The cruelty feels endless.

Her solicitors are working tirelessly to stop this deportation, but as is so often the case under the hostile environment, that fight is not being publicly funded. Fatou’s family, particularly her brother Lamin ,along with kind and committed supporters, have been paying for private legal representation. This is not sustainable without help. Funds are urgently needed to continue the legal fight.

What we know so far is that Fatou is likely to be flown via Morocco or Turkey, then to The Gambia. The Home Office has refused to disclose her flight details, making it incredibly difficult for us to organise community interventions in time.

Let’s be clear: these airlines must not be complicit in taking people to danger. Airlines must be challenged and pressured to stop acting as carriers of forced removals to deadly or unsafe conditions. Fatou is a woman who fled danger, has built a life here for 18 years, and is loved deeply by her community. Deporting her is an act of violence.

What You Can Do Now

Donate to support Fatou’s legal costs – you can help Fatou’s brother, Lamin, raise necessary funds for legal costs.

Contact your MP – ask them to intervene urgently to stop the 17 June removal attempt. Remind them: Fatou is still here because of people power.

Share the campaign, sign the petition – use #FreeFatou across social media to keep the pressure on. Sign the petition by clicking the button below, to join nearly 27,000 other people who say ‘Fatou belongs here!’. 

We stopped one deportation order. We can stop another. But we must act now.

Fatou is one of us. She deserves safety, dignity, and freedom.

Right to Remain Team