On the 24th of March, we received the call we had long dreaded: a friend of ours, Fatou Tamba, had been detained after attending her routine reporting appointment in Liverpool. Panic immediately spread across the Liverpool community, where our friend had been living after being moved from Manchester years ago.

No matter how long we’ve been supporting people, no matter how many cases we’ve encountered, each one hits differently. You never get used to the trauma and fear that detention brings—the heartbreak of seeing someone ripped away from their community and the looming threat of deportation.

Thankfully, we managed to trace our friend to the Manchester short-term holding facility. While legal proceedings were immediately put into motion to secure her release, we knew that we couldn’t just sit still. So, alongside Women Asylum Seekers Together (WAST), we mobilised.

Local organisations joined us at the gates of Manchester’s holding facility. We demanded the release of our friend and all the other women and men being held inside. It was both a protest and a declaration of solidarity—a reminder to those inside that they are not alone, and a message to the public that there is a hostile environment right here in Manchester, detaining people whose only “crime” is seeking sanctuary.

We’re deeply grateful to all who supported and showed up in different ways. Our thanks go to: Social Workers Without Borders, Manchester Anti-Raids, Resist Deportations, Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) Manchester, Care4Calais, and Migrants Organise. Your solidarity is seen and appreciated.

One moment that moved me to tears came when a campaigner asked us to pray. She acknowledged that we came from different faiths and beliefs, but said:

“What matters now is prayer. Let’s ask for God’s protection over those detained, especially their mental health, and strength to fight on while they are there.”

It was Teresa Sithole who said those words. As a Christian woman, she shared:

“If everything else fails, we must trust in God. We can offer physical support, but we can’t bandage the emotional wounds caused by this trauma.”

Her words struck deep.

The WAST members kept our spirits lifted—singing and dancing through the bitter cold, bringing warmth into such a heavy space.

Vernetta from SUTR reminded us during her speech:

“We want a compassionate government that protects women, regardless of skin colour or refugee status. The hostile environment is an act of injustice. Detention centres are not places for any human being, especially not women.”

Later, we received news that our friend had been transferred to Derwentside Detention Centre. She told us what we already feared: the conditions are awful. The building is cold. Her diabetes is made worse by the lack of a healthy diet and delayed access to healthcare. She recently had her tooth removed and was still in pain, and  she had to fight for pain relief. Her mental health is deteriorating. And she is not alone in this.

Fatou has asked us to share that she deeply appreciates all your help. She said:

“This fight is not just about me. It’s about the other women I’ve met here. Women who have told me horrible, unbelievable stories, about why they are here, how long they’ve been detained, and the visible, severe mental health breakdowns they are experiencing.”

Those who have worked closely with Fatou were not surprised by her statement.

“She is a woman of deep empathy, always putting the needs of others before her own”.

In Liverpool, organisations like 4WINGS , along with others she has worked with such as Refugee Women Connect, Asylum Link, and Merseyside Solidarity Knows No Borders, have all shown strong support and expressed deep concern about her detention.

4WINGS describes Fatou as someone with a big heart, a strong commitment to helping her community, and an incredible work ethic. They believe that if she is given the opportunity and granted refugee status, she will be a true asset, a treasure who will make a meaningful and positive contribution to her community.

Mallika Balakrishnan, digital organiser at Migrants Organise said:

“We stand in solidarity with the organisers calling for Fatou to be released back to her family and community here in the UK. 

Fatou’s experience of being whisked away to detention during a routine immigration reporting appointment highlights the grotesque connections between hostile environment policies designed to inject fear and indignity into migrants’ daily lives and the cruelty of detention and deportation.

Together we will keep organising for freedom, dignity and justice—for Fatou, and for all people subjected to the violence of the immigration system while simply trying to build a life here.”

Kitty Worthing, GP, Liverpool said:

“We cannot talk about deportation without talking about death. Detention and deportation are violent, deadly practices. As community members, healthcare workers, activists, friends and family members, we are doing everything we can to keep Fatou safe.”

Collin and Resist Deportations Collective said:

“It is unjust and inhumane to deny people safety and a place to call home. Yet, the UK government consistently chooses violence and hostility over love and welcome. We refuse to stand by. We will resist detention. We will resist deportations. And together, as a community, we will fight for justice.”

While we continue to support Fatou legally and emotionally, our work on the outside hasn’t stopped. We kept up our Coffee Solidarity Stalls outside reporting centres: Merseyside Solidarity Knows No Borders in Liverpool, and These Walls Must Fall together with Patients Not Passports in Manchester at Dallas Court.

Nina Houghton from Merseyside Solidarity Knows No Borders said:

”These stalls provide critical support, raising awareness, sharing legal information, and reminding people of their rights”

Many who come to Manchester’s Dallas Court are from far beyond, Nottingham, Stoke-on-Trent, Essex, Wigan. It’s a national issue. Phone reporting could ease so much anxiety, yet people are still being dragged through this system that wears them down.

One story that broke me came from a man who arrived to report with his autistic son, an electronic tag on his ankle, and a wife at home caring for another disabled child. He told us how the tag distresses his family. It’s not a new story, but it’s one that reveals the cruelty of this system.

We’ve had small victories. Our members have shared that security searches have loosened. They’re now allowed to bring in their belongings. It’s a small light in this long fight, but a win, nonetheless. For too long, people—especially women—have been treated like criminals when they go to report. This retraumatises them, over and over again.

Another key issue is the lack of legal aid and information. People often go to report without understanding the risks or what to do if they’re detained. This leads to their cases being jeopardised, appeals exhausted, and ultimately, to detention.

At Right to Remain, we are doing what we can to educate and empower our communities, but the demand is overwhelming. That’s why we urge everyone: share the Right to Remain Toolkit. Keep your community informed. It might save someone from being locked up.

It’s heartbreaking to be someone who follows the rules, who goes to report, not wanting to breach bail, only to be detained anyway. The Home Office continues to create a system that makes our people vulnerable,  depriving them of legal help and trapping us in deadly delays.

But we’re not giving up. We know we can’t do this alone, but together, we can make change.

Join us:

• Share Fatou’s story.
• Sign the petition.
• Stand with us in this fight, for Fatou, and for all the others still behind those walls.

By Maggy Moyo, These Walls Must Fall Organiser