Thank God!

I am hardly Tony Blair's biggest fan, but the possibility of a Conservative government makes me shudder with fear. Really now, Michael Howard as our Prime Minister and representative to the world? Please, we could never laugh at Bush again.

The Conservatives dedicated an entire page of their manifesto to one message, 'Obviously the world is more dangerous and we've got to keep up our guards'. One fine example of fear tactics. Immigration has always been used as an effective scare tactic to strike the fear into Britons, making the distinction between us and them. Our wealth, jobs, and economic stability are vulnerable to attack by immigrants who drain our national resources. It's better to erect a fortress around our borders to keep them out. The Conservatives talk about the figures on immigration in one sentence and jumps onto the issue of asylum seekers in another. 'Immigrants' include all people who move from one country to another, asylum seekers are immigrants but they do not make up the whole figure. The discourse on asylum-seekers often underemphasise one key point, the people are fleeing their countries for their own safety, either for political or religious reasons. The difference between 'asylum-seekers' and 'refugees' is only defined in legal terms, the latter is enjoys an internationally recognised status.

My family came to England as refugees, which makes me one of those people the Conservatives are so afraid of. We are told asylum-seekers are often bogus, that they want to steal our jobs, do not pay taxes, commit crimes, live off the state. I personally take that as an insult. Sure, my family depended on social security while we were trying to find our feet. We started with a cardboard TV box for a table and some garden chairs, but my parents studied English, learnt some skills, and started working and paying taxes. Asylum seekers and refugees are just ordinary people trying to survive in extraordinary circumstances. The position that certain politicians adopt would have denied my family from ever setting foot in the country, let alone try to forge a future beyond absolute poverty.

Amidst the excitement of winning a third term, Blair walks into the wrong house.