A group of seven girls from Drumchapel High School conducted a high-profile campaign throughout much of 2005. Their actions led to substantial press coverage of asylum seeker issues, predominately that of stopping ‘dawn raids’ and deportation of asylum seekers.
The girls are Agnessa Murselaj, Ewlina Siwak, Rosa Salih, Amal Azuddin, Emma Clifford, Jennifer McCarron and Toni Henderson.
The Glasgow Girls formed when fifteen-year old Agnessa Murselaj and her family were taken into detention. Agnessa’s family was released after the Home Office was discovered they could not safely return home, as they are ethnic Roma, a persecuted minority in their native Kosovo. After the Murselaj’s were released, the Glasgow Girls continued to campaign.
Public pressure brought in part by campaigns such as the Glasgow Girls', and considerable cross-party lobbying in the Scottish Executive to take action on the issue of ‘dawn raids’ and deportations resulted in Jack McConnell claiming to be developing a ‘protocol’ with Westminster that would lead to special treatment of asylum seekers in Scotland.
In late November this claim was exposed as a lie, and McConnell publicly rebuked by Immigration Minister Tony McNulty. The Home Office clearly said that asylum issues are strictly a reserved issue, beyond the reach of the Scottish Executive.
