Yarl’s Wood asylum seekers ‘sexually abused by staff’ and ‘denied privacy’

Female asylum seekers held at the UK’s Yarl’s Wood detention center are routinely degraded by male staff who monitor them while they are naked, using the toilet and showering, a refugee charity says. Allegations of sexual molestation have also been made.

A damning report, conducted by Women for Refugee Women, found that female immigrants in the detention center are often denied privacy and dignity. The research also uncovered claims of sexual misconduct carried out by staff.

The study, entitled “I am Human,” was published Wednesday. It examined the experience of 38 female asylum seekers who entered Britain and were detained in Yarl’s Wood between June 2012 and October 2014.

The charity undertook the research to gain insight into how the Home Office and its private contractors treat vulnerable asylum seekers hoping to find reprieve in Britain.

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