Almost 20% of unaccompanied child migrants from Albania taken in by Kent County Council this year have disappeared, the BBC has found. The local authority took in 197 Albanian children up until 31 October, 39 of whom have gone missing. The children have been classed as vulnerable and without proper guardianship. It has been a concern that Albanian criminal gangs have recruited migrants, including minors, into the drug trades across the UK and Europe. The current undocumented status of so many children and the fact that they are placed in locations that have public access result in the possibility of them going off the radar of social services.
Abuse and being influenced by persons with malicious intent are a real danger for migrant children in the current system that manages the thousands of refugees that flood the border of the UK each year. As Islam is the majority religion in Albania, it cannot be assumed that every child is not born of Muslim parentage.
The humanitarian failure of the current system is escalating in Europe. For example, the Manston processing center in Kent was holding more than double its capacity, with about 4,000 people exposed to rising diphtheria and COVID due to overcrowding. The situation of so many migrant children going missing does not raise a high level of national concern or debate. This is due to nationalism and the idea that some lives are more important than others based on race and place of birth.
The Khilafah (Caliphate) would never accept this as a regular feature of the social-political landscape. Human life from every nation and demographic has a sacred value, and there can be no compromise on each citizen receiving its full right once they have agreed to live under the terms of the Khilafah. Entering illegally has no real penalty in Khilafah if the persons seek safety from harm. Closing borders and allowing people to drown in boats, intentionally and not assisting them due to a lack of responsibility is not something that can be entertained on any level.
[إِنَّمَا جَزَاءُ الَّذِينَ يُحَارِبُونَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ وَيَسْعَوْنَ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَسَادًا أَنْ يُقَتَّلُوا أَوْ يُصَلَّبُوا أَوْ تُقَطَّعَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَأَرْجُلُهُمْ مِنْ خِلَافٍ أَوْ يُنْفَوْا مِنَ الْأَرْضِ ذَٰلِكَ لَهُمْ خِزْيٌ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَلَهُمْ فِي الْآخِرَةِ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ]
“Indeed, the penalty for those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and strive upon earth [to cause] corruption is none but that they be killed or crucified or that their hands and feet be cut off from opposite sides or that they be exiled from the land. That is for them a disgrace in this world; and for them in the Hereafter is a great punishment” [Quran, 5:33]
The famous saying of Umar Ibn Al Khattab (ra) was of his concern for the very sheep in the pastures of the mountains and he had great concern for his accountability in looking after their matters; what of those of the humans in his care! We ask Allah (swt) to give victory in the return of the Khilafah so that the needy children of the world are not left to be abused by the criminals and evil-doers in charge of the world’s affairs.
Imrana Mohammed
Member of the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir