Deported woman says treated like a terrorist

Singapore, Feb. 28: A Singaporean grandmother who was deported from Britain because her immigration status had lapsed on Tuesday said that police treated her “like a terrorist” before putting her on a plane back to Asia.

Irene Clennell, 53, was removed from Britain on Sunday after being sent to an immigration detention centre. “I’m a tiny person and two of the officers were holding my hand, like I’m going to run away or something, like a terrorist,” she told in Singapore. “It was quite embarrassing,” she added.

Ms Clennell arrived in Britain in 1988, married two years later and has two adult sons and a granddaughter. She and her husband lived in the north of the country. She spent periods in Singapore throughout her marriage; one stretch lasted seven years and her British husband and children, who were small at the time, were with her for most of that time, she said.

Her husband of 27 years, John, has serious health problems and Ms Clennell was his sole caregiver, her sister-inlaw, Angela Clennell, said in Britain.

Irene Clennell said he was inconsolable when she was deported. “He was in tears and stuff,” she said. “He is suffering from depression.”

The British government’s spousal visa system requires that a foreign spouse spend substantial uninterrupted time in the country. — AP