A Disgrace.

Private Epeli Uluilakeba served with distinction in Iraq. In the aftermath…

Still deeply disturbed by his experiences, he took to heavy drinking. In the small hours of one morning, when an over-zealous corporal was shouting to evacuate the barracks for a fire-drill, Pex drew a knife on him. For this, he was court martialled in 2009. After a short spell in Colchester prison, the Army discharged him as “no longer being of service”.

A devout Christian, Pex pulled himself together, became a teetotaller, and set about training to qualify as a plumber. But, being a Fijian citizen, he was not allowed to work, claim benefits or even sign on with a GP. (He still has to pull bits of shrapnel out of his own legs, because he has no doctor.)

So, here’s a soldier who has been through the mill, pulled himself together, and now faces deportation as an illegal immigrant. We can’t deport rapists and murderers, stupid social services clerks put up asylum seekers in million-pound plus houses in Muswell Hill, yet we are to deport a man who has given service to this country and been traumatised on our behalf.

It is a disgrace.

Story here.

14 thoughts on “A Disgrace.”

  1. I wonder how Epeli came to be a member of the UK’s armed forces?
    It sounds highly unfair to be eligible for service but ineligible for basic services which are given freely to any Tomas, Ricardo or Muhammed who rocks up and holds his hand out.

  3. You’re right, bravo, it is a disgrace to treat any former member of our armed services in this way, especially considering the taxpayers’ money wasted on illiterate peasants who are never going to be of any benefit to Britain.

  4. Bearsy, we have a long tradition of recruiting in Fiji. It’s a win-win – we get excellent soldiers – and rugby players – and, since Fijians are recruited on regular Army terms, they get a good wage, and the Fiji economy gets a flow of remittances. Recruiting was stopped in the ’70’s and I remember the parade for the last tranche of Fiji regulars, by this time, WO’s I and II, and Staff/Colour Sergeants in the early 90’s. I’m not sure when recruiting began again. Here’s a story of a couple of them:

    http://www.matavuvale.com/group/longislandvanuabalavu/forum/topics/who-dares-win-sas-sgt

    And a piece of advice:

    “Be bloody careful of drunk Fijians who want to indulge in pugilism, they tend to swing it from their ankles, and if it connects…it will rip your fucking head off!”

    (Apologies for the rough language, ladies.)

  5. Here’s the story of another:

    Derenalagi claims his resolve to stay in the British army has been strengthened by his experience. “The MoD has been good to me. We have been given a five-bedroom house in Watford, and compensation. I can take an office job for life if I want one. They have done everything for me and I want to pay them back. It’s not the other way around.” Derek’s ambition is now to represent Britain at the 2012 Paralympics in London. “I am a Fijian but I am also British. I joined the army because I wanted to fight for Britain, that’s where my loyalties lie and my children will grow up British. Most Fijians love Britain and would love to live there if they had a chance, so I am lucky in a way.”

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/apr/26/fijians-british-army-iraq

  8. Had to avoid a couple of those swings starting from the ankles on the rugby pitch 🙂

    Just to rub it in:

    Tanya Welch, 39, and her partner Tom O’Leary, 42, (‘travellers’) have been served an eviction notice on a £1.2m house in a prosperous area of north London, where they were placed as tenants by the local council.

    So, it’s OK to be anti–social wasters, but, serve this country, screw up, make good again and what do you get?

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/8320655/Travellers-to-be-moved-to-twelfth-home-in-12-years-funded-by-the-taxpayer.html

  9. I may be imagining it but does the French Foreign Legion not reward any recruit with French citizenship after having served for ten years? I have a suspicion the Americans do something similar for their mercenaries – i.e. non-citizens who fight for the King’s Shilling – sorry HBO’s Dollar. It probably hasn’t helped that Fiji was suspended from the Commonwealth for failing to undertake to hold elections. I would imagine all but the most biased British subjects would agree that members of the Commonwealth prepared to serve in our Armed Forces should be entitled to British passports with the right of abode in the UK. Whether this should extend to those with a dishonorable discharge is probably more contentious. Mental health issues are rife amongst those of our armed forces who have seen combat, which is presumably the excuse proffered for this man’s heavy drinking and pulling a knife on an “over-zealous” corporal. That he was diagnosed with Post Conflict Stress Disorder, and that this was left untreated, is the disgrace, and gives legs to this case. I see there is reference to being able to make contributions to support his appeal, so that anyone feeling inclined to do more than blog about it, may send cheques to that appeal. The disparity in treatment of the Fijian and the judgements given preventing the deportation of assorted scum under Human Rights legislation is a national disgrace, and the Government needs to get to grips with it pdq.

  12. Shocking, Bravo. Being familiar with the NHS scenario, if he was an asylum-seeker he’d been signed up for gratis NHS treatment, no problem. It makes no sense at all.

  13. I would suspect that the minster, Liam Fox, knew as much about this case as I do about flying to the moon but he knows now thanks to Christopher Booker and The DT. The person or persons responsible for this have let their personal feelings get in the way of making, what seems to me, the common senses decision of letting the man stay and giving him the support he deserves. But there is a problem you see. He does not fit into the ‘do gooder, pc world’ that these people live in.Illegal Immigrant? Traveller? Come in and welcome, what can we do to help, what’s that, he was a British Soldier, armed thug more like fighting in an illegal war, give him what he deserves and boot him out. Can you see the mind set here? The tree huggers and the great unwashed of twenty years ago have now obtained positions of real power and are venting their misguided hatred of a population that did not support their crazy notions. I can almost imagine the conversation in the offices of those responsible and would bet my shirt that the line, ‘This will wind up the Daily Telegraph readership, smug bastards that they are,’ or something similar was uttered.
    I can think of no other reason why the common sensed decision was not taken in this and similar cases other than these civil servants are pursuing their own agenda and to hell with the rest of us.

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