London: According to a Monday article in The Guardian, Dr. Krish Kandiah, one of the designers of the UK's Homes for Ukraine programme, is pleading with the government to revive the programme for Sudanese refugees. 

According to Kandiah, the director of the Sanctuary Foundation, "The Homes for Ukraine and Ukraine Family scheme have been an incredible success, welcoming over 173,500 refugees to the UK, frequently being hosted in people's homes." 

As with Ukrainian refugees, Kandiah wished for the nation to extend the "same generosity of spirit" to Sudanese refugees.

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Within days of publicising the idea online, over 100 people have formally registered with the organisation as being willing to host Sudanese families escaping the civil war.  

"We are not requesting an infinite number. As long as a Sudanese person can find a sponsor and a host, they too will have the same opportunity that was given to Ukrainians, Kandiah continued.

If a visa route is established, Chris Willmott, a retired university lecturer, and his wife, Anne Willmott, a doctor, are among those who have agreed to host at their Leicester home. 

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They are fellow humans running away from challenging circumstances, Chris said. And if we are able to assist them, we ought to do so. They face a chicken-and-egg problem if we don't have a Homes for Sudan-style programme because you can't apply for asylum until you're here, and we don't have the resources to bring them here.

The Sanctuary Foundation also suggested that Sudan adopt the family visa programme designed for Ukrainian relatives of people already residing in the UK. Many Sudanese families who have emigrated to the UK are worried about their relatives and would like the chance to bring them back home.

Mohammed Amin, who fled Sudan and was given asylum, arrived as a refugee by boat through the Channel in 2020. He wants to give his sister and nephew the opportunity to live with him after they recently left Khartoum. "The circumstance is terrible. The 40-year-old told The Guardian, "We need to do the same things that were done for Ukraine.

"I'm trying to help them, but it's hard," Amin continued. They left Khartoum and now have nowhere to go and nothing to eat. I'm trying to send them money from here, but the banks aren't operating.

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According to a government spokesperson, there are no plans to create a "bespoke resettlement route" for Sudan; instead, the government is concentrated on averting a humanitarian emergency by "working with international partners and the United Nations to bring an end to fighting."

The spokesperson continued, "Since 2015, we have provided a safe and legal route to the UK to almost 500,000 people seeking safety, but our approach must be considered in the grand scheme of things, rather than on a crisis-by-crisis basis.