Why does the Government persist in sending Zimbabwean asylum seekers back to the clutches of Robert Mugabe's horrific regime?

There is absolutely no doubt that some or all of those who are deported will be tortured, or even killed.

Politicians of all parties have united to condemn the pig-headed policy that has resulted in Zimbabwean detainees going on hunger strike in our detention centres, claiming that death is preferable to being sent back.

Still the deportations continue, with the mood among detainees in Kidlington's Campsfield House getting bleaker by the day.

Shame on the Government and shame on those who are prepared to stand by and let this happen.

Of course, there must be strict controls in place to ensure that we are not overwhelmed by immigrants and asylum seekers.

But there is a place for compassion and common sense too, and neither of these have been applied in this case.

Tony Blair's Government must call a halt to the deportations before one of these young men is killed or injured upon his return.

If that does happen, everyone who supported the policy will have the victim's fate on their conscience -- and his blood on their hands.