A number of asylum seekers staying at the former Military of Defence in Penally, repurposed recently by the Home Office, held a small protest on Wednesday morning to flag up their concerns about poor living conditions at the accommodation centre.

Around 171 asylum seekers are currently staying at the camp and many of the facility’s service users carried signs at the demonstration stating ‘the refugee has a right to stay in a home’ and ‘we are human beings, not numbers on a file’.

A spokesperson for the Stand Up to Racism West Wales group who are organising a further ‘solidarity event’ outside the camp on Saturday, November 14 at 12 pm said: “The ex-military camp at Penally is a completely unsuitable home for vulnerable people fleeing war and oppression.

“Although the men can leave the camp in small numbers between 10 am and 10 pm, the camp is effectively being used as a detention centre or, as the men call it, a prison.

“We believe that to be completely unacceptable and we call on the Home Office to close the camp and transfer the men to comfortable and suitable homes. The conditions in the camp are appalling and are an immediate threat to both physical and mental health.

“The conditions in Penally camp are appalling - we say homes not camps.”

The conditions have been summed up by the asylum seekers staying at the camp in the following statement: “We are camp residents, we live in very difficult conditions in very cold weather.

“The camp is very old and dilapidated and not intended for asylum seekers and refugees. The large number of asylum seekers inside the camp prevent us from social distancing and avoiding Coronavirus.

“There are 6 to 8 people in a small room without any privacy. Facilities like showers and toilets are far away and we need to walk long distances in the rain and stormy weather to reach them.

“We wait for a long time in line to get meals in the rain and there is a lack of access to health care. The problem was exacerbated by the recent lockdown.

“We demand that we be moved to housing. Refugees should not be placed in old military camps.”