'My two-year-old is a terror target, because of the Government'
A father has slammed the Home Office for refusing his Filipino wife a British visa, claiming their two-year-old son is now an ISIS target.
Jim Kershaw, from Harrowby Street in Stafford, fears that his family will become terrorist targets if they are forced to stay in the Philippines, which has come under recent threat from Islamic extremists with links to ISIS.
He said someone had already threatened to stab him during a 2012 visit to Dapitan, while his wife and baby boy were attacked a year later in a similar hate crime.
Last month, the Home Office refused the 49-year-old's wife, Chisel Sabanal permission to stay in England for six months.
Mr Kershaw said this decision was made despite Chisel being granted temporary visas in the past and the fact the couple's son was born at Stafford Hospital in 2012.
Mr Kershaw claimed the entry clearance officer handling the case said the pair had not provided any evidence of their alleged attacks and stated that he doubted Mrs Sabanal's intentions in the UK were 'genuine' because she had previously applied for a two-year settlement visa even though she withdrew it following legal advice.
Mr Kershaw expressed his fury at the decision and said the ruling was a breach of his family's human rights.
The care equipment advisor has even written to Home Secretary Theresa May to contest the matter.
He said: "I have known my wife since 2002, we met while I was travelling.
"We kept in correspondence and became serious about each other in 2010 and then got married in 2012.
"Late that year our son was born in Stafford. This is a genuine relationship.
"The Government want to bring immigration down but they can't do it through Europe because of the right of movement so the only way they can do it is by picking on those outside of the EU.
"But I can't go and live on the island because I will be a target.
"I have already been threatened, my wife has been attacked because she had a British baby.
"Muslim terrorists are kidnapping and killing people in the Philippines.
"This is putting my two-year-old son at risk, it is breaching his and my wife's human rights."
A Home Office spokesman said: "All applications are considered on their individual merits and in line with the immigration rules.
"We welcome those who wish to make a life in the UK with their family, work hard and make a contribution.
"But family life must not be established here at the taxpayer's expense.
"That is why we established clear rules for British citizens looking to bring their non-EU spouse to this country, including a minimum income threshold, based on advice from the independent Migration Advisory Committee."
