Family's misery in UK

A COUPLE from Fujian Province, surnamed Ou, and their two-year-old son, who were deported from Britain, landed at Pudong International Airport on Sunday, local immigration police said.

The couple, from Fuqing, who had been overseas for four years claimed they were almost penniless when they arrived back in Shanghai.

"We worked hard there but the pay was low. The baby's birth also cost us a lot. I worked a dozen hours every day but still could hardly make any savings," the man is said to have told police.

He said they paid nearly 100,000 yuan (US$13,514) to snakeheads to arrange work overseas. They were sneaked into Hong Kong in 2003 and after staying there illegally for about six months, travelled to several different countries including Namibia and France before finally arriving in the UK.

"The snakehead only dropped us there, providing us with address of a Japanese restaurant. But they refused to hire us because of our illegal status," Ou told police.

A Chinese family finally helped them find jobs but they paid little and the couple were always fearful of being discovered by the immigration authorities.

Ou said they had wished to travel back to China after their son received a British nationality and to put an end to what had become a miserable life.

But the family were caught by immigration authorities last month and arrangements were made to send them home.

"I didn't have a chance to get my last month's pay from my boss when the immigration officers took me away," he was quoted as saying by the local police.