HUNDREDS of protesters demanded the closure of Campsfield immigration centre in Kidlington at the weekend to mark 24 years since the inhumane site opened.

They were joined by Oxford MPs Layla Moran (Lib Dem) and Anneliese Dodds (Labour) who both branded the centre “a stain on society.”

The site in Kidlington was opened in November 1993 and since then more than 30,000 people have been detained without time limits, charges or proper legal representation.

Campaigners, who have been fighting to shut down Campsfield since it first opened, have accused the site’s private owner Mities of making a profit at the expense of human rights.

Detainees and supporters have held around 290 monthly demonstrations in a row to demand its closure with the slogan “asylum-seekers are not criminals.”

Ms Dodds, a Labour frontbencher, said she was “strongly opposed” to the excessive use of immigration detention saying it “puts Britain to shame.”

She added: “It is unfair, it doesn’t work and it is cruel.

“Immigration detention causes real distress and anxiety for individuals and families and I am clear that indefinite detention of people in the asylum and immigration system must end.”

Britain is the only country in Europe where detainees can be held indefinitely.

The rally was also addressed by former detainee Jawad, who had been moved between four detention centres, including Campsfield, in nine months.

“I have suffered nine months in detention asking for my UN treaty rights. I have a message for all the people at Campsfield today. Be patient and God will listen to everyone,” he said.