The deaths of 37 migrants and asylum seekers in late June along the border fence separating the Spanish enclave of Melilla from Morocco have spurred numerous protests across cities in both countries. Thousands of protestors gathered in Barcelona, Malaga, Vigo, San Sebastian, and Melilla to denounce migration policies as well as the militarisation of Spain’s […]
Detention Blog
Morocco: Covid-19 and Detention
On 24 June 2022, between 1,500-2,000 migrants who had been camping in the mountains surrounding Melilla, descended to the city’s border, hoping to get through the border fences and enter Spanish territory. Many of the migrants were crushed between the fence and Moroccan border guards, who used tear gas and batons on the migrants. Moroccan […]
United Arab Emirates: Covid-19 and Detention
In June, the Global Detention Project (GDP) and Migrant-Rights.org issued a joint submission to the Committee against Torture concerning issues related to immigration detention in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The submission highlights prolonged detention periods, poor detention conditions, as well as instances of deportation without recourse to legal remedies. The GDP and Migrant-Rights.org encouraged […]
Botswana: Covid-19 and Detention
In June 2022, the Global Detention Project (GDP) and Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) issued a joint-submission to the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in preparation for its mission to Botswana from 4-15 July 2022 concerning issues related to immigration detention in Botswana. The submission highlights the gaps in the country’s national refugee legislation, lack […]
United States: Covid-19 and Detention
In late June, 53 migrants died after being abandoned in a trailer in south-west San Antonio, Texas, marking the highest ever death toll from a human trafficking event near the US-Mexico border. More than half of the victims were originally from Mexico while 14 were from Honduras, seven from Guatemala, and two from El Salvador. […]
France: Covid-19 and Detention
In early June, France’s independent detention monitoring agency, the Contrôleur Général des lieux de Privation de Liberté (CGPL), released a report on its work, which heavily criticised operations at the country’s immigration detention centres (centres de rétention administrative or CRA), including highlighting critical problems with respect to COVID-19 measures. The CGPL report found that the […]
Papua New Guinea: Covid-19 and Detention
As of 23 May 2022, Papua New Guinea had recorded 44,403 COVID-19 cases and 651 deaths. The country’s vaccination rate is very low compared to other countries, with around 2.75 percent of its population having been vaccinated as of 20 April 2022. There appears to be very little data on efforts to assist migrants or […]
Immigration detention In Netherlands ( from report of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture 2022 visit to Netherlands)
1. Preliminary remarks ; (Read full CPT report) 49. In the course of the visit, the delegation visited all three closed immigration detention facilities in the Netherlands: it carried out follow-up visits to Rotterdam43 and Schiphol Detention Centres (DCs), and it conducted a first-time visit to the Closed Family Facility (Gesloten Gezinsvoorziening – GGV) at […]
Philippines: Covid-19 and Detention
The Philippines took measures early in the pandemic to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in detention centres, though measures appear to have targeted prisons rather than immigration centres. In April 2020, authorities announced that some prisoners would be released to alleviate overcrowding and avoid the spread of COVID-19 (see the 18 May 2020 Philippines update). […]
Immigration detention in Latvia (from report of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture 2022 visit to Latvia)
a. preliminary remarks; (Read full CPT report) 28. One of the objectives of the 2022 visit was to examine the situation of foreign nationalsdetained under aliens legislation. For this purpose, the delegation visited the country’s two dedicateddetention facilities for foreign nationals, namely Daugavpils Immigration Detention Centre and Mucenieki Immigration Detention Centre.12 Both centres are managed […]
