Croatia: Covid-19 and Detention

More than a year since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Croatia had still not imposed a moratorium on new immigration detention orders and nor any released immigration as of mid/2021. Nonetheless there was a significant reduction in the number of people detained at the Jezevo Reception Centre in 2020, dropping to 163 from 535 […]

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Jezevo Reception Centre Seen From Outside, (Source: RTL,

Morocco: Covid-19 and Detention

Migrant workers and asylum seekers in Morocco have faced a number of increasing hardships since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, including as a result of their lost access to work during lockdowns. Large numbers of migrants, particularly those who are undocumented, also lack any form of assistance or support in the country. In April […]

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Migrants Sitting Inside a Classroom in Laâyoune, (DR, Infomigrants,

Thailand: Covid-19 and Detention

In March 2021, a number of immigrants became infected while detained by Thailand’s Immigration Bureau, including 77 migrant workers held at detention centres in Bangkok’s Bang Khen and Lak Si districts. Most of the detainees were Burmese, Laotian and Cambodian nationals. The Bangkok Post reported that based on data from the Centre for Covid-19 Situation […]

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Overcrowded Cell in Bangkok Immigration Detention Centre in January 2020, (J. Lovelock,

Ethiopia: Covid-19 and Detention

In 2020, the GDP highlighted several reports documenting the dire detention conditions and appalling ill-treatment that thousands of Ethiopian migrants had faced in Saudi Arabia (see, for example, 6 October 2020 Saudi Arabia update). Following international pressure–including from the European Parliament, as well as groups such as Human Rights Watch (HRW) who urged Saudi Arabia […]

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Z. Zelalem and W. Brown, “First Migrants Released from Saudi Detention Centres Arrive Home After Telegraph Investigation,” The Telegraph, 27 January 2021, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/climate-and-people/first-migrants-released-saudi-detention-centres-arrive-home/

United Kingdom: Covid-19 and Detention

A surge in COVID-19 cases notwithstanding, UK authorities are continuing to arrange deportation flights. On 21 July, a flight to Zimbabwe departed with an estimated 14 persons on board. The first mass-deportation to Zimbabwe in years, media reports state that the flight marked the start of a planned “summer season” of deportations organised by the […]

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D. Taylor, “Legal Bids Mean UK Deportation Flight to Zimbabwe Takes Off Just One-Third Full,” The Guardian, 22 July 2021, https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jul/22/legal-bids-mean-uk-deportation-flight-to-zimbabwe-takes-off-just-one-third-full

Malta: Covid-19 and Detention

As of 1 July 2021, all asylum seekers and other non-EU residents in Malta became eligible for receiving a COVID-19 vaccination. Previously, only people who could provide a valid residence permit were eligible, according to the European Commission: “From 1 July only an identity document and provision of personal details (which are kept strictly confidential) […]

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Detainees Sitting on Bunkbeds in the Overcrowded Safi Barracks, (Times Malta, “Watch: Migrants in Covert Video Beg to be Sent Back Home: Detainees Speak of Terrible Conditions at Safi Barracks,” 6 September 2020 https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/migrants-in-covert-video-beg-to-be-sent-back-home.816459)

Australia: Covid-19 and Detention

As COVID-19 cases rise again in areas of Australia – including New South Wales – prompting fresh lockdowns, a new report from the Australian Human Rights Commission has highlighted the serious risks that COVID-19 poses to people in the country’s immigration detention network. Although no immigration detainees have, to-date, tested positive in the country (although […]

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Australian Human Rights Commission, “Management of COVID-19 Risks in Immigration Detention,” 16 June 2021, https://humanrights.gov.au/our-work/asylum-seekers-and-refugees/publications/management-covid-19-risks-immigration-detention

South Africa: Covid-19 and Detention

In March 2020, shortly after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, South Africa announced plans to construct a 40-kilometre fence between South Africa and Zimbabwe, which was intended to “ensure that no undocumented or infected persons cross into the country. However, observers have pointed out that COVID-19 cases have been far higher in South Africa […]

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Lawyers for Human Rights, “Strandfontein Homeless Committee Takes on City of Cape Town,” 19 May 2020,https://www.lhr.org.za/lhr-news/strandfontein-homeless-committee-takes-on-city-of-cape-town

Turkey: Covid-19 and Detention

A fire broke out at Turkey’s Izmir Harmandali Removal Centre on 23 June 2021 because of an electrical problem at the facility, according to information provided to the Global Detention Project by a non-governmental actor in Turkey. The fire started on the fifth floor of the centre where refugees are held. Firefighters evacuated the floor, […]

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Firefighters On a Crane on the Top Floor of Harmandali Removal Centre, (SonDakika.com, “1 Asylum Seeker Lost His Life in the Fire at the Harmandali Removal Centre,” 23 June 2021, https://www.sondakika.com/haber/haber-son-dakika-harmandali-geri-gonderme-merkezi-nde-cikan-14220937/)

Benin: Covid-19 and Detention

Benin, which as of 25 June 2021 had recorded more than 8,000 COVID-19 cases and 104 deaths, launched a national vaccination campaign in March 2021 with support from the COVAX Facility. However, it is unclear if migrants, refugees, or other non-citizens are included in the vaccination campaign or whether the country has taken any specific […]

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Volunteer Doctor Testing a New Prisoner for COVID-19, (UNDP, “Protéger les Droits des Détenus au Bénin,” 27 April 2021, https://tinyurl.com/4rfdjdv8)