Congo (Republic): Covid-19 and Detention

According to UNHCR, as of mid-2020 the Republic of Congo (RoC)–which is facing the double threat of COVID-19 and Ebola–was hosting 43,656 refugees and asylum seekers and 304,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs). Refugees and asylum seekers are primarily from the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Central African Republic, and Rwanda. On March 15, […]

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NHRC and UNDP Training Seminar in Brazzaville on 28 January 2021, (T. Bosley,

Lebanon: Covid-19 and Detention

Lebanon, which is currently under a strict lockdown that includes a 24/7 curfew, recently witnessed a surge in COVID-19 cases. On 27 January, the country’s interim health minister announced that every person in the country—regardless of their nationality–would receive a COVID-19 vaccination. Questions remain, however, whether many refugees will be willing to present themselves for […]

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R. Hodzic, “Plight of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon Must Not be Ignored,” Al Jazeera, 26 January 2021, https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2021/1/26/plight-of-syrian-refugees-in-lebanon-must-not-be-ignored

United Kingdom: Covid-19 and Detention

Since opening as asylum accommodation in October 2020, the UK’s Napier Barracks–formerly military barracks operated by the Ministry of Defence–have been the subject of intense criticism. Run by a private contractor (Clearsprings, which stands to make £1 billion in ten years from its government contracts to run asylum centres in Wales and South East England), […]

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J. Shenker, “Locked in Barracks with Covid Running Rampant. Is This Any Way to Treat Asylum Seekers?” The Guardian, 27 January 2021, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jan/27/locked-covid-asylum-seekers-napier-barracks-kent

Switzerland: Covid-19 and Detention

On 26 January 2021, the SRF/RTS reported that the Asylum Departure Centre in Aarwangen was placed under quarantine by the Canton of Bern because 19 of its 100 inhabitants had tested positive for COVID-19. They also closed the facility’s kindergarten and school. On 29 January 2021, the Canton reported that the number of positive cases […]

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Frambois Detention Centre Seen From Outside in 2011, (Fernand Melgar,

South Sudan: Covid-19 and Detention

South Sudan is one of the largest countries of refugee origin in Africa. An , westimated 2.2 million South Sudanese have fled the country. At the same time, it hosts a considerable refugee population. According to the UNHCR, South Sudan was hosting 310,006 refugees as of November 2020, 98 percent of whom were living in […]

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UN News, “South Sudan: Coronavirus Cases Confirmed Inside UN Civilian Protection Site,” 13 May 2020, https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/05/1064012

Migration detention centres (förvar) in Sweden (from report of the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture 2021 visit to Sweden)

B. Establishments for foreign nationals deprived of their liberty under aliens legislation; (Read full CPT report) 18. There had been no major changes to the legal framework for immigration detention since the 2015 visit. 23 As previously, the maximum period of detention of an adult foreign national deprived of his/her liberty under aliens legislation was […]

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Syria: Covid-19 and Detention

According to the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 have steadily risen across Syria – in large part because key parties (both regime and opposition) have failed to take adequate steps to protect against the virus. By the end of 2020, 39,728 cases had been reported (11,434 in […]

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N. Ahmado, “Syrian Activists Fear COVID-19 Outbreak in Syria's Underground Prisons,” Voice of America, 21 November 2020, https://www.voanews.com/extremism-watch/syrian-activists-fear-covid-19-outbreak-syrias-underground-prisons

Liechtenstein: Covid-19 and Detention

One of the smallest countries in Europe, Liechtenstein had recorded 2,454 cases of COVID-19 as of 26 January 2021. Following confirmation of the first COVID-19 case in the country on 3 March 2020, the government imposed various restrictive measures, including a ban on all public and private events, a prohibition for more than five people […]

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UNHCR, “Asile au Liechtenstein,” https://www.unhcr.org/dach/ch-fr/nos-activites/asile-au-liechtenstein

Cyprus: Covid-19 and Detention

As of late January, the prolonged forced quarantine of migrants and asylum seekers continued at the Temporary Accommodation Centre in Kokkinotrimithia (“Pournara”) and the Kofinou Reception and Accommodation Centre, under strict lockdown since mid-November 2020. This has caused tensions among the migrants in the already overpopulated centres, and put unaccompanied children at the facilities at […]

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Two Children and an Official at the Pournara Migrant Camp, (Cyprus Mail,

Australia: Covid-19 and Detention

After more than a year of detention inside Melbourne hotels, 65 medically vulnerable male asylum seekers have been released. Previously confined in offshore detention facilities, the men were transferred to mainland Australia in 2019 under the now-repealed Medevac laws, so that they could receive urgent medical treatment. Since their arrival however, they have been held […]

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A. MC, “Medically Vulnerable Refugees in Australia Hotels Finally Freed,” Al Jazeera, 22 January 2021, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/1/22/medically-vulnerable-refugees-in-australia-hotels-finally-freed