On 26-30 September, the GDP welcomed to Geneva representatives from partner NGOs based in the Gulf and South Asia – the GCC-based Migrant-Rights.org and the Migration and Asylum Project in India. Their visit was part of the GDP’s Global Immigration Detention Observatory project, a collaborative initiative between the GDP and partner organisations around the world […]
NEWSLETTER: The Global Compact v. The Migrant Workers Convention?
The GDP’s September 2022 roundup of research, publications, and events – including our assessment of the gaps between the Global Compact for Migration and UN Migrant Worker Convention; news about our latest webinar; and our recent work highlighting concerns regarding Türkiye’s treatment of immigration detainees. […]
Sahar Okhovat Elected as New President of the Global Detention Project
The Global Detention Project’s Executive Committee has unanimously elected Sahar Okhovat as its new President, replacing outgoing President Roberta Cecchetti. Sahar is a Senior Policy Officer at the Refugee Council of Australia and previously served as the Vice Chair of the detention committee for the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network and as a Humanitarian Observer […]
Oral Submission: Statements Concerning the CMW’s General Comment No.6 on the Convergence Between the Global Compact for Migration and the Convention
The GDP’s Executive Director Michael Flynn spoke at the UN Committee on Migrant Workers’ half day of general discussion on its draft General Comment No.6 on the convergence between the convergence between the Global Compact for Migration (GCM) and the Migrant Worker Convention. Reiterating points raised by the GDP in its written submission to the CMW, Flynn provided comment on three aspects of the GCM that concern migration-related detention – alternatives to detention, the detention of children, and criminalisation of migration-related violations. […]
Japan: Covid-19 and Detention
Japan’s treatment of refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants within its immigration detention estate is again under intense scrutiny after a court ruled that authorities had failed to protect the health of a detainee. The detainee – a 43-year-old Cameroonian asylum seeker – died in detention in 2014. Suffering from diabetes and other health issues, the […]
Oral Submission: GDP Partner, IRRA, Provides Input on Issues Related to Immigration Detention in Türkiye at the UN Committee on Migrant Workers’ 35th Session
On Monday 19th September, the GDP’s Türkiye-based partner – the International Refugee Rights Association (IRRA) – delivered a virtual presentation at the 35th Session of the UN Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families. This oral submission drew the committee’s attention to Türkiye’s laws and practices […]
Submission to the UN Committee on Migrant Workers: General Comment No.6 on the Convergence of the International Convention on the Rights of Migrant Workers and the Global Compact for Migration
To support the UN CMW’s work developing its new General Comment (No.6) on the Convergence of the Convention and the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, the GDP has provided comments – particularly regarding Articles 16 and 17 of the ICRMW and Objective 13 of the GCM. […]
Turkey: Covid-19 and Detention
On 20 September, the GDP’s Türkiye-based partner – the International Refugee Rights Association (IRRA) – delivered a virtual presentation to the UN Committee on the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families (CMW) during its 35th session. This oral submission, which followed a joint written submission to the committee from both the […]
GDP Hosts Third Interactive Webinar: The Role of OPCAT in Preventing Harmful Immigration Detention
On Monday 5 September, the GDP hosted the third in its series of interactive webinars aimed at building stronger connections between local civil society organisations and international human rights instruments and exploring how these instruments can be applied to protect the rights of detained refugees and migrants. Examining the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT), this webinar explored the role of the OPCAT bodies—the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (SPT) and National Preventive Mechanisms (NPMs). […]
Tajikistan: Covid-19 and Detention
In recent weeks, Tajik authorities have been arbitrarily detaining Afghan refugees and asylum seekers and forcibly returning them across the border into Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. UNHCR reports that since 2021 there have been numerous cases of Afghan refugees being detained and deported in the country. Most recently, on 23 August 2022, it documented the arrest of […]
