15 March 2024
Dear Deputy Minister of Interior,
I am writing to you on behalf of the Global Detention Project, a research organization based in Switzerland that studies the laws and policies concerning the detention of migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees in every country. We are currently conducting a study of policies in the countries of East Africa, including South Sudan, because of the challenges facing the entire region in managing migration, ensuring security, and upholding the rights of all people. .
According to the information available to us, South Sudan detains migrants and asylum seekers. The 2012 Refugee Act outlines the rights and obligations of asylum seekers and refugees in the country, emphasizing the importance of maintaining the civilian and humanitarian character of asylum. Furthermore, international law and South Sudanese law prohibit ill-treatment of detainees, including inhuman and degrading treatment. We kindly request detailed information on the following:
- A list of detention facilities where migrants, asylum seekers, and non-citizens are currently being detained because of their non-citizen or immigration status.
- The number of people placed in any form of immigration-related detention in 2023 as well as for any other years for which data is available, in addition to data about the numbers of women and children placed in this form of detention.
- Information about the numbers of people deported from the country during 2023 as well as for any other your for which data is available.
- Information about the legal framework governing the immigration-related detention, including relevant procedures and safeguards in place to protect their rights.
- Information about conditions and operations in these detention facilities, including witrh respect ot access to healthcare and to visits by family members, legal representatives, or detention monitoring bodies.
- Any measures your office is taking to implement relevant recommendations made during South Sudan’s appraisal at the Universal Periodic Review in 2022, including:
113.41 Accede to the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons and the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness (Côte d’Ivoire) (Eswatini) (Paraguay);
113.21 Consider ratifying the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (Niger);
113.258 Step up efforts, in cooperation with international agencies, to create conditions conducive to the safe, voluntary and dignified return of refugees and internally displaced persons (Republic of Korea).
We would greatly appreciate your cooperation in providing us with the requested information, which will be invaluable to our research efforts. Please let us know if there are any protocols to follow or specific channels through which we should direct our inquiry.
Thank you for considering our request.
Sincerely,
Abdul Aziz Muhamat, Global Detention Project (Geneva, Switzerland)
