As of 19 April Malawi did not have any reported cases of Covid-19. The country has also not taken any measures to lockdown businesses as the country’s High Court blocked such measures in a ruling on 19 April. However, there are growing concerns among civil society organizations about the impact the virus could have in […]
Detention Blog
Guatemala: Covid-19 and Detention
On 19 April 2020, Guatemalan President, Alejandro Giammattei, stated that a total of 50 migrants deported by the United States to Guatemala have tested positive for Covid-19. Human Rights advocates had been warning for weeks that deportation flights from the United States, the country with the largest known number of Covid-19 cases, could spread the […]
Ireland: Covid-19 and Detention
A hotel that was converted to a “direct provision” asylum reception site in the town of Cahersiveen has been placed under lockdown after several residents tested positive for Covid-19. More than one hundred asylum seekers were transferred four weeks ago to the hotel to await the outcomes of their asylum procedures. All the residents have […]
Bahrain: Covid-19 and Detention
Although little information regarding the country’s immigration detention system is available, data collected by the GDP over the past years shows that the country has used at least five facilities to hold immigration detainees, including prisons and detention centres (see the GDP’s Bahrain immigration detention profile). In 2017, the country had around 820,000 international migrants, […]
Tunisia: Covid-19 and Detention
As of 17 April 2020, there were 780 confirmed Covid-19 cases and 35 deaths related to the virus in Tunisia. No cases had yet been recorded among the prison population. While the President released 1,420 prisoners at the end of March, the GDP has been unable to find reports indicating that any measures to protect […]
Rwanda: Covid-19 and Detention
Refugees and migrants, relocated to Rwanda from Libya and subsequently held in Gashora Emergency Transit Centre outside Kigali, have protested against their lockdown. Rwanda has accepted several hundred persons, evacuated from Libya’s notorious detention facilities. Some have been screened and approved for relocation to countries including Canada and Norway, but the lockdown has suspended their […]
Russian Federation: Covid-19 and Detention
On 18 April, President Putin signed a decree “On Temporary Measures to Resolve the Legal Situation of Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons in the Russian Federation in Connection with the Threat of Further Spread of the new Coronavirus Infection Covid-19.” This new decree provides that the period from 15 March until 15 June 2020 will […]
Lithuania: Covid-19 and Detention
Lithuania’s migration situation has been shaped by steep population decline since it joined the EU (dropping by some 15 percent since 2004), shrinking migrant population, and relatively minor asylum pressures (with roughly 400 asylum applicants a year). And yet, the country remains among the worst performers with respect to its integration policies, according to the […]
Taiwan, Province of China: Covid-19 and Detention
In response to an information request jointly submitted by the Global Detention Project and Amnesty International Taiwan, the Ministry of the Interior reported that to date they have not begun systematically testing new immigration detainees for Covid-19. However, the agency also reported, “Before people are detained, they must be asked about their health condition, undergo […]
Ireland: Covid-19 and Detention
The Irish Department of Justice and Equality announced that all immigration permits due to expire between 20.03.2020 and 20.05.2020 are to be automatically renewed for a period of two months. In addition, the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection introduced a Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment, accessible to all workers irrespective of legal status. The […]
