§44. [...] the Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Adopt specific legislation, incorporating a gender dimension, that governs refugee and asylum-seeking processes;

(b) Apply a gender-sensitive approach to receiving asylum-seeking women and considering asylum claims in order to ensure that such women are protected from exploitation and abuse while in custody and have access to appropriate health-care and other services;

(c) Take less coercive alternative measures when addressing women seeking asylum or refugee status or who have entered the country irregularly , and their children, and use detention only as a last resort;

(d) Take measures to improve the social and economic situation of refugee, asylum-seeking and migrant women and women of Haitian descent in order to eliminate their vulnerability to multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and violence, including domestic violence, and provide them with access to basic services, regardless of their immigration status;

(e) Ensure that a gender-sensitive approach is applied to the asylum claims of women and girls and provide refugee, asylum-seeking and migrant women with free legal counselling on the procedures available for obtaining legal status in the State party and doc uments relating to nationality.

<p>§30 (d) Ensure that refugees and asylum seekers, in particular women and girls, are not penalized for illegal entry and stay in the country, that detention of asylum seekers is used only as a last resort , where necessary and for as short a period as possible, and that safeguards against refoulement are fully implemented; improve the conditions in detention faci lities for women asylum seekers in accordance with international standards; and ensure the provision of adequate health facilities and services, in particular for pregnant women.</p>

<p>§21.       The Bahamas is located in a complex migratory environment and exposed to substantial irregular migration flows. In 2009, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimated that between 20,000 and 50,000 undocumented Haitians were living in the Bahamas.<a href="#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title="">[1]</a> The Immigration Act of 1967 contains provisions on the entry, residence, transit, and exit of migrants, and also criminalizes violations related to immigration status. Immigration officers have the authority to detain anyone refused entry pending removal from the country (sect. 25, para. 4). Any foreign national apprehended in the country after having irregularly crossed the Bahamian borders is subject to detention and removal (sect. 26).</p>

<p>§22.       The Act stipulates that irregular migrants are liable to pay a fine of up to US$ 300 dollars and/or imprisonment for up to 12 months (sect. 19, para. 2). Irregular migrants have been detained in the Carmichael Road Detention Centre, the only dedicated immigration detention centre in the country, which is located in Nassau. At the time of the Special Rapporteur’s visit the centre housed 133 detainees comprising 12 to 15 different nationalities, including several detainees from India, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Haiti and Colombia, one from Kenya, one from Eritrea and one from Ghana, among others. The Special Rapporteur expressed concern with regard to the poor conditions and the length of detention, which do not meet international standards. The centre was obviously overcrowded, as the main section for men had a capacity of only 70 beds and one room for sanitary facilities.</p>

<p>23.       Although no children were present in the detention centre at the time of the visit, the Special Rapporteur notes with deep concern that children have been detained with their mothers for lack of alternative facilities and measures to cater to this population of undocumented migrants and in violation of all relevant international human rights and humanitarian norms. This is all the more alarming since, according to IOM, the majority of persons entering the Bahamas are Haitian children under the age of 14.</p>

<p>§24.       Some of the migrants informed the Special Rapporteur that they had been detained for over 12 months, one of them for several years. The authorities justified the lengthy detention of certain individuals as a result of challenges in communicating with certain countries of origin to receive identification and travel documents in order to proceed with the removal process; but also mentioned complications in obtaining transit visas for those whose return travel itineraries transit through several countries.</p>

<p>§25.       According to the testimony of the Dominican women who were detained at the time of the Special Rapporteur’s visit, immigration officers found them blindfolded in a house in the island of Grand Bahama, where their smugglers had abandoned them after telling them they had reached the United States. They were immediately brought before a judge and sentenced to pay a US$ 300 fine for the offence of irregular entry, without ever being properly screened to determine whether they had been trafficked. It is only when they reached the undocumented migrants detention centre in Nassau that they finally received medical screening. That testifies to the poor implementation of screenings to identify victims of trafficking, and to detect persons in need of humanitarian protection. Despite the fact that one of the women was three months pregnant she remained in detention awaiting the execution of the removal order.</p>

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<p>§28.       The Special Rapporteur received information that the Government of the Bahamas has started to consider alternatives to detention for refugees, asylum seekers and, on certain occasions, for migrants, based on humanitarian grounds. The Government also took steps in 2012 to provide permanent residency for several long-term recognized refugees, most of Cuban and Haitian origin. Those initiatives are welcomed and should be extended to all persons in need of international protection.</p>
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<p>§80.       ...the country lacks a comprehensive assessment of the trends and scope of trafficking, and victims are rarely identified or referred to assistance programmes. The restrictive immigration policy leading to the Government’s rapid deportation of migrants, who arrive mainly by boat, especially from Haiti and the Dominican Republic, informed by existing memorandums of understanding with the countries involved, may lead to the arrest, detention and deportation of potential victims of trafficking without providing the opportunity for identification and assistance. The Special Rapporteur’s fears are heightened by the fact that there is a capacity gap in terms of ability for quick and accurate identification of victims of trafficking.</p>

<p>§89.       With respect to support services for victims of trafficking, while the Special Rapporteur acknowledges the efforts made to develop a plan to assist victims of trafficking, she notes that the guidelines remain general, and recommends that the Government:</p>

<p>...      (c)           Make provision for appropriate support, including the establishment of separate shelters for child victims of trafficking and adults. Shelters should also be made available outside the capital city;</p>

122.218 Implement alternative measures to the detention of migrants, asylum-seekers and refugees, and ensure that any measure restricting their freedom of movement is only used as a measure of last resort, for the shortest possible time and under appropriate conditions (Uruguay);...
122.220 Improve the treatment of asylum-seekers, refugees and migrants, including by ensuring due process before detention or deportation (Canada);....
122.221 Guarantee the protection of migrants and asylum-seekers, their access to health and education and observe the principle of non-refoulement (Mexico);.....