On December 11, 27 people were found dead in an agricultural area north of Zambia’s capital, Lusaka. The dead, dumped one on top of the other in the street, are presumed to be Ethiopian migrants. According to a police spokesman who spoke to the BBC, the migrants are believed to have “suffocated to death while […]
Africa
Egypt: Covid-19 and Detention
While Egypt has been courting world leaders in Sharm el Sheikh as the host for COP27, it has continued to arbitrarily and indefinitely detain thousands of migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. Many are also being forcibly deported to countries where they may face persecution or torture. Egypt has a track record of detaining non-nationals for […]
BOTSWANA: Joint Submission to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
In a joint submission with Lawyers for Human Rights, the GDP has submitted information to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) addressing issues related to immigration detention in Botswana. Amongst various recommendations, the GDP and LHR urge CERD to call on Botswana to ensure that child migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers are not detained; to end the practice of arbitrary detention; and to reform national legislation that is discriminatory in content, language, and application. […]
Botswana: Covid-19 and Detention
Following its recent visit to Botswana, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) expressed serious concerns regarding the country’s punitive approach towards refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants. Having visited two detention sites, the Working Group urged Botswanan authorities to revise its policies to ensure that immigration detention is used as an exception, for the […]
ZIMBABWE: Joint Submission to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
In a joint submission to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the GDP and LHR highlight Zimbabwe’s efforts to control and block migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers for reasons related to their nationality. In particular, the submission points to reports of discriminatory treatment including forced returns of refugees, limited freedom of movement and confinement in Tongogara Camp, female migrants’ health vulnerabilities, and the detention of children. […]
Morocco: Covid-19 and Detention
On 24 June 2022, between 1,500-2,000 migrants who had been camping in the mountains surrounding Melilla, descended to the city’s border, hoping to get through the border fences and enter Spanish territory. Many of the migrants were crushed between the fence and Moroccan border guards, who used tear gas and batons on the migrants. Moroccan […]
Botswana: Covid-19 and Detention
In June 2022, the Global Detention Project (GDP) and Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) issued a joint-submission to the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in preparation for its mission to Botswana from 4-15 July 2022 concerning issues related to immigration detention in Botswana. The submission highlights the gaps in the country’s national refugee legislation, lack […]
Rwanda: Covid-19 and Detention
Despite having a much-criticised track record concerning its treatment of refugees, Rwanda has signed deals with both the United Kingdom and Denmark that involve receiving deported asylum seekers and irregular migrants from both the countries for processing and potential permanent relocation. In mid-April, Rwanda and the UK finalised an “economic development partnership” whose centrepiece is […]
What Pandemic? The Persistence of Inhumane and Arbitrary Immigration Detention in Libya
The UN reported in January that there were more than 12,000 people being detained in 27 prisons and detention facilities across Libya, often in “inhumane conditions in facilities controlled by armed groups or ‘secret facilities.’” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that many of these detainees were being arbitrarily detained after the country undertook security operations […]
Rwanda: Covid-19 and Detention
The United Kingdom is reportedly considering sending asylum seekers to Rwanda as part of an offshore resettlement and processing scheme that would be allowed under the UK government’s proposed new Nationality and Borders Bill. Ghana was also named as a possible destination, although Ghana’s foreign minister quickly disavowed such a possibility, saying that the country […]
