Children should never be detained for immigration purposes, says the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), and indeed there is a growing global movement urging states to stop detaining children. Recently the Council of Europe PACE Committee indicated their commitment to ending the practice of child detention, and the (Americas Commission) similarly stated…..
Whilst there has not been a regional statement on child detention in MENA, members and partners continue to report on incidences of child detention. For example, this month Amnesty International is calling for the Egyptian government to stop plans to deport 5 Palestinians from detention in Egypt to Gaza or Syria, including a 14 year old child, and this new report from RMMS on Djibouti highlights the common experience and threat of detention for migrant children in Djibouti.
On November 20, the 25th anniversary of the CRC, the Global Campaign to End Child Detention will hold an international day of action to raise awareness and urge action on the issue, including in countries where detention of children has until recently been a somewhat hidden issue.