Day of the African Children
On June 16 every year, governments, NGOs, international organisations and other stakeholders gather to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the full realization of the right of children in Africa. Immigration detention of children and families is a practice still widely used across Africa. The International Detention Coalition is amongst an alliance of organisations that supports the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in calling States to “completely and expeditiously” end the practice of child immigration detention.
We believe that every child deserves the right to live safely, with dignity and freedom, regardless of their immigration status. This includes refugee, asylum-seeker, and unaccompanied and accompanied migrant children. Today, we provide resources and advocacy tools to support the campaign to end child immigration detention. If you would like more information, please contact [email protected].
Videos to support your campaign
Here, we provide video material from “Day of the African Child” June 16 2016. We hope these efforts will highlight the importance of alternatives to detention and ending the practice of child immigration detention. For more, please view the campaign’s End Child Detention Vimeo Channel for dozens of useful videos appropriate for community and political education, advocacy, and action.
Day of the African Child (2018)
This video was created to commemorate Day of the African Child June 16 2018. It is featured on our Facebook and Twitter page.
Infographics
These infographics are detailed in our report, There Are Alternatives: Africa. They present a series of region-specific case studies of immigration detention. This research is intended to encourage civil society and government actors to pilot alternatives, including increasing safe migration pathways that manage and resolve cases in a fair, timely and humane matter.
Roadmap to End Child Immigration Detention
Publications
Africa in Focus: Alternatives for Children (2018)
Alternatives to detention for children exist across the continent. The research is centred on the protection of child migrants and identifying opportunities for shared regional approaches that assist in reducing the need for unnecessary immigration detention. This overview is featured in our latest report There Are Alternatives: Africa which highlights positive examples of domestic and regional law, policy and practice in 32 African States.
Ensuring the Right to Liberty for Child Migrants
In this section, we present a detailed analysis of the practice of child immigration detention, including how it violates the principle of the best interests of the child, the child’s right to be detained only as a measure of last resort, and the right to not be punished for the acts of his or her parents.
More information on the matter can be found in our 2015-2016 publication There are alternatives – a handbook to prevent unnecessary immigration detention.
Over the past two years, the International Detention Coalition (IDC) has heard firsthand the stories of children and parents from all over the world who have experienced immigration detention. In total 70 children were interviewed in various States across the world. We also listened to the experiences of 16 parents of children who had been detained. Their experiences highlight the need for alternative approaches to managing the irregular migration of children.
Global Resources
Alternatives to Detention Database
Now embedded with advanced search options, you can find out what positive practices are happening in Africa and worldwide.
Online Toolkits on Child Immigration Detention
This online toolkit is designed to give you all relevant information on the practice of child immigration detention as well as give you guidance on how to protect children on the move through providing examples of alternatives to detention.
Advocacy Tools – The Global Campaign to End Child Immigration
Here, we provide a number of easy-to-use tools to support you to meet with decision makers in your community in your campaign to end child immigration detention.