In December 2021, we launched an IDC Facebook Page for the MENA Region! This page will include regular updates in Arabic and English, and will also coordinate a private Facebook group for IDC MENA members to enhance ongoing engagement between our members and strengthen communication and collaboration.
Most recently in February 2022, IDC announced a new online training that we are co-organising with UNICEF on 17 March. This training will focus on supporting civil society groups and initiatives to enhance their capacity and build a network of actors working on issues related to ending the immigration detention of children in the MENA region.
IDC and UNICEF Middle East and North Africa (MENA) are carrying out research on the current state of immigration detention and the related legislations and practices in the MENA region, especially concerning children. In addition to identifying opportunities for the implementation of community-based Alternatives to Detention (ATD). The purpose of this research is to inform the International Migration Review Forum in May 2022, which serves as the primary intergovernmental global platform to discuss and share progress on the implementation of all aspects of the Global Compact for Migration.
Refugee protests and online mobilisation
In January, 600 refugees and migrants in Tripoli, Libya, were arrested and detained after protesting for months in front of a UNHCR building. They were demanding safety and protection, as well as seeking resettlement out of the country. Read more about these developments in our blog post: What’s happening in Tripoli? in English and Arabic.
Issues in Libya are similar to previous refugee protests in Egypt in 2020, where refugees in front of a UNHCR building were demanding justice following the killing of a refugee child. The protesters, who were mostly Sudanese, were detained by authorities. More recently in February 2022, refugees in Tunisia have also started protesting and demanding necessary protection assistance, including resettlement to Europe.
These examples reflect the growing need for proper mechanisms to listen and understand the concerns and challenges of refugees and migrants, and consider what is needed beyond the current systems in place. Additionally, migrant and refugee communities have started using social media to reach wider audiences internationally, using hashtags such as #EVACUATErefugeesTUNISIA4yearsisENOUGH and #EvacuateRefugeesFromLibya. Impacted communities are taking these actions to raise their voices and be heard, and to appeal to activists, organisations, and social movements beyond the borders of the countries where they feel trapped inside. Furthermore, refugee-led initiatives are increasing in the region to cover gaps in daily assistance, such as this online fundraising campaign initiated by refugee communities in Libya (GoFundMe) to support refugees and migrants with basic needs. The goal is to raise 15k euros, and they are already two thirds of the way there!
Agreements to prevent migrant arrivals in Europe continue
In Libya, despite the grave human rights violations reported inside Libyan detention centres, there are currently 12,000 migrants and refugees in immigration detention. Italy, with backing from the EU, is continuing its 5-year long agreement with Libya. Signed in 2017, this agreement provides support to Libyan Coast Guards, allowing them to intercept and return migrants crossing the Mediterranean to Europe. Despite continuation of the agreement, the UN maintains its call for a total suspension of such agreements, declaring that “Libya is not a safe port of disembarkation for refugees and migrants.”
In countries like Tunisia, agreements with European countries have not been made public. However, some organizations have raised concerns over proposals for further collaboration between Tunisia and some European states, given increased migration from the country in the last few years. So far, 5,000 Tunisians have been repatriated from Italy.
Restrictions such as these have left people on the move with limited options to seek international protection, and better economic opportunities to provide safety, stability and wellbeing for their loved ones and families. These difficult predicaments have led migrant communities to speak out about their conditions, as described above. Additionally, in January 2022, two Nigerian migrants brought a case against Italy and Libya before the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Their case states that Italy and Libya failed to adhere to their international obligation to protect women’s rights with regards to the complainants, who are also victims of human trafficking. Updates on this case are said to be forthcoming in the next few months.
Deportations, repatriations and returns
In Egypt, detained unregistered people seeking asylum have limited access to UNHCR, asylum procedures or legal assistance. Human Rights Watch reported in 2021 about the poor conditions of nine Eritrean asylum seekers who were detained, including children. By the end of 2021, Egypt had deported 24 Eritreans who were seeking asylum, including adults and children. Upon return to Eritrea, these people and families face serious risks of arbitrary detention and torture by the ruling government.
In 2021, Libyan Coast Guards intercepted and returned 30,990 migrants and refugees to Libya. This was almost three times more people than in 2020. While in Morocco, police arrested more than 12,000 people attempting to leave through irregular means. This is potentially also linked to an agreement with the EU to prevent arrivals, as indicated in a leaked report by the European Commission in 2021. This report included proposals to strengthen cooperation with Libya and Morocco as part of the new EU pact on migration and asylum.
Additionally, Iraq repatriated 4,000 people from Europe since November 2021.This was after thousands reached the Belarus-Poland border seeking safety and asylum earlier in the year. Iraq’s repatriations were welcomed by the EU, and considered “good cooperation” in managing the crisis at their border.
Moving forward
The complexities of the migration experience in the MENA region, as well as the political relationships and dynamics that exist between nations in both Europe and MENA, creates an environment that criminalises migrant communities as a default approach, which adds to the vulnerabilities and risks faced by people on the move. Immigration detention is a core issue within this criminalisation approach, and IDC aims to continue strengthening its MENA Regional Programme in order to build civil society capacity, networks and advocacy initiatives to ensure that human rights and dignity are at the forefront of the migrant and refugee experience in MENA.
For more information about IDC’s MENA Regional Programme, please contact [email protected]
Written by Amera Markous MENA Regional Coordinator