AYS Daily Digest 28/09/2021: Poland ignores interim measures decision by ECtHR
Updates from the Polish border, where many people are being pushed back and forth // Polish Government ignores decision issued by the European Court for Human Rights // Pushback from Polish Police Station? // 44 year prison sentence for steering a boat to safety // Potential pushback from Kos // Repatriation of Minors to Ceuta deemed unlawful // Rescue ships waits for Port of Safety //
FEATURE: Access for lawyers denied by Poland despite interim measures ordered by ECtHR — the situation along the border deteriorates
The situation along the Polish border remains fluid and static at the same time. 32 people are still trapped at the border with Belarus in a standoff between Polish and Belarusian Border Guards. An unknown, yet significant number of people is being pushed back and forth in various locations along the border.
A group of 32 people has been stuck in between Polish and Belarusian border guards since the beginning of August. They are more or less at nature’s mercy, held in “problematic sanitary and humanitarian conditions”, as the European Court for Human Rights (ECtHR) puts it.
On Monday 27th of September, the ECtHR decided to prolong the interim measures that were first issued on the 25th of August and included the provision of food, water, clothing, adequate medical care and, if possible, temporary shelter for this specific group of people. The interim measures do not currently include the duty to grant access to the Polish territory and asylum system.
In this latest decision, the ECtHR further ordered the Polish government to grant the people trapped at the border access to lawyers. The Court also decided to indicate to the Polish Government that the people should not be sent back to Belarus. With yesterday’s decision, the Government of Poland was given notice of the application and was asked to submit written observations on the admissibility and merits of the application.
Journalists however reported that Polish authorities defied the ECtHR’s decision and blocked the lawyers that were trying to get access to the trapped people:
On Monday, Poland extended the state of emergency along the Belarusian Border for another 60 days. The state of emergency, put in place in early September, denies access to the territory along the border for journalists, lawyers and activists. In the discourse accompanying this extension, the ‘link’ between migrants and potential security threats once again played a major role. Meanwhile, Polish authorities published numbers stating that, since August, 8,200 people were blocked from entering Poland via Belarus. This means that at least 8,200 Pushbacks were carried out. At the time of writing, a 2 metre high fence-like structure is under construction. 2,500 soldiers are stationed along the 400 km long border.
The Polish newspaper Wyborcza published an article about what seems to be a pushback from a Police Station. A group of people has been apprehended in Szymki, a village 100 km from the border. They were then brought to the Police Station of Michałowo, which they initially refused to enter, staying outside for the whole day. Luckily, activists, journalists and lawyers were present and could speak to them through the fence, although they were not allowed to approach them nor provide them with food and other necessary goods. The group was eventually loaded onto a bus. When activists tried to follow, their cars were stopped and checked for “routine inspection” and for “obstructing the work of the officers”. When they were finally let go, the bus was gone, driving in the direction of the border. According to a statement by the border guard unit, “the procedure specified in the regulation was applied to them [the group], that is, they were led to the border line”.
When held at the Police Station, one member of the group was able to speak to journalists, telling them that, upon reaching Belarus, they were beaten, had their belongings stolen and were then kicked back into Poland by Belarusian Border Guards. It is an endless back and forth between the two countries, greeting the people in search of safety with nothing but violence.
For more information on the general situation along the border, see:
Some words on interim measures:
Interim measures can — when followed by the states in question — be a useful tool in order to protect the rights of people on the move in emergency situations. The ECtHR can issue interim measures in cases where it is considered
“that the applicant faces a real risk of serious, irreversible harm if the measure is not applied”
(according to Rule 39 of the Rules of the Court).
The main scope of use is usually in cases of expulsion and extradition. The interim measure must not necessarily be filed by a lawyer and will be answered immediately if received by the court during working hours. Domestic measures with suspending effect should have been exhausted before turning to the ECtHR.
For more information on filing interim measures, see information provided by the Court. For more information on potential legal measures that can be taken in specific situation, see the new legal toolkit published by BVMN:
You might also want to watch the video of Tuesday’s presentation of the Toolkit, followed by very interesting insights into legal struggles from Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia:
GREECE
44 years in prison and a €25,000 fine — for saving lives
The Court of Appeal of Mytilini on Lesbos confirmed once again an outrageous decision: A man of 26 years has been sentenced to 44 years in prison and a €25,000 fine for “unauthorized entry” and “facilitating the illegal entry of 21 others”. According to other people on the boat, the man was forced, at gunpoint, by smugglers, to drive the boat to the shore after the group left Turkish waters. The practice of punishing people for driving the boat that brought them to safety is well established on the islands of Greece.
“Without exception, they were sentenced in court proceedings that undermine basic legal standards. In most cases, a life sentence is imposed.”
Finally transferred
Since there is little good news to share these days, let’s not leave out any chance to do so: The pregnant woman who set herself on fire in February after learning that her transfer to Germany was postponed, and who was subsequently accused of arson, has finally been transferred.
Dead body found in waters near Alexandroupoli
According to local media, the body of a man has been found in the northern Aegean Sea, close to Alexandroupoli. It is assumed that the person was trying to cross from Turkey into Greece.
Pushback from Kos?
Different sources, among them Alarm Phone, reported the arrival of 6 people to the Greek Island of Kos. While Alarm Phone was unable to establish contact with the group, the Turkish Coast Guards reported that a group of six people were found close to Kos and then brought to the Turkish city of Bodrum. This could once again be a sign of a pushback carried out by Greek authorities against people who had already arrived on the islands.
SPAIN
Potential discrimination in reception system
According to media article, the Spanish Ministry of Inclusion has plans to change the reception system. Healthy single men from countries with which Spain has a repatriation agreement such as Morocco, Algeria and Senegal should not be admitted to reception facilities, according to the plans. Especially in cases of overcrowding, vulnerable people should be favored. As stated in the article, the reception facilities are not full at the moment — nevertheless, newly arrived men from Morocco were not admitted to the facilities. The new instruction has been suspended, but the Ministry is further pursuing its plans.
Bodies washed ashore
At the tourist beach of Almeria, 9 bodies have washed ashore in the last couple of days. Among them was the body of a four-year-old child. On the three routes through which people try to make it to Spain — the Strait of Gibraltar, the Alboran Sea and the Canary route — a total of 1,025 people lost their lives so far this year. In August alone, 379 people died or disappeared trying to reach the Canary Islands. That is 12 people every 24 hours. One person every two hours. This route to the archipelago is the most deadly one. In many cases, boats miss the small islands and drift into the open Ocean. Also, so called ‘invisible shipwrecks’ with no survivors happen frequently. Tragically, the number of deaths is therefore likely to be much higher.
“Invisible shipwrecks, in which there are no survivors, are believed to be frequent occurrences on this route but are nearly impossible to verify,” Director of IOM’s Missing Migrants Project said.
This article provides a good overview over the routes and the death rates:
This article takes a deeper look into Spanish migration and rescue policies:
Repatriation of Minors to Ceuta was unlawful, Court said
According to media articles, “The Public Prosecutor’s Office of the National High Court considers the administrative actions that were carried out last August to repatriate the Moroccan minors who entered Ceuta irregularly in May “null and void.”” According to the Prosectutor, these actions ignored the established procedures and violated the minors’ right to effective judicial protection.
On August 13th, groups of minors who made it into Ceuta in May, when many people tried to surmount or swim around the border fences, were repatriated to Morocco.
CENTRAL MEDITERRANEAN
Rescue ship still waits for port of safety to be assigned
“After 8 days, the mental health condition of survivors keeps worsening. The feeling of hope has been replaced by fear, despair, anxiety & insomnia. The uncertainty about the disembarkation process causes severe distress for people on board.” Hager Saadallah — MSF Psychologist
Human Trafficker made an Officer at Libyan Naval Academy — EU is officially working with criminals who put people’s lives at risk
According to media reports, Abdel-Rahman Milad (Al-Bidja) has been made an Officer at the Naval Academy and made Head of the Coast Guard in the western region by the outgoing Government of National Accord (GNA).
Al-Bidja has been on a UN Security Council’s Sanctions Committee list since June 2018, for his involvement in human trafficking and fuel smuggling. He was also subject to a special bulletin by Interpol, and a warrant for his arrest was issued in April 2019, by the Tripoli Public Prosecution Office.
FRANCE
Death of a teenager in France
Utopia 56 reported the death of a 16 year-old teenager who died after having been hit by a truck. The boy was trying to find a way to reach the UK.
Insights into the French deportation system
This article provides backround information on the French deportation system and the facilities used for it. The deportation prison at Mayotte International Airport is one of the largest in the country.
UK
Video on the UK’s new Nationality and Borders Bill
“This summer the UK Nationality and Borders Bill passed its second reading. What is new? What is unworkable? What will change? In this online seminar leading barrister and founder of the Free Movement website Colin Yeo discussed these issues and responded to questions from the audience.”
Report on Napier barracks and other facilities
A report about the living conditions at Napier Barracks and other housing facilities has been published by an All-Party Parliamentarian group working on immigration detention in UK.
The main concerns raised by witnesses included:
- the sites’ profoundly negative impact on the mental health of people housed there
- unsanitary, cramped, ‘prison-like’ conditions
- ineffective safeguarding of children + vulnerable adults
- mistreatment + intimidation of residents and NGO workers supporting them
- inadequate access to healthcare & legal advice for residents
EVENT:
Seminar on the Pushback Report by UN Special Rapporteur González Morales, Wednesday 29 September 2021:
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