asylum seekers - The African Mirror

Sep

2023

African migrants bound for US use Nicaragua to bypass Darien perils

AFRICAN migrants and asylum seekers heading to the United States are flying into Nicaragua to bypass the Darien Gap, a dangerous jungle isthmus connecting Panama and Colombia, according to migrants interviewed by Reuters and exclusive U.N. data. A dozen migrants recently arrived in the Mexican northern border city of Tijuana and the southern city of Oaxaca said they had flown into the Central American country, where many African nationalities can obtain a low-cost visa. The migrants hailed from Mali, Angola, Guinea and Senegal, and almost all said they knew about the dangers of Darien, which can only be traversed on…

Sep

2023

By CRISPIAN BALMER

Asylum seekers in Italy told to pay to avoid detention

WORLD

ASYLUM seekers in Italy will have to pay 4,938 euros ($5,259) to avoid detention while their request for protection is being processed, the government said on Friday, in a measure apparently aimed at deterring migrants. Facing a surge in new arrivals, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's coalition announced this week that it would increase the number of detention centres around the country to hold migrants ahead of their possible repatriation. It also said that it would increase the amount of time people could be detained to 18 months from three months. At present migrants to Italy who apply for asylum are free to…

Jun

2023

By The African Mirror

UK PM Sunak dealt blow as court rules Rwanda deportation plan unlawful

NEWS

ANDREW MACASKILL, SAM TOBIN and MICHAEL HOLDEN BRITISH Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the government would appeal to the UK's top court after its plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda was deemed unlawful, a major blow to his pledge to stop asylum seekers arriving in small boats. Under an initial 140 million pound ($177 million) deal struck last year, Britain planned to send tens of thousands of asylum seekers who arrive on its shores a distance of more than 4,000 miles (6,400 km) to the East African country. The government argues the plan would smash the business model of human…

Jun

2023

By The African Mirror

Migrant numbers are rising: conflict, climate and harassment are forcing tens of millions to leave their homes

SPECIAL FEATURES: ANALYSIS

THE number of forcibly displaced people increased to 108 million in 2022 and is expected to reach 117 million by the end of 2023, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR). Of these, just over 60 million were internally displaced – people who have been forced to leave their homes but have not crossed their (internationally recognised) borders. Almost 30 million were refugees outside their country of origin. The remainder were asylum seekers, stateless persons, returnees and persons in need of international protection. BORJA SANTOS PORRAS, Director Ejecutivo - IE School of Global and Public Affairs, IE University UNHCR…

Jun

2023

By The African Mirror

U.N. says concerned over Libya migrant arrests

NEWS

THE United Nations mission in Libya said it was concerned by the arbitrary arrest of migrants and asylum seekers in the country, accompanied by what it called a disturbing rise in hate speech and racist discourse. The mission said Libyan authorities had detained thousands of men, women and children from the streets and their homes, or following raids on alleged traffickers' camps and warehouses. It said many of them, including children and pregnant women, were being detained in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions and that thousands of others, including some who entered Libya legally, had been collectively expelled. Last week eastern…

Apr

2023

By The African Mirror

Britain’s migrant deal unlawful as Rwanda is unsafe, lawyers say

NEWS

MICHAEL HOLDEN and SAM TOBIN BRITAIN'S plan to send migrants to Rwanda is unlawful because the East African country is not a safe country, lawyers for a group of asylum seekers told the Court of Appeal in London on Monday. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's government wants to send thousands of migrants more than 4,000 miles (6,400 km) away to Rwanda as part of a 140 million pound ($174 million) deal agreed upon last year. It regards the plan as central to deterring record numbers of asylum seekers arriving in small boats across the Channel from France, something Sunak has made…

Jan

2023

By The African Mirror

London court allows appeal over UK’s Rwanda migrant plan

NEWS

LONDON’S High Court granted permission to a group of asylum seekers to appeal against a ruling that Britain’s plan to send migrants to Rwanda is lawful. Britain's interior ministry said it would defend its policy, which is a central part of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's plan to tackle the record number of migrants arriving in small boats. The government says the plan will deter people smugglers, though it has been denounced by rights groups and even King Charles since it was announced in April. The first planned deportation flight was blocked in June last year by a last-minute ruling by the European Court of Human…

Apr

2022

By The African Mirror

Britain to send migrants to Rwanda

NEWS

ALISTAIR SMOUT and CLEMENT UWIRINGIYIMANA BRITAIN could send tens of thousands of asylum seekers to the East African country of Rwanda, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said, aiming to break people-smuggling networks and stem the flow of migrants across the Channel. Concerns over immigration were a big factor in the 2016 Brexit vote, and Johnson has been under pressure to deliver on his promise to "take back control" of Britain's borders. But his plan drew swift criticism from opponents of his Conservative Party and from charities. "We must ensure that the only route to asylum in the UK is a safe…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Canada to welcome ‘human rights defenders’, including journalists, as refugees

WORLD

ANNA MEHLER PAPERNY CANADA is establishing a dedicated refugee stream for "human rights defenders," including journalists, who may need to seek asylum to escape persecution in their country, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Marco Mendicino has announced. The stream - the first of its kind in the world, according to the UN refugee agency - will accommodate 250 people a year, plus their families, and focus on people at heightened risk, such as women, journalists and LGBTQ2 rights advocates. "We must not overlook those who bear witness to these human tragedies, who are active through demonstration and reporting so the…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Libya fails to stop migrant detention abuses, as EU-backed returns soar

HUMAN RIGHTS

SARA CRETA ZINTAN, LibyaThe EU-backed Libyan Coast Guard has intercepted more than 13,000 asylum seekers and migrants at sea this year, preventing them from reaching Europe – already a greater number than in all of 2020. Those intercepted are returned to Libya and sent to detention centres where a well-documented cycle of extortion, torture, gender-based violence, and trafficking has been taking place for years. At the same time, the EU is facing intensifying scrutiny over its hand in the system due to its support for the Libyan Coast Guard – including the use of its aerial surveillance assets to coordinate interceptions and returns to…