The UK government has announced this week a proposal for a new immigration bill aimed at making it more difficult for undocumented migrants to live in the country, and at addressing the perceived problem of ‘health tourism’ by charging migrants for the use of primary...
Human rights NGOs in Russia have continued their work despite the difficulties faced by many targeted under the law that requires NGOs to register on a database of “foreign agents” if they engage in unspecified “political activity” and receive foreign funding. Many...
The European Commission and the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs have adopted a joint communication this week, mapping out the EU response to the Syrian conflict. In particular, the communication urges Member States to admit any Syrians arriving at...
On June 21, the UK Court of Appeal rendered a “milestone” judgement, in which it overturned the convictions against three children from Vietnam who were trafficked to the UK and forced to work for criminal gangs. The children were arrested after police raids on...
The Croatian asylum system is stretched to the limit of its capacity, according to a new report by the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Europe, which raises concerns that with EU accession, the number of asylum seekers that the country receives is likely to continue to...
Academics, UNICEF, UNHCR and the Danish Refugee Council participated in a workshop to discuss the European Return Platform for Unaccompanied Minors (ERPUM), which focuses on the return of unaccompanied children to Afghanistan and, to a lesser extent, Iraq. The...
A readmission agreement in the works between the European Union and Turkey risks failing to respect the rights of refugees and asylum seekers, according to a policy brief by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EMHRN). EMHRN says that the agreement, which...
In 2012, Spain received 2.580 asylum applications, the lowest figure since asylum applications started to be registered in 1988, the Spanish Commission for Refugees (CEAR) shows in a new report. In the same year, only 220 persons were recognised as refugees and 289...
A new report published by the Hungarian Helsinki Committee (HHC), UNHCR’s Regional Representation, and the Hungarian National Police Headquarters shows that the number of unaccompanied children intercepted at Hungarian borders increased substantially throughout 2012,...
A new report by the EU Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) illustrates that Member States are dragging their feet in the implementation of some of the protective provisions of the Returns Directive such as the monitoring of returns and the need to provide alternatives to...