News

  • Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights comments that decisions concerning migrant children must always be based on their best interests

    Date: 
    10/04/2013

    The Commissioner, Nils Muižnieks, strongly condemns forced returns of children, detention of children, the use of X-ray tests to determine age, and recent proposals by the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom to set up a 'return house' called the 'Welcoming Centre' in Afghanistan to facilitate the return of children. While aimed at family reunification, the idea has been opposed due to risks of sexual and military trafficking, the high difficulty of family tracing in Afghanistan, and the risks of child disappearance and persecution.

  • CJEU: Opinion of Advocate General Bot in case C-529/11 Alarpe and Tijani, 15 January 2013

    Date: 
    10/04/2013

    (Free movement of persons - Directive 2004/38/EC - Right of permanent residence - Article 16 - Legal residence - Residence based on Article 12 of Regulation (EEC) No 1612/68)

  • ECtHR interim measures against Germany enjoins return to Italy

    Date: 
    10/04/2013

    The European Court of Human Rights issued on 13 February an interim measure enjoining the return of a Somali family of asylum seekers from Germany to Italy. The family had first arrived in Italy and moved to Germany some months afterwards. The removal had been allowed by German courts, but the case was referred to the ECtHR, which has given the German Government until 6 March to provide information on the guarantees that it can obtain from the Italian Government to assure that the applicants will receive a sufficient level of protection in view of their particular family situation.

  • Rakhmonov v. Russia (no. 50031/11) [Articles 2, 5 § 1,4 ECHR]

    Date: 
    10/04/2013

    The applicant, Abdusami Rakhmonov, is an Uzbekistani national who was born in 1974 and has been living in Moscow since July 2010. In September 2010, a court in Uzbekistan ordered his arrest pending a criminal investigation against him. In February 2011, he was arrested in Moscow and placed in detention with a view to his extradition to Uzbekistan. In August 2011, the Russian Prosecutor General rejected the request for his extradition. An order for his administrative expulsion was quashed by the courts in September 2011.

  • European Commission: EASO publishes its first Country of Origin Information Report on Afghanistan

    Date: 
    10/04/2013

    On 10/07/2012, the European Asylum Support Office published its first country of origin information (COI) report. The report focuses on Taliban recruitment strategies in Afghanistan. It has also published a methodology guideline for future similar reports. Country of origin reports represent a crucial tool for the decision-making on asylum applications and their availability enhances harmonisation of asylum procedures in the EU.

  • ECtHR - Rafaa v. France (no. 25393/10) [Articles 2 and 3 ECHR]

    Date: 
    10/04/2013

    The applicant is a Moroccan national who arrived illegally in France. He alleged that he had been tortured by the Moroccan secret services because of his support to the Sahrawi cause. He was placed in detention and, following an international arrest warrant from Morocco based on allegations of terrorism, he was imprisoned with a view to his extradition in 2009. The French authorities approved his extradition and the applicant's appeals were dismissed. In the meantime he had also applied for asylum, but his application was dismissed.

  • CJEU: preliminary ruling reference from the Netherlands on assessment of credibility in sexual orientation cases

    Date: 
    10/04/2013

    The Dutch Council of State has decided to refer a question for a preliminary ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union concerning the assessment of the credibility of asylum claims based on persecution on grounds of sexual orientation:

  • PACE adopts reports and resolutions on migration and asylum issues

    Date: 
    10/04/2013

    The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has adopted two reports with the corresponding resolutions and recommendations to the Committee of Ministers concerning  migration and asylum issues.

  • Statewatch publishes an analysis of The CEAS: State-of-play.

    Date: 
    10/04/2013

    The overview by Steve Peers provides information on the second-phase of the CEAS and the state-of-play with regards to its five main legislative measures.

    It also mentions that some connected legislation has already been adopted: an amendment to the EU refugee fund regarding resettlement (adopted spring 2012); an extension to the EU’s legislation on long-term residents to cover refugees and persons with subsidiary protection (adopted spring 2011); and legislation establishing a European Asylum Support Office (adopted early 2010).

  • Ireland: follow-up to the MM case (C-277/11): the absence of single procedure for asylum and subsidiary protection called into question by Irish highest courts

    Date: 
    10/04/2013

    In the MM judgment (C-277/11, reported in the Weekly Legal Update issue of 23 November 2012), the CJEU ruled that, where a State chooses to establish two separate procedures for examining asylum applications and applications for subsidiary protection, an applicant who has applied for subsidiary protection after the rejection of his asylum claim must be granted a fresh hearing in this second

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