The International Detention Coalition (IDC) is currently undertaking research to explore the use of alternatives to immigration detention, and the experiences of children affected by immigration detention worldwide. These projects are being done in collaboration with La Trobe University Refugee Research Centre and with an independent researcher, respectively.

Fieldwork for both projects is currently underway in the following regions: Africa, Asia, Americas, Europe, MENA and North America.

Please email IDC Research Coordinator Verity Boaro for more information or to find out how you can get involved.

Further details on each project are below:

Alternatives to detention

The use of detention as a means of immigration control is increasing throughout the world. This research aims to identify and describe examples of community-basedalternatives to immigration detention which may include legislation, policy or practice that allows for asylum seekers, refugees and migrants to reside in the community with freedom of movement while their migration status is being resolved or while awaiting deportation or removal proceedings. A practical tool (guidebook) describing current community-based alternatives to immigration detention will be produced for use in advocacy and to stimulate policy debate.

A survey completed by 87 members in 30 countries formed the basis for fieldwork priorities, to be undertaken between January and April 2010.

Ethics process: The Alternatives to Detention research is in partnership with Latrobe University with the research approved through their internal ethics process. Background information to this research project: Click here

For more information on the research project, ethics process and researcher contact details, please contact IDC Research Coordinator Verity Boaro

Children in detention

Many countries continue to detain migrant, asylum seeker and refugee children, including in closed refugee camps, alongside convicted criminals in jails and in immigration detention centres. Despite a substantial body of international research documenting the psychological harm to children in detention, the incarceration of children in immigration detention is a little discussed policy and human rights issue.

This research seeks to give voice to children in immigration detention throughout the world, many of whom are unaccompanied or separated from their caregivers. The research will include an analysis of the situation of children in immigration detention in its policy context. A policy document for engagement in national, regional and international policy advocacy will be produced. This research will also inform the development of the first-ever global campaign against the detention of children.

The research will include fieldwork studies in Europe, North America, Americas, Asia, Africa and MENA, and will focus on both policy and narrative, in order to, where possible, capture the voices of children and their families affected by immigration detention.

Ethics process: The IDC Advisory Committee has provided advice on how to navigate the important ethical issues associated with the project, with final ethics approval gained through the IDC governance structure.

The IDC’s broad membership will have opportunities to input into the research, in particular to inform the subsequent development of an international multimedia campaign against the detention of children.

Background information to this research project: Click here.

For more information on the research project, ethics process and researcher contact details, please contact IDC Research Coordinator Verity Boaro

This includes:

Asia Pacific:

·         Malaysia: The IDC ran the first ever training of the Malaysian government in November last year on human rights detention standards and alternatives to detention, with UNHCR and ICRC. We note the significant developments in Malaysia in the past month, including the government agreeing to provide ID to registered refugees to prevent arrest and detention and an NGO given access to the facilities to provide services. The Malaysian Immigration Department are also interested in the IDC providing follow-up training in 2010.

·         East Asia: The IDC is involved in a 2 day sub-regional workshop on the implementation of alternatives to detention with UNHCR, the South Korean, Japanese and Hong Kong Governments and regional civil society groups in Seoul on April 26th-27th.

·         UNHCR Asia Pacific: The first ever regional consultation on immigration detention will be held in Bangkok on March 2nd as part of the UNHCR Regional Protection meeting, which will include NGOs from around the region, and will focus on developing collaboration on advocacy for alternatives to detention in the region, particularly South East and East Asia

·         Australia- The IDC has hosted 2 international visits from Japan and the US to visit the alternative models and Government this month as part of research being undertaken.

EU:

·         The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe recently passed a resolution on the “detention of asylum seekers and irregular migrants in Europe” click here , which includes recommendations on alternatives to detention proposed by the IDC.

·          Belgium- The IDC, LDSG and WRC have been invited to visit the new alternative model for families in Brussels in March and to meet the Government on further developing the model.

·          UK – A Detention Workshop being planned in London for July 2010 for details contact: asylumrights@googlemail.com

North America

·          US – With the US currently exploring risk assessment models and alternative models, the IDC has been invited for further lobbying in May.

Africa

·         South Africa: LHR organized a session on alternatives as part of their 30th anniversary events, which the IDC Director was involved in December. We hope to follow up on this later in the year.

IDC research:

·        We had 87 responses from 30 countries to our survey on community-based alternatives to detention, which has helped shape our field visit priorities, currently being undertaken by Robyn Sampson of Latrobe University.  We will seek input from members as the research develops and the Advisory Committee’s input and sign off on the final document, which we hope to launch at EXCOM this year. Click here to see the IDC Research webpage for more details on the research.

OHCHR

·        Human Rights Council: Following the meeting on Immigration Detention at the 12th Session of the Human Rights Council, it is hoped the Ivory Coast will at the 13th Session will develop a procedural resolution aimed probably at seeking regional consultations/research on alternatives to detention, which could lead to a substantive resolution at a later session. A side meeting on alternatives, which the Amnesty International Secretariat has been pushing, will be held on March 9th from 1-3pm. IDC Director, Grant Mitchell, will speak on the panel on the IDC research on alternatives and findings to date.

UNHCR:

·        Alternatives is now officially a priority advocacy area for UNHCR for the coming 1-2 years, with some committed funds/projects. They have agreed to in-depth research into alternatives in probably 4 countries (open to ideas on which countries) to be completed by December in time for a Global Round Table on alternatives; which then will be rolled into 4 regional round tables on alternatives in 2011. The 1999 Detention Guidelines are also under review. I note however that at this stage the Detention Monitoring Handbook is on hold. We can explore this further during our meeting with UNHCR during the Consultation.

·           The IDC will also hold a side meeting with UNHCR on alternatives during the UNHCR NGO Consultations. And aims to hold a further meeting during EXCOM 2010.

For more details on any of the above initiatives, please contact: Grant Mitchell gmitchell@idcoalition.org

Stop the repatriation of the Sri Lankan refugees and asylum seekers now!

Click here to download Urgent Appeal by SUARAM

• 68 endorsements from organisations operating in more than 23 countries.
• Statement released to media contacts on Thursday morning (Bangkok time), 14 January 2010

Click here to download the Joint Statement compiled by the APRRN

In the report, published today, ERT provides first hand testimony from Rohingya who have been subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention, violence, extortion, human trafficking and forced labour in Malaysia. The report reveals for the first time the patterns of movement by Rohingya across South East Asia, providing an unprecedented insight into the cycle of flight, detention and deportation which affects tens of thousands of Rohingya in the region. According to the ERT findings:
An estimated 25-32,000 Rohingya live in Malaysia and between 90 and 115 Rohingya are in detention in Malaysia at any one time;
A combination of factors – including common religion, economic prosperity and the chance to acquire even basic identity documents – draw thousands of Rohingya to Malaysia, despite the fact that they remain under constant threat of arrest, detention and deportation;
Rohingya arrested in Malaysia are often detained for months in inadequate conditions with little access to healthcare. Those convicted of immigration offences can face up to 4 months imprisonment and corporal punishment, which is still a legal penalty in Malaysia;
Until recently, Malaysian immigration officials routinely sold deportees to human traffickers at the Thai-Malay border, who then either demanded payment from victims’ families to release them and transport them illegally back to Malaysia, or re-sold them as bonded labourers on fishing boats or in plantations.
The report calls on the Malaysian government to recognise the unique status of the Rohingya as stateless refugees and to formalise their position as residents in Malaysia. In addition, it recommends that the government:
Investigate the conduct of Malaysian immigration officials in respect of the Rohingya;
Establish procedures for determining refugee status and statelessness;
Cease detention of Rohingya and other refugees in cases where deportation is not possible;
Institute a formal policy to minimise deportation of Rohingya to Thailand; and
Ban the use of ‘caning’ as a punishment, including against immigration detainees.
Speaking about the report, the ERT’s Executive Director, Dimitrina Petrova said:

“A year ago, the world watched as over 1,000 Rohingya refugees were towed out to sea and abandoned by the Thai government, leaving over 500 to die.

“Our report reveals that incidents such as this merely hint at the true scale of a long-standing, widespread problem affecting the whole South East Asia region.

“Stripped of their nationality and persecuted in Myanmar, many Rohingya soon find themselves trapped in a cycle of flight, making their way to countries like Malaysia, only to be arrested, imprisoned and deported.

“Yet despite this, the steady stream of people making their way to Malaysia shows no sign of abating: the government’s programme of arrest, detention and punishment is not an effective deterrent.

“We welcome the recent improvements in the situation, but urge the government to recognise the reality of the Rohingya’s plight and grant them residency and the right to live in Malaysia and enjoy fundamental rights on an equal basis with others.”

To read The Equal Rights Trust report, Trapped in a Cycle of Flight: Stateless Rohingya in Malaysia, click here .

Press Statement: 3 February 2010

ID cards for refugees: A step in the right direction

SUARAM welcomes the announcement by the Home Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Mahmood Adam on the Government’s plans to issue identification cards to refugees recognised by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). We view this as a positive development towards the recognition of the right to seek asylum as enshrined in Article 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).

However, SUARAM notes with disappointment that Mahmood Adam stated that the refugees “cannot work here, but they can do odd jobs”[1]. Government must also allow refugees access to full-time work and earn a living while they remain in the country. The more than 75,000 refugees and asylum seekers currently registered with UNHCR is an existing source of labour. Instead of importing more migrant workers, the Government should first exhaust existing sources of labour in the country.

With regards to the planned crackdown on undocumented migrants scheduled to be carried out on 15 February, the Government must take precautions to prevent arrests of refugees and asylum seekers carrying UNHCR documents. In addition, the Government must make concerted efforts to identify the root causes for the large population of undocumented migrants in Malaysia which include labour trafficking and poorly formed policies that causes migrant workers to become undocumented. Crackdowns are in reality a flash in the pan, big efforts that fail solve a problem. What is needed in Malaysiais reform of immigration policies.

Malaysia has long been criticised for its poor treatment towards refugees and asylum seekers. On a daily basis, refugees and asylum seekers are arrested, sentenced for immigration offences, whipped and detained indefinitely. SUARAM hopes that with this current effort to issue identification cards for refugees, the Government is changing its treatment towards refugees and asylum seekers and that more changes towards respecting the rights of refugees will be made.

Lastly, SUARAM calls upon the Government to ratify the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

Released by,

Temme Lee
Coordinator

________________________________

[1]The Star(2010) “Sec-gen: UN-recognised refugees to get ID cards”, 2 February, athttp://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/2/2/nation/5594803&sec=nation, accessed 2 February 2010.

TENS OF THOUSANDS OF ROHINGYAS FROM BURMA AT RISK OF STARVATION IN AN UNPRECEDENTED CRACKDOWN IN BANGLADESH

A new report released today by The Arakan Project states that an unprecedented crackdown by the Bangladesh government on Rohingyas from Burma is creating a grave humanitarian crisis for tens of thousands of refugees.  The report “Unregistered Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh: Crackdown, forced displacement and hunger” calls on the Bangladesh authorities to immediately cease mass arrests and forced displacement of unregistered Rohingya asylum seekers and ensure that they are adequately protected and provided with access to food.

One year after Thailand cast adrift hundreds of boat people on the high seas, stateless Rohingya asylum seekers desperately seeking international protection face untold misery in Bangladesh. The crackdown by Bangladesh law enforcement agencies has targeted unregistered Rohingya refugees who had settled outside the two official refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar District since 2 January 2010, while a similar campaign which had begun in Bandarban District in mid-July 2009 is still ongoing.  Concurrently, anti-Rohingya movements among the local Bangladeshi population and the local media are fuelling xenophobia, calling for Bangladesh to rid itself of the Rohingya.  Over the last month and in Cox’s Bazar District alone, hundreds of unregistered Rohingyas have been arrested, either pushed back across the border to Burma or sent to jail under immigration charges.  In several areas of the District, thousands were evicted with threats of violence.  Robberies, assaults and rape against Rohingyas have significantly increased.

After eviction or in fear of arrest and assault, thousands of self-settled Rohingyas have been forcibly displaced and most flocked to the Kutupalong makeshift camp for safety.  The makeshift camp population has now increased to over 30,000.  They do not receive food relief and cannot leave the camp to look for work or they could be arrested.   30,000 refugees in this camp go hungry and are now at risk of starvation. “Hunger is spreading rapidly among the already malnourished population in the makeshift camp and a grave humanitarian crisis is looming. Bangladesh must end this crackdown at once or these refugees will start dying from starvation,” said Chris Lewa, Director of The Arakan Project.

The European Parliament adopted a resolution[1] last Thursday (11 February) calling on Bangladesh to recognise that the unregistered Rohingya are asylum seekers who fled persecution in Myanmar and are in need of international protection.  This week, a delegation of 8 European Parliamentarians is conducting a fact-finding mission to examine the Rohingyas’ situation in Bangladesh. The Rohingya are a persecuted Muslim minority in North Arakan State in
Burma/Myanmar, rendered stateless and subject to restrictions of movement and on permission to marry, arbitrary arrest, forced labour and other abuses.  Today 28,000 registered Rohingya refugees are housed in two official camps assisted by the UNHCR, but an estimated population of 200,000 survive without assistance and protection in
villages and slums in south-eastern Bangladesh.  These unregistered Rohingyas are the target of the crackdown.

The new Arakan Project report can be accessed at:
http://www.burmalibrary.org/docs08/Bangladesh-Crackdown.pdf

International Migrants’ Day 2009
 
Today, December 18, 2009, Migrant Forum in Asia with its 290 member-organizations and partners celebrate International Migrants’ Day (IMD) as culmination of the Migrants’ Campaign Month. 
 
Celebrations
 
All over Asia, MFA members and partners have planned and carried out various programs and activities as a build up to the International Migrants’ Day.  Rallies, discussion forums, press conferences are some of the usual fare.  This year, in Indonesia, the Center for Indonesian Migrant Workers (CIMW) held a public dialogue on Legal Protection for Indonesian Migrant Worker on December 13.  The dialogue had workers, their families, and local government officials discussing migrant workers’ rights as well as social and systemic responsibilities.  “We wanted more Indonesians to know what being a migrant worker means, especially the rights.”
 
In Bangladesh, the Association for Community Development (ACD) and WARBE Development Foundation spearhead the celebration through a media campaign, discussion meetings, workshop on problems and prospects of migrant families, a rally and organizing popular theater (Gamriva) at different points of border belt areas on HIV/AIDS, cross border migration and trafficking, and domestic work.  Kav LaOved in Israel co-organizes the “Tel Aviv Cinematheque”, now in its 9th  year, with movies focusing on migrants and refugees, an international food festival prepared by the local migrant community, panels on migration policies and activities for children. The event brings together migrants, refugees and Israeli human rights activists.
 
“Join us in an outdoor picnic, the best sort of event to meet friends from all over the world.  Relax and enjoy an afternoon of fun and food!” So goes the invitation of Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) to a refreshing way to celebrate IMD.  TWC2 and HOME have been receiving, sheltering, counseling and giving legal assistance to migrants in Singapore who experience abuse and rights violations.
 
In Cambodia, the Legal Services for Women and Children (LSCW), together with the Cambodian Women for Peace and Development (CWPD), are hosting Migrants’ Day in two districts, Prey Veng and Kampong Cham, with marches and forums on migrant workers’ rights. Government agencies and recruitment agencies have been invited to participate. “Domestic Work is Work” and “Domestic Workers are Workers” are their key messages.
 
In the Philippines, the Regional Secretariat and the Center for Migrant Advocacy are launching a campaign poster highlighting the recommendations made by the Committee on Migrant Workers during its review of the Philippines’ compliance to the Migrant Workers’ Convention in April.  The launch will take place in a forum that is being organized by the Inter-Agency Committee composed of government agencies and NGOs for the celebration of December as the month of overseas Filipinos and international migrants’ day.
 
MFA’s “Recognition of Domestic Work as Work” campaign will also have an international launch in Hong Kong during a public rally on December 20.  MFA coordinates the Asian Domestic Workers Alliance (ADWA) at the regional level and an International Working Group on Domestic Workers (IWG-DW) at the international level. 
 
The Joint Committee with Migrants in Korea (JCMK) celebrates with a press conference, free speech of migrant groups including EPS migrant workers, marriage immigrants, and migrant children, a Celebratory Convention for IMD 2009 for interaction between migrants and Korean society, a Migrant Song Festival and the launching of a book on migrants.
 
These are some of the ways MFA members and partners remember and highlight the crucial role and contributions of migrant workers in building the economies of both sending and receiving countries, and supporting the societies within which they find themselves. Asia is expected to have 61.3 million migrants in 2010  and it is where the 3 major sending countries can be found:  India, China, and the Philippines .
 
Advances in migrants’ rights advocacy
 
Recalling the promise the Migrant Workers’ Convention brought for migrants’ rights to be recognized and respected by employers, governments and all, MFA takes note of some advances within this region toward this goal.  MFA commends the government of Bahrain for its policy shift in April this year, revising the sponsorship (“kafala”) system and allowing foreign workers to transfer from one job to another independent of their sponsors, lifting all restrictions that were previously applicable.   This is a historic first step that must be emulated by the other governments in the Middle East which have promised major labor reforms but have yet to finalize and carry out these plans. The governments of the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are currently in the process of crafting a policy to protect migrant domestic workers. It has been declared illegal in Qatar and the UAE for employers to withhold the passports of migrant workers.
 
MFA also takes note of the bilateral agreements being forged between sending and receiving countries, such as the negotiations between Malaysia and Indonesia, and the willingness of the former to legislate a day off for domestic workers.  MFA however, calls on the Malaysian government to recognize the right of migrants to join and form their own trade unions.
 
In November, the ILO Governing Body affirmed the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association recommendation for the South Korean government to allow the prompt registration of the Migrant Trade Union as a legitimate trade union and also to end targeted arrests and deportations aimed at interfering with the MTU activities.
 
The Philippines and Sri Lanka  were reviewed this year by the Committee on Migrant Workers for their compliance to the Convention and the results serve to emphasize that much needs to be done in terms of implementation and monitoring when policies are in place.
 
Developments within regional bodies are also significant.  The ASEAN Committee on Migrant Workers – Drafting Team has had its third meeting early this month although it ended on a stalemate.  The ASEAN has also institutionalized the ASEAN Forum on Migration and Labor which had its second gathering on July 29-30.  Civil society groups from South Asia gathered in November to formalize a South Asian Migration Commission.  These efforts point to the increasing importance that migration and its effects are gaining in the collective consciousness.
 
At the international level, the campaign for the rights and dignity of domestic workers intensifies as we approach 2010 when the ILO in its 2010 and 2011 ILC will consider the adoption of a Convention for Domestic Workers that will set the internationally accepted standards of protection for migrant and local domestic workers.
 
During its 12th Session in September, the UN Human Rights Council also held a thematic panel discussion on the human rights of migrants in detention centers which highlighted the practice and conditions, and human rights violations related to the detention of migrants who are criminalized, stigmatized, and should not be detained at all.
 
Continuing the struggle
 
The global financial crisis and the increasing threat of climate change to peoples’ mobility significantly impacted migrants this year, intensifying the need to continue the struggle.
 
Migrant workers comprise one of the most vulnerable groups exposed to racial-, gender-, and class-based discrimination and violence. With the global economic crisis came the destabilization of the economy, social cohesion and increased human rights violations. Irregular, undocumented and “unskilled” migrant workers receive the greatest negative impact. Aside from low/unpaid salaries, inhuman working and living conditions, lack of protective policies in receiving countries especially in terms of access to redress or legal assistance, arbitrary detention and torture, the lack of basic necessities such as health care, and not being able to exercise freedom of association and freedom of speech, they are now in constant threat of unemployment, underemployment and deployment back to their home countries. Many have refused to go back, preferring to take odd jobs, cut downs on wage and working hours and risk debt bondage and getting caught.  The threat of continued global recession brings forth higher rates of unemployment, leaving thousands of migrant workers without a job and without financial security. ILO predicts that approximately 50 million migrant workers could lose their job due to such economic turmoil.  
 
Among migrants moreover, domestic workers are the most exposed and at risk owing to the nature of their jobs.  Millions of domestic workers, especially women domestic workers, are disadvantaged by the exclusion of domestic work from receiving countries’ labor laws and restrictive immigration policies.  They also face multiple barriers to redress from the justice systems in host countries.  MFA has been campaigning for the rights of domestic workers and the recognition of domestic work as work since its foundation in 1994. MFA continues to call receiving countries in Asia to act on their proposals and promises to make concrete and enforceable the protection that domestic workers are entitled to.
 
The increased threat of climate change to communities and peoples has also impacted on mobility and development.  UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, speaking at the Global Forum on Migration and Development in November said, “Negotiations have recognized that migration is a likely consequence of climate impacts.” Forced migration resulting from climate change is not just an environmental issue; it is a human rights issue that needs to be addressed fast.  MFA reiterates its call for climate justice, social sustainability and respect for human rights in the climate change discourse.

Building global solidarity

The global economic and climate crises, however, presents us an opportunity to create a new perspective on global solidarity around the issue of human rights and migration.  In response to the continued disrespect for and violation of their rights, migrants, migrant families, migrant communities and advocates for migrants’ rights need to have a new way of looking at things — beyond the rhetoric and beyond the myopic vision of national sovereignty — towards forging new ties and partnership strategies for engagement.

As International Migrants’ Day 2009 is celebrated, MFA calls on governments…

o to ratify the UN Migrant Worker’s Convention and harmonize national laws to ensure the protection and promotion of the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families;
o to provide an efficient and accessible process to report acts of violence and other rights violations of migrant workers;
o of sending countries to legislate and implement protection policies for their nationals working in another country; in particular, to empower their diplomatic and consular personnel in re-imagining their roles and responsibilities in their extended jurisdiction towards more effective service;
o of receiving countries to enact laws and policies that will respect all the human and labor rights of migrant workers, ensuring equality of treatment and opportunities based on ILO Convention No. 97.
 
MFA specially calls on all states and governments to start incorporating domestic workers in the purview of their national labor laws in preparation for an ILO Convention on Domestic Workers, along the lines of the universally-accepted standards identified in the fundamental and core conventions of the ILO.
 
Migrant Forum in Asia celebrates the hope and the promise that the International Migrants’ Day brings to migrant workers and their families, and all who struggle with them, toward a new global community based on social justice and solidarity.
 

Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA)
18 December 2009
 

For more information, please contact the MFA Secretariat:
 
Mr. William Gois
Regional Coordinator
 
85 C Masikap Extension, Central District
Quezon City 1100 Philippines
Telefax: +63 2 4333508
Phone:  +63 2 928-2740
MFA Mobile: +63 921 540 5063
E-mail: mfa@pacific.net.hk
Website: www.mfasia.org

ERT is the only international human rights organisation focussed exclusively on the right to equality and regularly makes recommendations to governments on the need to repeal discriminatory laws and policies and improve protection against discrimination. ERT used Human Rights Day (10 December 2009) to urge certain governments to adopt recommendations it has addressed to them over the course of 2009. The Trust also wrote to the Presidents of Malaysia and the USA urging action to address the situation of stateless people in detention, in advance of the publication of new research.

ERT addressed specific appeals to 9 governments from Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas:
Latvia – ERT urged the Latvian government and lawmakers to uphold the equality of all persons under its jurisdiction in respect to their pension rights and not roll back current levels of social security, as recommended in ERT’s expert opinion earlier this year.
Malaysia – ERT called on the government of Malaysia to ensure equal rights for stateless Rohingya migrants under its jurisdiction, following previous advocacy and ahead of the publication of its special report on the situation of Rohingya held in detention in that country.
Mali – ERT reiterated its recommendations, the message of which is that Mali’s MPs and President should not give in to pressure from opponents of the draft Family Code which seeks to extend rights for women in respect of marriage, property and inheritance.
Moldova – ERT called on the government to ensure that the Draft Law on Preventing and Combating Discrimination reflects the highest international standards on equality as set out in its submission to the government’s consultation and to push for its adoption by the parliament.
Sri Lanka – ERT called on President Rajapaksa to use the principles of equality enshrined in Sri Lanka’s constitution and in ERT’s Declaration of Principles on Equality as the basis for a sustainable solution to the conflict between Sinhalese and Tamil communities.
Sudan – ERT addressed recommendations to the Sudanese parliament calling for the repeal of section 152 of the Criminal Code, which prohibits ‘indecent’ acts and conduct as it has been used discriminatively against women and non-Muslims.
Uganda – ERT called authorities and parliamentarians to reject the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Bill which is currently being debated in Uganda, one of 80 countries in the world where homosexual conduct is illegal.
UK – ERT wrote to the leaders of the UK’s three major political parties urging them to ensure that adequate parliamentary time is made for the 2009 Equality Bill to be enacted before parliament rises.
USA – ERT called on President Obama to institute a review of immigration detention policies, ensure that all remaining stateless detainees at the Guantanamo Bay facility are resettled in safe countries and sign the 1954 Convention on the Status of Stateless Persons.
Speaking about the importance of devoting the Human Rights day to the fight against discrimination, ERT’s Executive Director, Dimitrina Petrova said:

“The last year has seen some major successes in tackling discrimination: Serbia and the Czech Republic have adopted new anti-discrimination laws, while the High Court of Delhi has decriminalised homosexual conduct.

“But great challenges remain. Over 160 countries have no comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation and even in those which do, discrimination remains a fact of life for many marginalised groups.

“From the UK to Uganda, from Sri Lanka to Sudan and from Moldova to Malaysia, there are steps which governments can take today to improve the situation of marginalised groups.

“We urge governments to seize this opportunity and take decisive action against discrimination.”
ENDS

Click here to download a copy of the IDC’s press release for International Migrant’s Day 2009

Click here to download the IDC Detainee Assessment Form Checklist

Click here to download an IDC presentation for civil society on Effective Detention Advocacy Training

Click here to download a copy of the IDC’s briefing paper ”International Immigration Detention Trends and Good Practice”

Click here to download and read the IDC press release for Human Rights Day 2009

Click here to download and read the IDC Press Release