Welcome to the new PICUM newsletter, where we will update you about issues concerning undocumented people once a month. The updates will focus on systemic issues including regularisations, criminalisation of solidarity, detention and returns, labour rights and channels, access to health-care, access to justice, undocumented children and families.

Let us know what you think of our newsletter on communications@picum.org.

NEW EU LAWS ON MIGRATION DATABASES THREATEN FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS

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The EU is currently connecting existing migration databases to track movements of people towards and inside the Union, through the so-called Interoperability Regulations. The data includes fingerprints, face pictures, birth dates and others. As police will be able to scale up their identity checks to unprecedented levels, the way these connections will work remains largely obscure. This is why PICUM joined together with Statewatch to unpack these regulations and to point out threats to the fundamental rights of undocumented people in Europe. Find out more in our report and in this short video.

EU FUNDS FOR LIBYA ARE ENDING UP IN TRAFFICKERS’ HANDS

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A recent investigation by the Associated Press has revealed that large sums of EU funding to Libya “have been diverted to intertwined networks of militiamen, traffickers and coast guard members who exploit migrants”. So far, the EU has sent more than 327.9 million euros to Libya, with the stated aim of improving the conditions of detention centres in the country. The stories of several migrants trapped in those detention centres are now collected in a new website developed by Médecins Sans Frontières.

COUNCIL APPROVES REFORM OF MIGRATION STATISTICS REGULATION

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Last December, the EU Council approved the reform of the Migration Statistics Regulation, governing the asylum and migration data supplied by Member States to Eurostat. Under the amended Regulation, Eurostat will start collecting disaggregated data on unaccompanied children, as well as data on accelerated procedures and on implicit withdrawals of asylum applications.

UN COMPLAINT FINDS PRIVATE PUSH-BACKS ON THE RISE

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The Global Legal Action Network filed a complaint with the UN on Wednesday against Italy over a teenage migrant who was rescued at sea and then sent back to Libya in 2018 along with other migrants, where he was subjected to abuses and exploitation. That report found that privatised push-backs have risen sharply since June 2018, and that seafarers are increasingly being "used by states seeking to circumvent their obligations towards refugees". More on France24.

GREECE TO BUILD FLOATING FENCE AGAINST MIGRANTS’ ARRIVALS

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Greek authorities are reported to plan to install a floating fence in the Aegean Sea to deter people arriving at its islands’ shores. The 2.7 Km long net-like barrier will be set up in the sea at the north of Lesbos. If considered to be effective, more parts may be added in the future, according to an official. More on Reuters.

FRANCE SUSPENDS SHIP DELIVERY TO LIBYAN COAST GUARD

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In April 2019, eight associations brought an action before the French courts to denounce France's complicity in human rights violations in Libya. As a result of the legal challenge, in December, the French Ministry of Defence suspended the delivery of six ships to the Libyan Coast Guard. More on Migreurop (in French).

HUMAN RIGHTS COURT CONDEMNS ROMANIA FOR LACK OF EFFECTIVE APPEALS TO RETURN DECISIONS

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The European Court of Human Rights in its decision D and Others v Romania found that the lack of available appeals with a suspensive effect on the expulsion order constitutes a violation of art. 13 of the European Convention on Human Rights on the right to effective remedy. The Court therefore indicated to the Romanian authorities to suspend D’s transfer to Iraq until the domestic court decides on his appeal against the deportation order.

UN MIGRATION ORGANISATION LAUNCHES ONLINE HUB ON RETURNS

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The International Organisation on Migration has launched the Return and Reintegration Platform, an online tool aiming at disseminating knowledge and good practices in the field of migrant return and reintegration. The platform allows experts to exchange knowledge and hosts a repository of relevant publications.

USE OF FIREARMS BY BORDER POLICE ON THE RISE IN CROATIA

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In its November report, the Border Violence Monitoring Network describes increased resort to gun violence at the Croatian border, with 770 people in transit threatened by guns during pushbacks in 2019. The Network also reports frequent instances of violence against children in de facto detention.

CROATIAN POLICE DEPORTS TWO NIGERIANS WITH VALID VISA TO BOSNIA

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Two Nigerian table-tennis players were deported by the Croatian police from Zagreb to Bosnia, although in possession of valid visas. The two boys were in Croatia to participate in an international table-tennis competition and were arrested while walking in Zagreb without their visas at hand. The police ignored their claims that the visas were in the hostel they were staying in, arrested them and eventually deported them to neighbouring Bosnia. More on The Guardian.

MALTESE COURT DECLARES PUBLIC HEALTH-RELATED DETENTION ILLEGAL

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Maltese court found the detention of six migrants for supposed public health reasons to be unlawful, and ordered their immediate release. The six applicants had been deprived of liberty for longer than 10 weeks on public health grounds, but at no stage were informed about the basis for this decision. Advocates say that this is not a unique incident. More on Malta Today.

ITALY: DEATH IN DETENTION CENTRE HINTS AT LACK OF ACCOUNTABILITY

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A man from Georgia died on 18 January 2020 in a detention centre in northern Italy, allegedly as a consequence of beatings by the detention officers. The local prosecutor has opened an investigation on voluntary homicide charges against persons unknown. The reconstruction of the events is particularly difficult because several of the witnesses have been deported in the meantime. More on La Repubblica (in Italian).

ITALY: YOUNG MAN DIES WHILE IN RETURN DETENTION

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On 12 January 2020 a man died in a pre-return detention centre in Southern Italy. According to the other detainees and the NGO LasciateCIEntrare, the man had reported health issues in the previous days but did not receive adequate medical care. The organisation reported appalling conditions in the detention centres, where cells are cold and do not have windows and detainees are often denied access to medical care. More on Melting Pot (in Italian).

NEW WEBSITE ON DETENTION CENTRES WORLDWIDE

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The University of Oxford has launched a new interactive tool on detention sites worldwide, with an initial focus on Greece and Italy. Where there is a detention site, it’s possible to click for more resources. It is intended to be collaborative so that different organisations can provide information to enrich and supplement the mapping. The map can be accessed here.

In addition, activists from migration organisations in the Mediterranean region have created the website Missing At The Borders to gather the testimonies of the families of migrants who went missing in their attempt to reach Europe.

NEW RESEARCH FINDS OVER 100,000 UNDOCUMENTED CHILDREN LIVE IN LONDON

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A study commissioned by the London mayor, estimates that there were around 107,000 undocumented children and 26,000 18- to 24-year-olds in London. It also highlights the high cost of regularising immigration status and that a mere 10% of families with undocumented children have applied to secure their immigration status since 2012. The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, branded it a 'national disgrace' and called on the UK Government to provide urgent support to these children and young people. More on The Guardian and Immigration News.  

BBC 1 Xtra Talks interviewed two young women from Brighter Futures London about growing up undocumented in Britain, the long and costly road to residence and the impact it all has on their lives.

VOLUNTEER RESCUER RELEASED FROM DETENTION IN GREECE AFTER PUBLIC OUTCRY

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Danish volunteer rescuer Salam Aldeen was arrested in December 2019 in Greece on national security grounds for his relief work in the country’s refugee camps. Salam had been arrested a first time in 2016 for helping Syrians land safely in Lesbos, and was then acquitted in 2018 after a two-year trial. Following the news of his new arrest, over 60 MEPs asked for his release to the Greek authorities. Salam was finally released on 27 December 2019 after 16 days in detention. More on Publico (in Spanish).

ITALIAN SUPREME COURT CONFIRMS RELEASE OF RESCUE SHIP CAPTAIN CAROLA RACKETE

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The Italian Court of Cassation confirmed on 17 January 2020 that the decision of the local examining judge not to validate the arrest of Carola Rackete was correct. The examining judge had decided that her acts were justified as she was under a duty to save lives. More on ANSA.

MALTA: RESCUE SHIP CAPTAIN REISCH CLEARED OF ALL CHARGES ON APPEAL

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The Court of Criminal Appeal in Malta has overturned the conviction of the captain of the search and rescue vessel MV Lifeline. Captain Claus Peter Reisch had been found guilty of ship registration irregularities and was fined €10,000. Reisch was charged after rescuing 234 people at sea in 2018. The judges found that the captain lacked any criminal intent and cleared him of all charges. More on Malta Independent.

NEW REPORT ON THE USE OF CRIMINAL LAW AGAINST NGOs WORKING WITH MIGRANTS

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The Council of Europe Expert Council on NGO Law has published a study on the use of criminal law to restrict the work of NGOs working with refugees and migrants. The study finds that laws criminalising NGO activity are vague and the limitations placed on lawful NGO activities are often neither necessary nor proportionate. The Expert Council on NGO Law is currently preparing guidelines to help Council of Europe Member States ensure that their border control policies comply with European standards on freedom of association and the rights of NGOs.

FRANCE: 26 UNDOCUMENTED WORKERS GET PAPERS AFTER STRIKES

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26 undocumented workers at delivery company Chronopost in Paris have obtained their regularisation following seven months of strike. The workers had denounced poor working conditions, including unpaid overtime and no sick leave. More on Le Parisien (in French).

MEDIA REVEAL EU COUNCIL BUILDING IN BRUSSELS WAS BUILT BY UNDOCUMENTED WORKERS

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A recent investigation from Belgian newspaper De Standaard revealed that several undocumented workers had been employed to build the Europa building, seat of the Council of the EU. According to the reports, the undocumented workers were either paid in cash, or even denied their wages. More on EU Observer.

SEX WORKERS CHALLENGE FRENCH CRIMINALISATION LAW BEFORE HUMAN RIGHTS COURT

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250 sex workers working in France have challenged the French law criminalising sex work clients to the European Court of Human Rights, following a previous decision of the French Constitutional Council not to invalidate the law. Denouncing a measure which exposes them to violence and high risks for their health, the sex workers are asking the European Court to recognise the violation of their right to health and safety, and right to respect for private life.

FRENCH EMPLOYER CONDEMNED FOR STRUCTURAL RACIAL DISCRIMINATION AGAINST UNDOCUMENTED EMPLOYEES

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25 undocumented construction workers from Mali who filed a complaint against their employer before the employment tribunal have been awarded 34,000 euros each in damages for structural racial discrimination and 3,000 each in unpaid wages. The workers had all been employed in a large construction site in Paris without a contract, and without gloves, safety shoes or helmets. The employer had knowingly set up a whole team made up of undocumented workers to carry out the hardest and most dangerous tasks. This is the first time that French courts have condemned an employer for structural racial discrimination because of the working conditions they subjected undocumented workers to. More on Le Parisien (in French).

MAGAZINE ABOUT HEALTH AND SAFETY AT WORK DEDICATES ISSUE ON MIGRANT WORKERS

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HesaMag, a magazine about health and safety at work published by the European Trade Union Institute, has dedicated its latest issue to migrant workers and their challenges in the workplace. The articles cover, amongst others, the trade union movements among migrant workers, conditions of agricultural workers in Southern Italy, the status of migrant female domestic workers, and migrant sex workers. You can read all the chapters here.

UK TORIES BACKTRACK ON PROPOSAL TO REGULARISE UNDOCUMENTED PEOPLE

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UK Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson is reported to have backtracked on his proposal to regularise the status of undocumented people living in the UK. Johnson had long been calling for this measure since he was London mayor, but his Home Office secretary Victoria Atkins appeared to dismiss it in a recent parliamentary hearing, saying that immigration rules “already provide for undocumented migrants to regularise their status”. More on The Independent.