Campaign Archives - Page 4 of 18

Towards ending detention of migrant children: 2 upcoming events

On 23-24 January, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) will hold two events in Brussels on the impact of immigration detention on children and on alternatives to detention for migrant children. On-line participation is also possible!

The events mark the end of the CADRE project, which the ICJ implemented jointly with national and international partners over the last two years. The project sought to promote the expansion, implementation and improvement of alternatives to detention for migrant children in full respect of their rights in the EU and to contribute to ending the resort to detention of children in migration.

Malta continues to fail LGBTIQ+ refugees: 2 new publications

We just published two documents that show how Malta continues to fail LGBTIQ+ refugees. As part of the #Safe4All campaign, we are urging Malta to revise it’s asylum laws because the current regime simply does not offer protection to people fleeing because of their LGBTIQ+ identities and/or behaviour.

For Malta Pride 2022, and as part of our activities building up towards EuroPride 2023 (hosted in Malta), we launched a campaign that focuses on LGBTIQ+ refugees in Malta. The campaign flags that Malta designates as ‘safe’ a list of countries that criminalise in their laws LGBTIQ+ identities and/or behaviour. This is unacceptable, as Malta should not be considering these countries as safe.

Training materials on Alternatives to Detention for Migrant Children

Throughout 2021 and 2022 we worked on the project that explored the use of alternatives to detention for children: the CADRE project. As part of the project, we developed and published training materials on alternatives to detention for migrant children

The materials cover the international and EU legal framework of alternatives to detention for children and related rights, such as the right to liberty and prohibition of immigration detention of children. The materials aim to support efforts to ensure that children are never detained for purposes of immigration control, in accordance with international standards.

Malta must give answers on Loujin’s death

Malta Refugee Council demands and official inquiry into the death of a young girl

At the end of August, Loujin, a four-year old Syrian girl, boarded a wooden fishing vessel on Lebanon’s coast with her mother and one year old sister, Mira, and set out across the sea with over sixty other people from Syria, Palestine and Lebanon.
Running out of basic provisions and taking on water, they began sending out distress signals on 2 September, 2022. Those distress signals were immediately relayed to the Maltese authorities.
Joint Press Statement on the vigil for Loujin held on 16 September 2022

Publicly available information on Loujin’s tragic death is conflicting. One version claims Malta was alerted to the distress situation on 3 September and that no concrete action was taken to secure the lives of the persons aboard the fishing boat. Another version claims that Malta was informed on 6 September and every step was taken to protect all lives, including that of Loujin.

The version everyone must agree on is that Loujin did not survive the ordeal, dying of thirst in her mother’s arms.

#Safe4All: LGBTIQ+ refugees deserve protection

On 10 September we launched the #Safe4All Legal Initiative. The #Safe4 All Legal Initiative is a campaign urging Malta to better protect LGBTIQ+ refugees. It asks Malta to stop declaring as ‘safe’ those countries that currently criminalise LGBTIQ+ identities and/or behaviour.

The campaign, including a Bill to amend Malta’s asylum legislation, was presented to the Equality Parliament Secretary. It will be maintained throughout the coming months as Malta seeks to crown its rainbow glory by hosting EuroPride Valletta 2023.

Visit the campaign’s page for further info, including a touching story of two of our clients.