UN commissioner: stop transferring refugees to Hungary News
UN commissioner: stop transferring refugees to Hungary

[JURIST] The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) [official website] said in a press release [text] on Monday that all transfers of asylum-seekers from other EU states to Hungary should be suspended under the Dublin Regulation [text]. The Dublin Regulation is how the EU determines which state should review an asylum-seeker’s application. High Commissioner Filippo Grandi [official profile] said

Given the worsening situation of asylum-seekers in Hungary, I urge States to suspend any Dublin transfer of asylum-seekers to this country until the Hungarian authorities bring their practices and policies in line with European and international law.

Some of these policies include detaining asylum-seekers, including children, in “shipping containers” at the Hungarian border.

The rights of migrant populations have emerged as significant humanitarian issues around the world, including the European Union, as millions seek asylum from conflict nations. In March UN rights experts disapproved [JURIST report] of the EU migrant return procedure. In February Human Rights Watch expressed concern [JURIST report] over a proposed Hungary migration amendment. Austrian Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka said [JURIST report] in September that Austria will take Hungary to the International Court of Justice if Hungary does not begin accepting returning migrants that crossed into Austria from Hungary.

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