2023-07-13 07:40:02
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — The European anti-torture watchdog on Thursday urged Cyprus to take proactive steps to ensure irregular migrants are not mistreated during their failed repatriation attempts.
The persistence of allegations of mistreatment when repatriation attempts are unsuccessful “should be an encouragement” for the Cypriot authorities to adopt “a proactive stance in arresting and preventing mistreatment,” the Committee for the Prevention of Mistreatment said in a report. Council of Europe Torture.
The committee said that during a visit in November 2022 it observed a repatriation of migrants to the Democratic Republic of the Congo who were treated with “dignity and respect.” However, he indicated that he had received accusations of ill-treatment during unsuccessful repatriations in the months prior to that visit.
Authorities must exhaustively review any incidents and medical reports in detention centers, as well as conduct full physical examinations of inmates prior to their departure, the report said.
Those records would help authorities determine the truth of allegations of mistreatment and allow them to take steps to prevent such incidents, the committee said.
The report also called on the Cypriot authorities to inform detained migrants that they are going to be repatriated of their upcoming departure, both verbally and in writing to avoid misunderstandings that could cause tensions during the transfer.
The committee asked for more details on how detained migrants can access free legal aid, following allegations that the legal aid program is “marred with difficulties.”
Cypriot authorities said they would officially remind detention center officials to carry out full health checks on inmates to keep detailed medical histories and ensure that migrants due for repatriation are promptly informed of their departure.
Cyprus repatriated some 5,000 migrants between January and October 2022. According to the most recent official figures, some 2,714 migrants were repatriated between April and June this year.
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