On Friday 4 February, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights published her “Written Observations” to the European Court of Human Rights in a case concerning the situation of asylum seekers and migrants stranded at the Polish-Belarusian border (“case of R.A. and others v. Poland”).
Based on a mission carried out in Poland from 15 to 18 November, Dunja Mijatović was very critical of Poland.
She observed a “repeated and systematic practice of pushing migrants and asylum seekers back to Belarus”. This was done without bothering to check whether they were eligible for international protection.
The recent changes in Polish legislation largely undermine the possibilities for these people to have access to an individual procedure and to seek protection in Poland, the Commissioner adds.
She also stresses that such pushbacks expose migrants and asylum seekers to the risk of being subjected to torture and/or inhuman treatment in Belarus, in violation of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights. This is despite the fact that the Polish authorities are aware of this risk.
Another issue is the lack of humanitarian assistance provided by the Polish authorities and the restrictions they place on access to the border area by people and organisations that could provide such assistance or legal aid, which raises questions under Article 2 of the Convention (right to life) and Article 3.
The Commissioner’s interventions as a third party before the European Court of Human Rights are based on her thematic and monitoring activities. They are provided for in the Convention.
Link to the Commissioner’s observations: https://bit.ly/3gpcCOY (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)