This is a summary in English of the report "Sveriges asylutredningar av afghanska medborgare 2015–2020 version 1, oktober 2020" from the network Stop deportations to Afghanistan! (Stoppa utvisningarna till Afghanistan!) October 2020.
Summary in English
1. Introduction and
background
In 2015, 41,500
migrants of Afghan origin applied for asylum in Sweden. Of those, 23,500 were
registered as unaccompanied minors and taken care of according to international
rules. The majority of them were boys.
It was
early clear that the Swedish government decided to get rid of most of those
boys irrespectively of their grounds for asylum, although the civil society
willingly stood up for supporting them.
2. Changes in laws and regulations
July 20, 2016,
the Swedish parliament voted for a new law, in order to restrict the number of
asylum seekers to Sweden. The law came into force retroactively from November
25, 2015. Two grounds for asylum were removed, that might have benefitted the
unaccompanied minors, and temporary residence permits became the rule.
The criticism
from the civil society, including Save the Children, the Red Cross, UNHCR,
UNICEF and Amnesty International, and authorities like the Migration Agency, the
Law Council and the courts, was hard.
In addition to
the legal changes, the Migration Agency changed its practices in several ways,
in order to make the youngsters and other refugees possible to deport.
3. The asylum process
The rule of
law in Sweden’s asylum processes has been severely questioned by human rights
organisations, lawyers and researchers.
Because of the
large refugee wave in 2015-2016, and that refugees of Syrian origin were
prioritized, the Afghan refugees had to wait 1-3 years for their first
interview. As a rule, the asylum case officer from the Migration Agency did not
believe in the asylum seeker’s story which led to refusal. Refusal were more
common among unaccompanied minors who had become adults, compared to those who
were adults when they arrived. Contrary to other countries, Sweden does not
follow the recommendations from UNHCR and accepts internal displacement for
deported refugees in Afghanistan.
The courts most
often accepted the assessment from the Migrations Agency without questioning. The Migration Agency officially admits that many
asylum applications have not been handled correctly.
4. Examples of failing rule of
law
In the full
report, there are many examples of failing rule of law for converts to
Christianity, atheists, LGBTQ persons, women and children. That they do not
receive protection constitutes repeated crimes against the conventions of human
rights.
5. Age assessments and age
revaluation
Age assessment
at arrival was made by a quick ocular inspection, and many were regarded as adults,
disregarding their own claims to be minors. During the asylum investigation, many
unaccompanied children were assessed as adults, with no motivation, sometimes
contrary to certificates from professionals.
In 2017, a new
method, based on x-ray of teeth and CT of knee, was developed. When hardly anyone
of the minors was assessed as below 18, scientists scrutinized the background
to the method. It turned out that mistakes in the process had been made from
three authorities: The National Board of Health and Welfare, the National Board
of Forensic Medicine (RMV) and the Migration Agency. An unknown number of minors have been
incorrectly assessed as adults. In spite of this, the RMV is still using the
same method, and the Migration Agency is accepting it.
In January
2019, the Government accepted the demands to appoint an independent inquiry. The
experts were appointed in October 2020. The medical society is protesting that
the experts are biased.
6. Psychological unhealth
The refugees
often bear traumas from before and during the flight. The prolonged period of
uncertainty about their future has added to this. It is most obvious among the
unaccompanied minors. During 2017, the suicide rate was 10 times higher in this
group, compared to Swedish youngsters of the same age.
7. The possibility to stay
for studies
To mitigate
the consequences of the new law, the politicians were forced to offer the
possibility for the youngsters to get permanent residence permits by completing
vocational high school and get a job. This was associated with several
conditions. Those who were registered as asylum seekers after November 24,
2015, as well as children who came with their families, were excluded.
Around 7,000
were accepted, and as many were excluded. It is still unclear how many will finally
be allowed to stay.
8. The return agreements
The EU
parliament never got the chance to vote about the “return agreement”, which
thus is not legally binding. The focus of the agreement was on returning
refugees, not on aid or the reasons to why people flee. The Afghan parliament
voted no to the agreement with Sweden. The Swedish parliament never voted.
The migration
and refugee ministers of Afghanistan have repeatedly asked European countries
to stop the deportations, as they cannot offer a “smooth, dignified and
orderly” reception of the refugees. The Swedish migration minister Morgan
Johansson denies he have ever received these messages.
Around 14,000
Afghans have been denied residence permit. During 2017 - 2019, 1 353
people has travelled to Afghanistan, of whom 540 with force. During 2019, 107
people got support from ERRIN.
Many of
“voluntary returnees” have signed a paper in English that they don’t
understand.
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