The Cayman Islands’ Human Rights Commission has demanded that immediate steps be taken to protect the rights and welfare of migrants and asylum seekers.
The call was contained in written evidence submitted to the British parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee (“FAC”) submitted in support of enquires that are being conducted by the FAC into the future of the UK Overseas Territories’ relationship with Britain.
The Commission cited numerous occurrences of discrimination in local legislation, breaches of international conventions and a general lack of will to remedy concerns raised by it as disconcerting trends. The report highlighted a number of issues that needed to be addressed urgently including the processing of migrants at sea and onshore, the need for a blanket policy for the detention of migrants and asylum seekers, the lack of sufficient access to legal representation and lengthy appeals process and concerns regarding potential breaches of international treaties including the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.
The Commission also noted that no human rights compliant policies existed and there was no official requirement for public officials to give reasons for their decisions.
