By: Romy de Niet, Junior Research Associate, PILPG-NL
The global COVID-19 pandemic (COVID-19) has disrupted the status quo in member states of the European Union (EU). With a halt on public events, closed schools, and people working from home, the lives of many have changed in a short amount of time. Refugees and asylum seekers are among the world’s most vulnerable populations, and are likely to be disproportionately affected by the pandemic.
This blog post elaborates on the different ways EU member states deal with the COVID-19 crisis and the consequences for refugees and asylum seekers. Discussed are the effects of the pandemic on the processing of asylum applications, the right to health, and rescue at sea. The blog post further discusses how the practises of these states relate to international law.
Asylum Applications
An issue related to the pandemic, is that the review and processing of asylum applications are suspended or slowed down in most EU member States. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHR), suspending asylum applications has no basis in international law. The suspension of asylum applications can have far-reaching consequences for asylum seekers infected with COVID-19, as health insurance is often only available to those in possession of residence permits. The pandemic also caused the unavailability of other services to help refugees and asylum seekers, such as legal assistance, language courses, and employment help.
States have responded to this issue in different ways. In Hungary, authorities claimed that there is a link between illegal migration and the surge in COVID-19 cases, as many of these migrants passed through Iran, where COVID-19 infection rates were high. This caused an overall suspension of the admission of asylum applications. In other EU member states, the general measures to curb the spread of the virus disrupted the way the processing of asylum applications normally work. In the Netherlands, this meant that arriving asylum seekers were temporarily barred from claiming asylum, and pending procedures were suspended. The asylum procedures are partially started up again through video interviews, but there is a significant backlog. In Belgium, the virus caused such a delay in the asylum system that only a third of asylum requests were followed up on in April. A completed registration entitles the applicant to food and shelter, leaving those waiting to hear back in a situation where they have to fend for themselves. In Portugal, the processing of asylum applications was temporarily sped up, rather than slowed down, as all individuals with pending asylum applications were granted temporary residence permits, granting them the same rights as Portugese citizens.
The Right to Health
Under international law, every person has the right to the highest attainable standard of healthcare, regardless of their citizenship or immigration status. The primary duty to fulfill this right is on states. Refugees and migrants are often more vulnerable to respiratory infections such as COVID-19. Due to crowded living conditions in reception centers and refugee camps, social distancing and frequent hand washing cannot be practiced. Elevated levels of physical and mental stress, and a lack of food and clean water among groups of refugees and asylum seekers can cause compromised immune systems.
These groups often experience a myriad of barriers to access healthcare services, such as language barriers, an inability to travel to healthcare facilities, and financial burdens. Furthermore, access to healthcare and health insurance is often restricted for persons without residence permits or citizenship.
In several EU member states, initiatives were instated to ease some of these barriers. Portugal’s decision to temporarily grant asylum seekers and migrant workers residence permits also grants them citizens’ access to healthcare. In Poland, the diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19 are free of charge for every person, including those without health insurance. However, Polish doctors are afraid there is a lack of awareness of this free treatment among migrants and asked the government to carry out an information campaign.
Meanwhile, the Greek government has faced criticism from human rights organizations for placing refugee camps on lockdown to prevent the virus from spreading. This left thousands of migrants unable to abide by the guidelines the Greek authorities set for damming the spread of the virus, and put them at an increased risk of contracting it. Due to overcrowding, social distancing was not possible. Furthermore, limited access to food,running water, and sufficient medical personnel left refugees in the camps more vulnerable to contract the virus, and without access to medical treatment. The Greek government has plans to move 2,400 of the most vulnerable individuals away from the island camps to the mainland.
Rescue at Sea
Under international customary law, coastal states are obliged to rescue those in distress at sea and satisfy their primary needs and provide access to basic services. Rescue at sea became an issue at the outer borders of the EU, as Italy and Malta closed their ports due to public health reasons, barring migrants attempting to reach Europe by boat. Furthermore, travel restrictions and social distancing measures are halting non-governmental organizations from performing rescue missions at sea, leaving large groups of refugees stranded at sea in life-threatening situations.
Conclusion
In the European Union, refugees and asylum seekers have been adversely affected by the pandemic and its implications in a number of ways. These groups often do not have the capacity to adhere to social distancing, and experience several barriers to accessing healthcare services. Furthermore, in most EU member states, asylum application reviews have been suspended or severely slowed down. Coastal states have closed their ports, and sea rescue missions are halted, leaving groups of migrants attempting to enter the EU stranded at sea. Member states of the EU have dealt with the effects of the global pandemic for refugees and asylum seekers in different ways. In the future, it will be interesting to see how the measures taken by these states during the COVID-19 pandemic change when the pandemic ends, and state practises return to normalcy.