UN Report: Turkey forcibly deports over 300 Eritreans

ANKARA - The government of Turkey under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is on the spot for the forceful deportation of close to 300 Eritrean migrants, exposing them to gross human rights violations, the United Nations said, while documenting specific cases.

United Nations Special Rapporteurs asked the government of Turkey about “alleged arbitrary detention and forcible return” of Eritrean migrants and the imminent risk of forcible return of an additional group of approximately 50 Eritreans.

The team insisted that the deportations by Turkey violated fundamental principles of human rights and refugee law. Under this, the host nation is not supposed to deport individuals to a country where they are not safe.

The principle was outlined in international law and the Convention Against Torture, which Turkey ratified in 1988 and prohibits deporting individuals to countries where they are at risk of torture or other gross human rights violations.

“Detention in Eritrea places individuals at a heightened risk of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment,” the rapporteurs said, adding that many deportees have reportedly been detained or conscripted into military service. Eritrea’s indefinite conscription system has been widely linked to forced labor, sexual violence, and inhumane treatment.

Back at home, the Eritreans who have been deported faced torture and enforced disappearances, the rapporteurs said in their report, which could further expose Turkey's foreign policy.

The UN also condemned conditions at Turkey’s Aydın Repatriation Center, where 50 Eritrean migrants currently remain detained. According to the letter, detainees have reported being beaten by guards, held in metal container cells under conditions of extreme heat, and denied medical care. They also reported a lack of legal representation and contact with their families.

The UN experts urged Turkey to immediately halt deportations to Eritrea, improve conditions for detained migrants, and conduct individual assessments of asylum claims. Turkey’s response has not yet been made public.

The letter was authored by three UN special rapporteurs: Mohamed Abdelsalam Babiker, special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea; Gabriella Citroni, chair-rapporteur of the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances; and Gehad Madi, special rapporteur on the human rights of migrants.

GAROWE ONLINE