By The Genocide Report
Sudan has deported to Eritrea more than 400 asylum seekers, including six whose asylum had been approved. The forced deportation or expulsion of asylum seekers is in direct violation of international law and puts Eritrean refugees at risk for retaliation and abuse.
Repressive policies in Eritrea forbid its citizens from crossing borders without government authorization. Those fleeing have reported navigating razor wire, minefields and sneaking past armed border guards.
The repressive Red Sea state has been accused of systemic human rights violations that have driven between 3,000 and 4,000 out of the country each month.
However some governments have suggested that the masses have left for economic reasons and not as a result of human rights violations.
International law prohibits returning persons to a country where their life will be at risk or where they will be subjected to torture or abuse. Sudan has said that it respects the rights of refugees. If this is the case, the Sudanese government should be taking steps to ensure the welfare and security of the refugees and asylum seekers in its country rather than forcing them to return to the dangers from which they escaped.
Sudan is a transit country for refugees wanting to reach Europe. Sudan could allow passage through the country; however the policy has been to arrest refugees and to send them back. This behavior is in direct conflict with a country who tried to present itself as refugee-friendly.
According to UNHCR, the country refused the refugee agency access to identify the individuals wanting to apply for asylum.
Featured Image: Eritrean refugees wait aboard a navy ship. Photo: Reuters/Antonio Parrinello