World bodies bat for refugees and migrants
NEW DELHI: Four UN bodies have issued a joint statement urging people in the world to protect the rights and health of everyone to fight the coronavirus pandemic. The statement jointly released by the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, World Health Organization, United Nations Human Rights Commission and the International Organisation on Migration states that the virus does not discriminate but refugees, forcibly displaced persons and migrants are at a heightened risk.
“The situation for refugees and migrants held in formal and informal places of detention, in cramped and unsanitary conditions, is particularly worrying. Considering the lethal consequences COVID-19 outbreak would have, they should be released without delay. Migrant children and their families and those detained without a sufficient legal basis should be immediately released,” the statement read.
“While countries are closing their borders and limiting cross-border movements, there are ways to manage border restrictions in a manner which respects international human rights and refugee protection standards, including the principle of non-refoulement, through quarantine and health checks,” it added.
The UN bodies also urge not to let fear of intolerance to undermine or compromise the effectiveness of the responses of the global pandemic.