Refugees and Asylum Seekers

Introduction Libya hosted about 16,000 refugees,
mainly Palestinians, Sudanese, Somalis and Iraqis.
F
Refoulement/Physical
Protection In July, Libya
forcibly repatriated a number of
Eritreans and throughout the year,
returned others to countries where
they risked persecution, and collectively
deported thousands it suspected
of illegal entry without giving them the opportunity
to seek asylum.
In March, the Government threatened to deport
Palestinian refugees to the Gaza Strip in response to a
Saudi peace initiative that it feared would stem Palestinians’
right of return and “liquidate the Palestinian
cause.”
In January 2008, the Government threatened to
deport summarily all foreigners without legal status—possibly
more than a million people—including many from
Eritrea, Somalia, and Sudan, claiming that none of them
was a refugee.
There were reports that authorities beat, raped,
and sexually abused refugees in detention and that some
may have died in custody from such treatment. An
estimated 1,900 died attempting to migrate irregularly
from Libya to Europe in 2007, down from nearly 2,100
the year before. On two occasions in May, Libya refused
to rescue at least two boats of migrants in distress in its
territorial waters. In one case, the 57 Eritreans made it
back to shore where authorities arrested them and put
them in jail. In the other, even though Libyan authorities
said they would send a boat for them, some 27 West
Africans clung to the net of a tuna boat for at least 24
hours before an Italian vessel picked them up. In June,
authorities ignored the distress call of another boat carrying
29 Eritreans.
Libya was not party to the 1951 Convention relating
to the Status of Refugees or its Protocol but was party to
the 1969 Convention governing the Specific Aspects of
Refugee Problems in Africa. It also endorsed the 1965
Protocol for the Treatment of Palestinians in Arab States
(Casablanca Protocol) but with reservations on its first
article guaranteeing the right to work on par with nationals.
A 1989 law granted Arab citizens the same rights
granted to Libyans. Although the 1969 Constitutional
Proclamation prohibited the extradition of “political
refugees” and the 1991 Endorsement of Freedom Law offered
“shelter for oppressed people and those struggling
for freedom,” Libya had no law on granting refugee status
and the Government claimed there were no political
refugees in the country.
Libya had no Memorandum of Understanding
with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR) but did allow UNHCR to conduct
refugee status determinations (RSDs) under its mandate
and issue letters of attestation to those it granted.
An increase in applications, however, contributed to
an eight-month delay for an appointment with the
agency.
Libya had readmission agreements with Italy
and the United Kingdom, cooperated closely with the
EU border agency Frontex and other European countries
to block migrants, and entered into an agreement in December
for six Italian naval ships to patrol its coast with
Libyan sailors on board to interdict irregular migrants.
According to Human Rights Watch, such cooperation
was “often without adequate regard for the rights of migrants
or the need to protect refugees and others at risk
of abuse on return to their home countries.” Libya also
reportedly had a tacit agreement with Eritrea to return
its nationals and allowed the International Organization
for Migration to open an EU-funded center in March
2008 to return migrants as “a complementary concept
to deportations.”
Detention/Access to
Courts Libya maintained detention
camps and reportedly held
and threatened to repatriate about
500 Eritreans, including over 50
F
women and children. In June,
after ignoring their ship's distress
calls, authorities reportedly arrested and jailed more
than 50 Eritreans who made it back to shore. In July,
authorities arrested some 70 asylum seekers and held
them in Al Zawiyah, about 24 miles (40 km) west of
Tripoli. When the Government arrested people for illegal
entry, it did not formally charge them and they usually
remained in detention indefinitely or until deportation.
While most had no access to a lawyer or opportunity to
challenge their detention in court, authorities did bring
those charged with common crimes or captured trying
to enter Malta or Italy before a court.
The Government allowed UNHCR to visit three
detention centers. However, it severely limited access to
all detention centers for independent monitoring. In
August, UNHCR conducted an RSD and resettlement
mission in the Misurata holding center. According to the
U.S. State Department, conditions in migrant detention
centers reportedly improved since 2005, in particular,
medical services.
Refugees received no government documents
affirming their right to stay in the country. UNHCR issued
refugees letters attesting to their protected status
but authorities did not always recognize them. A 2005
law allowed foreigners and refugees UNHCR recognized
to receive a permit (red card) for a stay of up to three
months while they fulfilled the necessary requirements
for a residence permit (green card).
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