The African Union, European Union, and United Nations (AU-EU-UN) Task Force on Libya said in a joint statement that they were very concerned about recent developments regarding the situation of immigrants and refugees in Libya; particularly, about the nearly 6000 of the most vulnerable immigrants and asylum seekers currently arbitrarily detained in detention centres by the Libyan authorities.
"Severe overcrowding, lack of adequate facilities and provision of basic services, restricted humanitarian access and human rights violations result in unacceptable conditions for the men, women and children detained." The joint statement indicated.
The statement called on Libyan authorities to ensure the full resumption of humanitarian evacuations and voluntary return flights for refugees and immigrants from Libya without delay and to provide unimpeded access for humanitarian organizations to migrants in all detention centres.
The joint statement remarked that while putting in place a more sustainable solution to asylum and migration management, the AU-EU-UN Task Force on Libya calls for decongestion through an immediate release of women and children and substantial improvement of conditions in the detention centres to end the current human rights violations.
It also says: "In line with the Conclusions of the Second Berlin Conference on Libya, we strongly urge Libyan authorities to end the current arbitrary detention system."
The AU-EU-UN Task Force on Libya stressed that compliance with human rights principles is a cornerstone of joint work, consistent with the obligations of the Libyan government as signatories to various conventions on human rights and in accordance with international humanitarian principles to protect migrants under its authority.
"We reiterate our continued commitment to work with Libya and support the overall efforts of the interim Government of National Unity on migration management, in line with international law, and for the benefit of all involved." The statement adds.
