Center of Legal Aid "Voice in Bulgaria"

📢 The Balkan region represents one of the most complicated EU external borders making it a hotspot for migration flows and dynamics. It still remains a blind spot for its realities on the ground and migration management. Experts, with substantial field experience, from four regional jurisdictions will share insights, burning issues and challenges, addressing also the impact EU policies have on the region. 🤝Join our webinar and discussion on 🕝 27th of November 14:30 Sofia time - webinar . The event would be in English. The link is public - https://lnkd.in/d9Cx-pgD With the financial support of the Bulgarian Fund for Women and the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the Bulgarian Fund for Women, the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency. Neither BFW, nor the EU or EACEA can be held responsible for them. 

📢Together with 29 other NGOs, Center of Legal Aid Voice in Bulgaria is calling on the EU and its Member States to follow the 10 key priorities we are pushing for and to ensure that the rights of unaccompanied children are protected - in line with international refugee and human rights law, and to create a Covenant that protects children. 📢 Mitigating Risks and Implementing Safeguards to Strengthen Protection of Unaccompanied Children 📢Action is needed now to improve safeguards and create a #PactThatProtectsChildren 📢Read our policy brief: https://shorturl.at/HCEOS #PactThatProtectsChildren

🛎In early October, we shared with you information about the hybrid event within the 57th session of the International Human Rights Council, in which we participated. The event was hosted by Quaker United Nations Office, Border Violence Monitoring Network, Human Rights Watch. 🔴The emphasis was placed on migrant human rights and the need for independent monitoring, citing resolution 53/24 adopted by 🔴 Human Rights Council on prevention and responsibility for human rights violations in transit crossing. 🔴 UN representatives, including the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights of Migrants, and civil society representatives discussed the current situation of migrants' rights and alarming trends at international borders and systematic violations of basic migrants' rights. ▶️Now we present you a full record of the event, knowing that it is important to you. https://lnkd.in/dQZUdm2m ▶️More on violent repulsions and migration detention here https://shorturl.at/UTPJV #pushback #detention #euborders #humanrights See original

🚨The Border Violence Monitoring Network just launched the #MonitoringBorderTech Report on Bulgaria🚨 The report analyses the impacts of the EUs 45 million euro investment into the for the fortification of the Bulgarian-Turkish border. The boosted security along certain border areas are increasing the risks people on the move are facing not only with regards to pushbacks, but also injuries or even death related to car chases, suffocation in vans, or other forms of death in transit. ❌ https://lnkd.in/dabBdb58

We share with you the exclusive investigation of the journalist Valya Ahchieva on "Garbage and the border", which was published recently. It presents: 🧨data on illegal actions by border police and army officers in the area of Malko Tarnovo and Rezovo 🧨 the confiscation of migrants' personal belongings and the illegal return of refugees to Turkey.   🧨how military trucks transport and dump migrants' personal belongings in illegal dumps in Malko Tarnovo and Rezovo https://lnkd.in/dz2XTQdd Quote from the investigation:  "This waste is refugees' own equipment, clothes and food coming from the Middle East and African countries. They are taken to designated places, which are determined by the border police, and everything is confiscated from them. The refugees themselves are returned to Turkey through the gates.  "It has happened that pregnant women, perhaps at the moment of giving birth, are left in the forest." "Migration trafficking has become a corrupt source of money" "Why is the Bulgarian army being used for illegal activities?" "Is it possible that these events with the migrants intercepted at the Bulgarian-Turkish border are not noticed by Frontex officers who also walk along the fence? Is what is happening not illegal, immoral and dangerous?" "Scary, but this is the real attitude of Bulgarian security towards refugees." 🆘We leave it up to you to decide who is breaking the country's laws, threatening national security and tarnishing Bulgaria's name in front of Europe and the world. https://lnkd.in/dz2XTQdd

🔷 Remember that our annual report for 2023 is available here ! https://lnkd.in/dMePeQNf 🔷 This might prepare you for the event on 08th of October- Human rights for migrants in transit! 🔜 Do not forget to register for the online event https://fb.me/e/3TajE1c6Z

⏱️ SAVE THE DATE 08 Oct, 15:00 (CET) @ Palais & Online 📌Border Violence Monitoring Network Human Rights Watch #QuakerUNOffice and #Migradetention are organizing a side event at the #HRC57 on the human rights of migrants in transit and the need for independent monitoring. 📌And we have our representative -Mrs. Desislava Todorova 📝 Register here https://lnkd.in/dxdKM4kj 🚨 The aim of this side event is to provide space to discuss the role and importance of independent human rights monitoring at international borders in prevention and accountability.

🚨The Border Violence Monitoring Network just launched the #MonitoringBorderTech Executive Summary 🚨Amongst the findings of a year of research, it shows that an overwhelming amount of EU funding made available for border fortification along the "balkan route".  ⏩ Read it here: https://lnkd.in/dfPdDDyv  BLINDSPOTS e.V. thank you for the visual ! #borderviolence #humanrights

🟥 For Bulgaria, the New Migration Pact will mean a restructuring of the international protection process. "The Anatomy of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum. - Desislava Todorova, "CLA - Voice in Bulgaria" ⚖️This is the first analysis to examine the introduction of screening of third-country nationals at external borders. This is the first stage of the newly adopted maze of regulations and is particularly relevant for Bulgaria as an external border of the EU. 🧱The regulation on the introduction of screening raises key questions on access to territory, the practical implementation of the processes foreseen in the regulation, trends and risks of circumventing fundamental principles guaranteeing migrants' and refugees' rights. 📌Read the original ⏩https://shorturl.at/s54V9 #refugees #safeterritory #StopPushbacksNotPeople #stopthispact #HumanRightsMatter #StopTheInhumanity

🔺 Our 3 highlights from the first week of July in #MigrationWeekly : 🔲 A new joint study by European refugee and migrant rights networks European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) and Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM) finds that EU funds for border management are being used to build harmful external border control infrastructure, leading to human rights abuses. 🔲 Internal Frontex documents seen by @EUobserver show that Frontex staff in Bulgaria have been offered to experience how border security works on the ground, provided they do not report violations. Documents show Bulgarian border guards deliberately abusing the rights of potential asylum seekers along the common land border with Turkey. 🔲 Britain's new Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has confirmed his intention to end Rwanda's flagship migrant deportation scheme. The full article- here ⏩ https://lnkd.in/dDWRURKd 💙The "Migration Weekly" is part of our ongoing advocacy campaign for asylum seekers, protection and safe territory in Bulgaria. #migration #policy #eu #asylum