Refugees and asylum seekers of Sub-Saharan origin sit-In in front of UNHCR
Published: 1 Jul 2016
The Association Marocaine des Droits Humans (AMDH) is a Moroccan network of 92 sections, five preparatory committees and nine regional sections focused on human rights and the democratic movement. AMDH recently reported on the Sub-Saharan refugee and asylum seeker sit-in at the UNHCR office in Rabat. Translated by Emma Middleton, a volunteer with the Rights in Exile programme.
On the morning of 9 May 2016, about a hundred refugees and asylum seekers organized an open sit-in in front of the UNHCR office in Rabat.
According to the memorandum written on 10 May 2016, they attested that: “As refugees and asylum seekers in Morocco, participating in a sit-in to reclaim our rights that we feel have been violated, particularly following a situation of a clear denial of rights, notably in terms of aid and protection, we address this present memorandum to a UNHCR representative for action.”
The sit-in was marked by a strong presence of women and young children, and elsewhere an adolescent has also been injured on the head during an attack and transported by ambulance to the hospital on the morning of Tuesday 10 May 2016 in the morning.
The refugees and asylum seekers present denounce the discrimination against the asylum seekers of Syrian origin and the asylum seekers of Sub-Saharan origin in Morocco with regards to access to international protection.
They also criticized the delay in the processing of files of asylum seekers who don’t have material aid, and who are forced to live in an extremely precarious position. Lastly, these refugees demand access to the fulfillment of their fundamental rights and are outraged by the racist acts they suffer daily.
The people present attest to their exhaustion in the face of a dramatic situation in which they remain without improvement after many years, and declare their determination to continue their action for the necessary time until their demands are considered.
The relevant demands are the following:
The stabilization of asylum seekers’ situation and the consideration of their rights
The resettlement to a safe third country to guarantee their fulfillment, given the absence of assistance from Moroccan authorities
The people organizing the sit-in propose:
The introduction of care structures under the direct tutelage and protection of the UN, to be undertaken where possible, in the form of farms or cooperative enterprises near villages where the refugees could quickly acquire complete food autonomy and professional pre-training.
UNHCR has opened dialogue with the protesters and has promised to evaluate each asylum seeker’s file individually and respond to them in a reasonable time.
We at the AMDH, declaring our support of this protest that we judge to be legitimate, demand that UNHCR proceeds urgently to stabilize the situation of asylum seekers, and that the state of Morocco respects their dignity and their rights as stipulated in the Geneva Convention, ratified by Morocco.