30 June 2020
The Swiss Committee for the Defence of the Rights of Migrants has called on the UN Committee Against Torture to launch an inquiry into Italy's role in 'pull-backs' to Libya. A formal inquiry by the Committee would be able to establish the legal facts surrounding Italy's practices.
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"The CSDM has submitted a formal request to the UN Committee against Torture to launch an inquiry procedure under Article 20 CAT concerning Italy’s conduct in the Central Mediterranean which is leading to the mass torture, rape and forced labour of thousands of refugees and migrants pulled back to Libya.
In our submission we argue that Italy’s strategy of outsourcing pull-backs to the Libyan Coast Guard (LCG) breaches Italy’s commitments under the Convention against Torture."
Request for UN Inquiry into Italy’s Role in the Systematic Torture of Migrants “Pulled Back” to Libya (CSDM, link)
The CSDM's submission comes as Statewatch and Osservatorio Solidarietà have coordinated an open letter to the UN International Maritime Organization, calling on it to take steps to deregister the Libyan search and rescue zone, in order to prevent 'pull-backs' by the Libyan Coast Guard.
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