The Estonian Human Rights Centre does not approve using the emergency situation as a justification for rushing to make legislative changes that would require a wider discussion and analysis.
States have the right to regulate migration, but human rights must be respected in every single case, also during emergencies. Immediate expulsion of people in temporary difficulties due to an emergency situation is neither proportionate nor appropriate. Such rigid regulation can, for example, violate the right to respect for private and family life.
Concern should also be raised about the planned provisions which allow for a simplified procedure for detaining asylum-seekers and third-country nationals in expulsion procedures, allowing courts to issue detention rulings without written reasoning. In the situation of a pandemic, large-scale detention is neither reasonable nor justified.
We emphasise that legislative amendments adopted during the current emergency situation must still be thoroughly analysed and in compliance with human rights.
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