COVID-19 IMPACTS ON IMMIGRATION DETENTION: GLOBAL RESPONSES COVID-19, IN BETWEEN POLICY CHANGE – THE UNCERTAIN SITUATION OF ERITREAN REFUGEES IN ETHIOPIA INTRODUCTION Ethiopia reported its first COVID-19 cases on 13 March 2020 . In response, the Ethiopian government established a Ministerial Coordination Committee and by 8 April, the Prime Minister, Abyi Ahmed, declared a 5 months state of emergency in accordance with the provisions of Article 93 of the Federal Constitution2. 1 The state of emergency declaration allowed the Ethiopian Government to impose lockdown conditions on the population. Hence, as of 16 March 2020, schools and institutions of higher learning were closed for 15 days and government employees were directed to work from home. In addition, from 20 March all persons entering the country were subjected to 14 days mandatory quarantine. Restaurants and night clubs were closed, all sporting events were banned and all movement across land borders, except for cargo and essential goods, was suspended. 3 Also, the Ethiopian Federal Attorney General issued a release order of over 4,000 prisoners including foreigners held on drug trafficking charges4 who were ordered to be deported to their countries. 5 COVID-19 Statistics as of 4 September 2020 TOTAL CASES 54,409 TOTAL RECOVERED 19,903 TOTAL DEATHS 846 As part of the response, the 29 August 2020 general elections were postponed.6 The postponement has been contested and become the source of much political tension within Ethiopia especially since Tigray region (North Ethiopia) has decided to hold its own separate elections on 9 September 2020.7 As part of a USD 1.6 billion Ethiopia emergency response plan, the Ethiopian government introduced a specific COVID-19 emergency response with strong support for the health sector as well as measures to protect the economy and ensure social protection. 8 The spread of COVID-19 impacted the lives of many Ethiopians as well as refugee populations residing in the country. According to the UNHCR, refugees in East African countries “are particularly vulnerable to the virus, both in refugee camps and in urban areas” as they have to live “in crowded conditions, without adequate access to water and sanitation facilities, and with precarious livelihoods and food security”.9 Measures adopted to prevent spread of the virus, such as closure of the borders, and restrictions of movement, have particularly affected Eritrean refugees residing in the North of Ethiopia. Alongside with the movement ban, a policy decision ending the prima facie recognition of refugee status of Eritreans exacerbated their protection needs.10 COVID-19 BORDER CLOSURE AND THE IMPACT ON ERITREAN REFUGEES For the period January to March 2020, UNHCR reported 9,463 new asylum seekers from Eritrea and an average of 3,000 new arrivals per month in the first quarter of 2020. 11 Already in April 2020, 423 Eritrean asylum seekers were held under quarantine in a border reception centre, Endabaguna, that has been converted for the purpose.12 Because of the lockdown measures implemented by the Ethiopian government to contain spread of COVID-19, as of 24 March 2020, the Administration for Refugees & Returnee Affairs (ARRA) suspended refugee reception, registration, and screening activities. Additionally, non-governmental organisations put on hold non-health related refugee camp activities. In Tigray region, where Eritrean refugees are located, the regional state government supplemented the measures of the Federal government by imposing a total movement ban. Following the Ethiopian government’s COVID-19 declaration of emergency and lockdown as well as the travel ban imposed by the Tigray regional state, UNHCR reports indicate that there were no new asylum seekers arriving from Eritrea or any other location. It is only in July 2020 that UNHCR reported the arrival of 56 new asylum seekers in Ethiopia. 13 However, the un-official cross-border movement remains undocumented. As the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea, Daniela Kravetz, informed, several unregistered recently arrived Eritreans were seen by locals living without shelter and support.14 The UNHCR also stated that as of 24 March,15 it has no access to the Ethiopia – Eritrea border area (in Tigray region) but that it does have access to the Endabaguna quarantine station. However, at present there is no public update on the quarantine situation in the border areas. 1 https://qz.com/africa/1818041/coronavirus-kenya-ghana-and-ethiopia-confirmed-first-cases/0 2 Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. (1995). Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, available at: https://www.refworld.org/ docid/3ae6b5a84.html [accessed 2 September 2020] 3 COMESA. (2020). COVID-19 In COMESA Measures in Place in Member States. Retrieved from https://www.tralac.org/documents/resources/covid-19/regional/ 3264-covid-19-response-measures-in-comesa/file.html 4 https://www.voanews.com/science-health/coronavirus-outbreak/ethiopia-release-inmates-curb-coronavirus-spread 5 Ethiopian Monitor. (2020). Ethiopia to Release 4,110 Prisoners Early to Reduce COVID-19 Risk. Ethiopian Monitor. Retrieved from: https://ethiopianmonitor. com/2020/03/25/ethiopia-to-release-4110-prisoners-early-to-reduce-covid-19-risk/ 6 COMESA. (2020). COVID-19 In COMESA Measures in Place in Member States. Retrieved from https://www.tralac.org/documents/resources/covid-19/regional/ 3264-covid-19-response-measures-in-comesa/file.html; https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/row-between-sudan-ethiopia-erupts-over-border-clashes/1859442; https://www.dw.com/en/whats-behind-the-ethiopia-sudan-border-row/a-53684414 7 https://www.tesfanews.net/ethiopia-constitutional-crisis-tplf-hold-tigray-election/; https://www.dw.com/en/ethiopia-political-tensions-rise-ahead-of-plannedregional-elections/a-54598768; https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ethiopia-election/ethiopias-tigray-region-eyes-election-in-challenge-to-national-unityidUSKBN22H2PN 8 https://fts.unocha.org/appeals/936/summary; African Development Group. (2020). African Economic Outlook 2020 (Supplement) Amid COVID-19. African Development Bank. Retrieved from https://t.co/Sb9JAw8GnT?amp=1 9 UNHCR. (2020). UNHCR stepping up coronavirus prevention measures for displaced across East, Horn and Great Lakes region of Africa. UNHCR. Retrieved from: https://www.unhcr.org/news/briefing/2020/4/5e8c28c44/unhcr-stepping-coronavirus-prevention-measures-displaced-across-east-horn.html 10 https://eritreahub.org/urgent-ethiopia-adopts-new-criteria-excluding-eritrean-refugees https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/04/19/ethiopia-plans-to-closeeritrean-refugee-camp-despite-concerns/ 11 UNHCR Ethiopia, 30 April 2020; Eritrean Refugees in Ethiopia Tigray and Afar Regions. Situation Update 12 UNHCR Ethiopia, 03 April,2020; Update on the impact of COVID – 19 on refugees 13 UNHCR Ethiopia, Refugees and Asylum Seekers as of 31 July 2020 14 UN Human Rights Council. (2020). Human rights situation in Eritrea. A/HRC/44/23. Retrieved from https://eritreahub.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/ UN-Special-Rapporteurs-Report-2020.pdf 15 UNHCR Ethiopia, 30 April 2020; Eritrean Refugees in Ethiopia Tigray and Afar Regions. Situation Update UNHCR Ethiopia, 3 April 2020, Update on the Impact of COVID-19 on Refugees, Eritrea Hub, Retrieved from https://eritreahub.org/important-statement-from-un-refugee-agency-on-eritreans-in-ethiopia 16 International Detention Coalition and Western Sydney University