AN AGENDA FOR CHANGE 1 7 I have lived here for 24 years… not 24 hours or 24 months, but years… Immigration detention has been the most humiliating punishment in my life. CHRISTOFF, ORIGINALLY FROM THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA, INTERVIEWED IN BULGARIA The increasing use of immigration detention and the growing criminalisation of irregular migration are concerning global and European trends, which result in more people being detained for reasons that are unlawful or arbitrary. These trends are particularly concerning for stateless people or those who may be at risk of statelessness, as they are often trapped in systems that criminalise their irregular migration status and subject them to ongoing detention without offering them any real prospects for adjusting their status or availing themselves of a nationality. While immigration detention is a significant area of general concern to stateless people, the unique barriers to removal faced by stateless people and those at risk of statelessness, put them at particular risk of unlawful or arbitrary detention in the context of removal procedures. As the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) held in Kim v Russia, a stateless person is highly vulnerable to being “simply left to languish for months and years…without any authority taking an active interest in [their] fate and well-being”. Although there are other important circumstances in which stateless persons may be detained, which merit further attention (for example under criminal law, national security, or in asylum procedures), the research findings emerging from this project shone a light on the specific vulnerabilities faced by stateless people in removal procedures. This is therefore the focus of this agenda for change. It is hoped that reform in this area can act as a catalyst for change more widely, leading to effective mechanisms for the prevention of arbitrary immigration detention and contributing to a shift towards alternatives to detention across the region. Stateless people will only be protected from arbitrary detention if authorities recognise and act upon the specific rights of the stateless in international law on the one hand, and the fundamental right to liberty and security of the person, on the other. The research found that states are largely failing to acknowledge the vulnerabilities associated with statelessness, to put in place effective procedures to identify statelessness and to protect stateless people, leading to a failure to prevent their arbitrary detention. Recognising these rights and vulnerabilities, and taking steps to identify statelessness, will help to guard against arbitrary deprivation of liberty. Europe urgently needs to foster change on the issue of immigration detention. Regional advocacy is shifting towards recognising the harm inflicted by immigration detention and a consensus is emerging among civil society actors as well as UNHCR, the Council of Europe, and national governments, that there is a need to expand and improve alternatives to detention. The output from this project serves as a further indictment of the failings of Europe’s detention regimes. Drawing on evidence from two years of research into statelessness and immigration detention in the region, and the law, policy, and practice in six diverse countries (Bulgaria, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, the UK and Ukraine), this report now presents an agenda for change at national and regional levels. Promoting both the protection of individuals’ human rights and the development of fairer and more efficient systems, this report is intended as a tool for civil society to advocate for change and for policy makers to effect sustainable reform. Part I reflects on the current reality in Europe, highlighting the most fundamental challenges that emerged from the research and which need to be addressed. Part II looks ahead and further explores the change that needs to happen in key areas to achieve the goal of ending the arbitrary detention of stateless persons or those at risk of statelessness in Europe. Part III summarises the key recommendations and sets out an advocacy agenda. At the end of the report there is a short glossary of key terms and a list of key resources including links to each of the country reports and the Regional Toolkit for Practitioners, where more detailed analysis of the relevant legal and policy frameworks can be found, as well as other useful external resources on detention and statelessness. If achieved, the reforms set out here will not only bring law, policy, and practice in Europe more in line with international human rights standards, but it will also bring the wider benefits of fairer and more efficient systems to governments and communities across the region.