Slovenia: Amendments to Aliens Act denies protection to refugees
| Publisher | Amnesty International |
| Publication Date | 26 January 2017 |
| Cite as | Amnesty International, Slovenia: Amendments to Aliens Act denies protection to refugees, 26 January 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/588b02aa4.html [accessed 25 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
New law passed this evening strip refugees and asylum seekers of protections to which they are entitled under international and EU law and are a serious backward step for human rights in Slovenia, said Amnesty International.
The amendments to the Aliens Act allow for special emergency measures that would deny entry to people arriving at the borders and automatically expel migrants and refugees who have entered Slovenia irregularly, without properly assessing their asylum claims or the risks to which they would be exposed upon return.
"Rather than recognizing refugees and asylum seekers as people fleeing from the horrors of war and in need of protection, these amendments treat them as a threat to national security and strip them of vital protections under international law," said Jelena Sesar, Amnesty International's Researcher for the Balkans and the European Union.
"By sealing its borders to these desperate people and turning its back on its international obligations, Slovenia is treading the same unseemly path as its neighbours - Hungary and Austria. This is deeply regrettable for a country which has traditionally upheld core human rights values and has been a true leader in the region."
Countries in the Balkans must refrain from employing measures to push back and deny protections to refugees, migrants and asylum seekers, many of them unaccompanied children fleeing war and persecution.
