A/HRC/44/23 of Eritrean asylum seekers who have attempted to seek asylum in other European countries, after failing to obtain asylum in Switzerland, but who are now being sent back to Switzerland.45 Additionally, the Special Rapporteur notes that, in 2019, the State Secretariat for Migration reported 56 cases of voluntary return of Eritreans to Eritrea.46 The Special Rapporteur expresses concern that these voluntary returns could be placing individuals at risk given that their conditions of return cannot be adequately monitored. 84. Finally, the Special Rapporteur stresses the importance for States to take the rehabilitation needs of Eritrean asylum seekers into account in asylum processes, including when applying the Dublin III Regulation. 47 Many Eritrean asylum seekers lived through traumatic events in Eritrea and along their journey to Europe, in particular those who transited through Libya. While European Union asylum regulations recognize the importance of addressing mental health care needs of asylum seekers, in practice, these needs often go undetected and untreated. A failure to take into account the rehabilitation needs of vulnerable asylum seekers, such as children and victims of torture, sexual violence and human trafficking, may influence their ability to present their claims in a coherent manner. Such failure may also place asylum seekers at risk of irreparable harm. In recent years, unaddressed trauma and fear of deportation have been among factors contributing to cases of suicide of Eritrean asylum seekers in various European countries. VII. Conclusions and recommendations 85. Two years on from the peace deal between Eritrea and Ethiopia, the dividends of peace have yet to materialize for the Eritrean people. While Eritrea is engaging more actively in the international and regional scenes, the Eritrean authorities have yet to implement much-needed human rights reforms and open civic space in the country. The changes in regional dynamics have failed to translate into concrete and sustainable progress in human rights in Eritrea. 86. In the present report, the Special Rapporteur has highlighted specific areas of concern and provided examples of ongoing human rights violations. Based on the findings above, and guided by international standards, the Sustainable Development Goals, and international law obligations binding on Eritrea, the Special Rapporteur makes the following recommendations to the Government of Eritrea in relation to each benchmark. 87. In relation to benchmark 1, the Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government: (a) Release political prisoners, prisoners of conscience and persons unlawfully and arbitrarily detained; (b) Ensure that all persons deprived of their liberty are detained only in official places of detention and are provided with all legal safeguards, including access to a lawyer and health care, family visits and prompt judicial review of their detention; (c) Launch a participatory constitution-drafting process, re-establish the National Assembly and ensure that human rights are mainstreamed in the domestic legal system; 45 46 47 These returns are being processed under Regulation No. 604/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 establishing the criteria and mechanisms for determining the Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection lodged in one of the Member States by a third-country national or a stateless person (Dublin III Regulation). See Switzerland, State Secretariat for Migration, Table 7-50: Dublin: requêtes, règlements et transferts par nation du 1.1.2019 au 31.12.2019 (CH-Nati tab). Available at www.sem.admin.ch/dam/data/sem/ publiservice/statistik/asylstatistik/2019/12/7-50-Mouv-Dublin-a-f-2019-12.xlsx. Switzerland, State Secretariat for Migration, Table 7-30: Processus asile et soutien au retour asile: entrées et sorties par nation du 1.1.2019 au 31.12.2019 (CH-Nati tab). Available at www.sem. admin.ch/dam/data/sem/publiservice/statistik/asylstatistik/2019/12/7-30-Mouv-sejour-Asile-a-f-201912.xlsx. See, for example, Committee against Torture, A.N. v. Switzerland (CAT/C/64/D/742/2016), paras. 8.7–8.8. 17

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