A Monitoring Guide
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N Ensure that the detention of asylum seekers is avoided, and is only
used as a measure of last resort and for the shortest possible time;
O Ensure that placement in detention, where used, avoids further
marginalising persons on the basis of sexual orientation, gender
identity, gender expression or sex characteristics or subjecting them
to violence, discrimination or other harm;
P Ensure that solitary confinement is not used to manage or to pro-
tect persons at risk of discrimination, violence or other harm on
the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or sex characteristics, and release or refer asylum seekers to alternatives to detention, if effective protection cannot
be provided.”
While some of the issues and risks attendant to placement in immigration detention are similar to those occurring in prisons, others
are specific to detention in immigration settings. In particular, monitoring bodies should be aware that many LGBT migrants have fled
their countries of origin because of persecution on the basis of their
sexual orientation or gender identity. Such persecutions may stem
from laws criminalizing same-sex relationships and/or from behaviours and appearances not conforming to social, cultural and religious norms. It might therefore be particularly problematic for LGBT
persons to be detained together with detainees from the same country of origin, who might share the same discriminatory views that
forced them to flee in the first place. If this is the case, abuse and
harassment are likely to continue in the new closed environment,
and LGBT migrants may be at risk of becoming victims of violence,
including hate crimes, committed by fellow nationals. LGBT persons
as such can end up facing a continuum of marginalisation, as targets
of identity-based mistreatment both in the countries they fled and
in detention places in receiving countries. If their security cannot be
guaranteed, alternatives to detention should be sought. Indefinite
segregation or placement in solitary confinement of LGBT migrants,
even for safety reasons, cannot be justified and protective measures
must guarantee access to recreation and family visits on an equal
basis with other immigration detainees.
Chapter V
3. Deprivation of liberty on grounds related to migration
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