Press Statement
Sean McCormack, Spokesman
Washington, DC
June 20, 2008
Egyptian Deportation of Eritreans
The United States notes the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ (UNHCR's) statement on the forcible repatriation of hundreds Eritrean asylum seekers over the last week. Given the increasingly repressive nature of the Eritrean Government, Eritrean citizens are in grave danger of persecution, including torture, upon their return.
We understand that the Egyptian government has agreed to grant the UNHCR access to Eritreans in custody. We ask that the Government of Egypt continue to cooperate with the UNHCR and maintain its generous asylum policy, including respect for its obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention, and that it immediately halt deportations to Eritrea.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has called for countries to refrain from all returns of rejected asylum seekers to Eritrea and instead grant them some complementary form of protection.
2008/515
Released on June 20, 2008
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