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The Rights of Unaccompanied Migrants from Their Arrival to the Adulthood

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In and Out: Rights of Migrants in the European Space

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Abstract

This chapter is aimed at examining, in a critical perspective, the current situation about unaccompanied migrants, in the light of International legislations as well as national and European case law. First, it will be introduced the topic departing from International provisions on reception and protection of unaccompanied minors, also analysing some ECtHR pronouncements regarding refoulement and detention. Then, it will be examined the living conditions of minors and the related problems in the context of the “best interest of the child”. It will be focused also the matter of transition to adulthood and the main problems faced by young migrant. Therefore, in analysing Italian legislation it will be highlighted the introduction of the volunteer guardians and the new protocol for the age assessment.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Children_in_migration_-_asylum_applicants#Main_features_at_EU_level_in_2020.

  2. 2.

    Monthly reports on unaccompanied migrant seeking asylum are available at https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/migr_asyumactm/default/table?lang=en.

  3. 3.

    According to the mentioned statistics, in 2020 the 55.2% were males, the 80.2% were aged less than 14 and the 19.8% were aged from 14 to 17.

  4. 4.

    COM/2017/0211 final. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/ALL/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0211.

  5. 5.

    UNCHR, UNICEF(2014) Sani e Salvi. Posizione UNCHR sul superiore interesse del minore. https://www.unhcr.org/it/wp-content/uploads/sites/97/2020/07/Safe_and_sound_final.pdf. For deepening the topic: EUROPEAN MIGRATION NETWORK, How do EU Member States treat cases of missing unaccompanied minors?: EMN Inform, 8 April 2020. https://emn.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/EU_Inform_Unaccompanied_Minors_2020.pdf.

  6. 6.

    The Guardian, Nearly 17 child migrants a day vanished in Europe since 2018. https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2021/apr/21/nearly-17-child-migrants-a-day-vanished-in-europe-since-2018.

  7. 7.

    UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), General comment No. 6 (2005): Treatment of Unaccompanied and Separated Children Outside their Country of Origin, 1 September 2005, CRC/GC/2005/6. https://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/crc/docs/GC6.pdf.

  8. 8.

    Considerandum n. 13, Regulation (EU) No 604/2013. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02013R0604-20130629.

  9. 9.

    Art. 3 co. 9, Directive 2008/115/EC. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A32008L0115.

  10. 10.

    Regulation No. 604/2013, ibid., Art. 2 j).

  11. 11.

    UN General Assembly, Convention on the Rights of the Child, 20 November 1989, United Nations, Treaty Series, vol 1577, p 3. https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/crc.aspx.

  12. 12.

    The Convention and the enshrined principles are completed by the following comments: UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), General comment No. 6 (2005): Treatment of Unaccompanied and Separated Children Outside their Country of Origin, 1 September 2005, CRC/GC/2005/6. https://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/crc/docs/GC6.pdf; UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), General comment No. 12 (2009): The right of the child to be heard, 20 July 2009, CRC/C/GC/12. https://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/crc/docs/advanceversions/crc-c-gc-12.pdf; UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), General comment no. 5 (2003): General measures of implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, 27 November 2003, CRC/GC/2003/5. https://docstore.ohchr.org/SelfServices/FilesHandler.ashx?enc=6QkG1d%2FPPRiCAqhKb7yhsiQql8gX5Zxh0cQqSRzx6Zd2%2FQRsDnCTcaruSeZhPr2vUevjbn6t6GSi1fheVp%2Bj5HTLU2Ub%2FPZZtQWn0jExFVnWuhiBbqgAj0dWBoFGbK0c.

  13. 13.

    Art. 24 co. 2, Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (2007/C 303/01), 14 December 2007, C 303/1. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A12012P%2FTXT.

  14. 14.

    European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. https://www.echr.coe.int/documents/convention_eng.pdf.

  15. 15.

    Convention on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings, 16 May 2005, CETS 197. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A12012P%2FTXT.

  16. 16.

    Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, 28 July 1951. https://www.unhcr.org/3b66c2aa10.

  17. 17.

    Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 10 December 1984. https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/cat.aspx.

  18. 18.

    Mayeka and Kaniki Mitunga v. Belgium, Application no.13178/03, ECHR, 12 October 2006. https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/fre?i=002-3083.

  19. 19.

    Moustahi v. France, Application no. 9347/14, § 64, ECHR, 25 June 2020. https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/fre?i=001-203163.

  20. 20.

    Considerandum no. 9, Directive 2013/33/EU (recast). https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A32013L0033.

  21. 21.

    Regulation (EU) No 604/2013, ibid., Art. 6 co. 2.

  22. 22.

    Art. 13 co. 2. Directive 2011/36/EU. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32011L0036.

  23. 23.

    It seems useful highlight that in France it is possible appeal the decision. Nonetheless, during the process of appeal, it is not possible to take the person into care, and more young migrants start to live up on the street. More information available on OXAM, Teach us for what is coming—The transition into adulthood of foreign unaccompanied minors in Europe: case studies from France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, and the Netherlands, 2021. https://www.oxfamitalia.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Teach-us-for-what-is-coming-report.pdf.

  24. 24.

    EASO, Practical Guide on Age Assessment—Second Edition, 2018. https://www.easo.europa.eu/sites/default/files/easo-practical-guide-on-age-assesment-v3-2018.pdf

  25. 25.

    Abdullahi Elmi and Aweys Abubakar v. Malta, Applications no. 25794/13 and 28151/13, ECHR, 22 November 2016. https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/FRE?i=001-168780.

  26. 26.

    ECHR, ibid., art. 5.

  27. 27.

    Council of Europe, Committee for the Prevention of Torture, Concluding observations on the seventh periodic report of Greece, 3 September 2019, p 5. https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CAT%2fC%2fGRC%2fCO%2f7&Lang=en. Council of Europe, Committee for the Prevention of Torture, Report to the Greek Government on the visits to Greece carried out by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) from 13 to 18 April and 19 to 25 July 2016, 26 September 2017. https://rm.coe.int/pdf/168074f85d.

  28. 28.

    ECHR, Mubilanzila Mayeka and Kaniki Mitunga v. Belgium, ibid., § 122.

  29. 29.

    Khan v. France 12267/16, ECHR, 28 May 2019. https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng?i=001-191277.

  30. 30.

    UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Unaccompanied and Separated Asylum-seeking and Refugee Children Turning Eighteen: What to Celebrate? March 2014. https://rm.coe.int/16807023ba.

  31. 31.

    Council of Europe, Supporting Young Refugees in Transition to Adulthood—Recommendation CM/Rec(2019)4. https://rm.coe.int/recommendation-cm-2019-4-supporting-young-refugees-transition-adulthoo/168098e814.

  32. 32.

    For more information: Integrating young refugees in the EU - Country, 20 October 2020. https://fra.europa.eu/en/publication/2020/integrating-young-refugees-eu-country-information#publication-tab-1 .

  33. 33.

    See: COM/2021/142 Final. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/ALL/?uri=CELEX:52021DC0142; COM/2020/758 final. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX:52020DC0758.

  34. 34.

    Law 7 April 2017 no. 47. https://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/eli/id/2017/04/21/17G00062/sg .

  35. 35.

    Legislative Decree 25 July 1988 no. 286. https://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/eli/id/1998/08/18/098G0348/sg.

  36. 36.

    Art. 9, L 47/2017, Ibid.

  37. 37.

    Art. 19, Legislative Decree 18 August 2015, no. 142.

  38. 38.

    Art. 11, L. 47/2017, Ibid.

  39. 39.

    In 2019 the number of unaccompanied minors was estimated around 7000, and the number of registered guardians was 2960. For more information: Report on the volunteer guardianship, First semester 2019. https://tutelavolontaria.garanteinfanzia.org/sites/default/files/2021.05/Rapporto%20monitoraggio%20QUANTITATIVO%20sistema%20tutela%20volontaria%201%20sem%202019.pdf.

  40. 40.

    Presidenza del Consiglio dei Ministri—Conferenza Unificata, Accordo, ai sensi dell’articolo 9, comma 2, lett. c) del decreto legislativo 28 agosto 1997, n. 281, tra il Governo, le Regioni e le Autonomie locali, sul documento recante “Protocollo multidisciplinare per la determinazione dell’età dei minori stranieri non accompagnati, 9 July 2020. https://www.simmweb.it/images/protocollodeterminazione/p3-cu-atto-rep-n-73-9lug2020.pdf.

  41. 41.

    Corte di Cassazione, Sez. I Civile, 03 March 2020, no. 5881.

  42. 42.

    Similarly Consiglio di Stato, Sez. III, 10 May 2021, no. 3668. https://www.giustizia-amministrativa.it/portale/pages/istituzionale/visualizza/?nodeRef=&schema=cds&nrg=202007098&nomeFile=202103668_11.html&subDir=Provvedimenti.

  43. 43.

    These facilities are funded by the European Funding Asylum, Migration, Integration (FAMI).

  44. 44.

    System Acceptance Integration.

  45. 45.

    Even if thoughts for extraordinary reception situation, nowadays the CAS structures are ordinary used for the reception of migrants.

  46. 46.

    Art. 14 of L. 47/2017 stated that unaccompanied minors can be registered in the National Health Service. https://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/atto/stampa/serie_generale/originario.

  47. 47.

    It needs to be remarked that Law 1 December 2018 no. 132 (Security Decree) abolished the humanitarian protection, that was re-introduced by the Legislative Decree 21 October 2021, no. 130.

  48. 48.

    Art. 32 D. Lgs. 286/1998, ibid.

  49. 49.

    Ministry of Interior, Department of Public Security, Circolare n-300/C/2000/785/P/12-229.28/1^DIV, Permessi di Soggiorno per minore età rilasciati ai sensi dell’art. 28, comma 1 letta a) del D.P.R. 394/99, 13 November 2000. https://www2.immigrazione.regione.toscana.it/?q=norma&doc=/db/nir/DbPaesi/circolari/_circolare-300-2000.xml&datafine=20211009.

  50. 50.

    Corte Costituzionale, 23 May 2003, no. 198. https://www.giurcost.org/decisioni/2003/0198s-03.html.

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  1. Department of Law, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy

    Iolanda Roberta Sollima

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Correspondence to Iolanda Roberta Sollima .

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  1. Department of Architecture, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy

    Francesco Lo Piccolo

  2. Department of Law, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy

    Annalisa Mangiaracina

  3. Department of Humanities, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy

    Giuseppe Paternostro

  4. Department of Architecture, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy

    Vincenzo Todaro

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Sollima, I. (2024). The Rights of Unaccompanied Migrants from Their Arrival to the Adulthood. In: Lo Piccolo, F., Mangiaracina, A., Paternostro, G., Todaro, V. (eds) In and Out: Rights of Migrants in the European Space. UNIPA Springer Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-51131-8_15

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