Hostile shores

By Human Rights Watch (Organization)

Subjects: Political refugees, Refoulement, Abuse of, Right of Asylum

Description: "Since 2008 more than 100,000 mainly Somali and Ethiopian asylum seekers and migrants have arrived on Yemen's shores by boat. Many suffer horribly along the way. The smugglers who carry them cram their passengers into overcrowded boats and savagely beat those who try to move. Smugglers have murdered passengers and have often forced them to disembark in deep water and swim to shore, leading to many deaths from drowning. More than 1,000 people have died making the crossing in the past two years. After arriving in Yemen the exhausted travelers face one of two very different receptions, depending not on why they have come but on where they come from. Those from Somalia are welcomed as refugees without exception. But the majority of those from Ethiopia are treated like criminals to be hunted down and deported, even if they came to Yemen in search of asylum. The government compels them to run a gauntlet of obstacles before they can apply for asylum. But even those Ethiopians who manage to get recognition as refugees from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) still face discriminatory government policies that make their lives even harder and fuel racially motivated violence and harassment. Hostile Shores: Abuse and Refoulement of Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Yemen documents the abuse and discrimination that many asylum seekers suffer at every stage of their attempt to find refuge from persecution. Human Rights Watch calls upon the government of Yemen to end its discriminatory treatment of non-Somali asylum seekers. It also lays out necessary steps for UNHCR to develop a more effective strategy for pressing the Yemeni government to meet its international obligations."--P. [4] of cover.