UNHCR: Alternative to detention is a better solution

The Human Rights Committee of the Seimas (Lithuanian Parliament), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) organized a round-table discussion, "Are there alternatives to detention? Standards, health effects and practices”.

In the discussion, UNHCR reviewed international legal standards for detention and accommodation of arriving refugees, WHO examined the health effects of detention, and IOM discussed proven alternatives to detention used by other countries. Experts invited to the event also discussed whether detention is the most appropriate tool for managing migration, and what lessons can be learned from the 2021/22 emergency on the Lithuania-Belarus border.

Lithuania imposed strict restrictions on the Lithuania-Belarus border in 2021, responding to the increased number of people arriving from Belarus, and applied long-term detention to more than 4,000 people in 2021/22. The detentions were criticized by international organizations, including UNHCR, and examined and evaluated by international courts.