Positions of the European and Inter-American Courts of Human Rights on migrant detention: balancing human rights and sovereignty
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5380/rfdufpr.v69i3.91993Keywords:
Human rights, Migrant detention, European Court of Human Rights, Inter-American Court of Human Rights, SovereigntyAbstract
This research analyzes how the European and Inter-American Courts of Human Rights balance sovereignty and human rights when adjudicating cases involving migrant detention. It begins with an analysis of the legality of detention as a mechanism of migration control, identifying, through a qualitative and bibliographic review method, the circumstances under which such detention may be deemed arbitrary. Subsequently, a comparative case study method is employed to identify differences in interpretation between the courts and the impact of their rulings on the migration policies of prosecuted States. Based on the established comparison, the study concludes that the Inter-American Court demonstrates a stance more aligned with human rights and the humanization of international law by setting clearer and stricter standards for the use of migrant detention. Furthermore, it concludes that while the mere processing of a case before the Inter-American Human Rights System was sufficient to decriminalize migration in Panama’s national legislation, in the European System, Hungary’s conviction in 2017 did not prevent the subsequent adoption, two years later, of new national legislation that expanded the criminalization of migration and legitimized migrant detention.
References
ALTO COMISSARIADO DAS NAÇÕES UNIDAS PARA OS REFUGIADOS (ACNUR). Diretrizes para a detenção. Diretrizes para a Detenção. Diretrizes sobre os critérios aplicáveis e os padrões relativos à detenção de solicitantes de refúgio, e soluções alternativas à detenção. Genebra: UNHCR, 2012. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/3fpzp75r. Acesso em: 18 jan. 2023.
ARCARAZO, Diego Acosta; GEDDES, Andrew. Transnational Diffusion or Different Models? Regional Approaches to Migration Governance in the European Union and MERCOSUR. European Journal of Migration and Law, [s. l.], v. 16, n. 1, p. 19-44, 2014.
AVELINE, Ricardo Strauch. Direito Internacional dos Refugiados e a sua judicialização nos tribunais europeus: equilibrando soberania e direitos humanos. Curitiba: Juruá, 2023.
AVELINE, Ricardo Strauch; JAEGER JUNIOR, Augusto. Posicionamentos doutrinários e jurisprudenciais sobre o Direito dos Refugiados: é necessário reformar a Convenção de Genebra de 1951? Revista de Informação Legislativa, Brasília, v. 59, n. 236, p. 187 208, out./dez. 2022.
BAGGIO, Roberta Camineiro; BERNI, Paulo Eduardo. Breves ajustes à contribuição da sociologia histórica ao constitucionalismo latino-americano. Revista Direito e Práxis, Rio de Janeiro, v.14, n. 2, p. 1.052-1.078, 2023. DOI: 10.1590/2179-8966/2022/62441. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/5xwd8mh2. Acesso em: 5 jun. 2024.
BAUMGÄRTEL, Moritz. Demanding rights: Europe’s supranational courts and the dilemma of migrant vulnerability. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019.
BESTEMAN, Catherine. Militarized global apartheid. Current Anthropology, [s. l.], v. 60, n. 19, p. 26-38, Feb. 2019. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/699280.
BOSSUYT, Marc. Judges on thin ice: the European Court on human rights and the treatment of asylum seekers. Inter-American and European Human Rights Journal, Antwerpen, v. 3, n. 1, p. 3-48, 2010.
BRASIL. Decreto nº 592, de 6 de julho de 1992. Atos Internacionais. Pacto Internacional sobre Direitos Civis e Políticos. Promulgação. Brasília, DF: Presidência da República, 1992. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/yvrw6vay. Acesso em: 7 fev. 2023.
CANÇADO TRINDADE, Antônio Augusto. A humanização do direito internacional. Belo Horizonte: Del Rey, 2006.
CANÇADO TRINDADE, Antônio Augusto. Tratado de Direito Internacional dos Direitos Humanos. 2. ed. V. I. Porto Alegre: Sergio Antonio Fabris Editor, 2003.
CARLIER, Jean-Yves; CRÉPEAU, François; PURKEY, Anna. From the 2015 European “Migration Crisis” to the 2018 Global Compact for Migration: A Political Transition Short on Legal Standards. McGill Journal of Sustainable Development Law & Policy, [s. l.], v. 16, n. 1, p. 37-84, 2020.
CLAYTON, Gina; FIRTH, Georgina. Immigration and Asylum Law. 8. ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.
CONSELHO DA EUROPA. Convenção Europeia dos Direitos do Homem. Com as modificações introduzidas pelos Protocolos nos 11, 14 e 15. Acompanhada do Protocolo adicional e dos Protocolos nos 4, 6, 7, 12, 13 e 16. 11 jul. 2023. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/4jpujz7c. Acesso em: 14 jan. 2023.
CORTE INTERAMERICANA DE DERECHOS HUMANOS (CIDH). Caso Vélez Loor vs. Panamá. Sentencia de 23 de noviembre de 2010 (Excepciones Preliminares, Fondo, Reparaciones y Costas). Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/5n7bvt3x. Acesso em: 15 fev. 2023.
CRÉPEAU, François. Towards a Mobile and Diverse World: ‘Facilitating Mobility’ as a Central Objective of the Global Compact on Migration. International Journal of Refugee Law, [s. l.], v. 30, n. 4, p. 650-656, 2018. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/ijrl/eey054.
CRISP, Jeff. The Syrian emergency: a catalyst for change in the international refugee regime. Journal of Refugee Studies, [s. l.], v. 34, n. 2, p. 1.441-1.453, June 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/feab009.
DEMBOUR, Marie-Bénédicte. When humans become migrants: study of the European Court of Human Rights with an Inter-American counterpoint. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015.
EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS (ECtHR). Case of Ilias and Ahmed v. Hungary. (Application no. 47287/15). Judgment. Strasbourg. 14 March 2017. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/2kc2dppz. Acesso em: 25 jan. 2023.
EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS (ECtHR). Case of Ilias and Ahmed v. Hungary. (Application no. 47287/15). Judgment. Strasbourg. 21 November 2019. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/yfwdkr5k. Acesso em: 29 jan. 2023.
FERNANDES, Pádua. Migração na ditadura militar brasileira: desejados e indesejados perante a doutrina de segurança nacional. In: Segundo Congreso de la Sociedad Latinoamericana para el Derecho Internacional. América Latina y el Derecho Internacional – Herencia y Perspectivas. 2012. Anais […]. Rio de Janeiro, 23-25 de agosto, 2012.
FERRIS, Elizabeth G.; DONATO, Katharine M. Refugees, Migration and Global Governance. Negotiating the Global Compacts. New York: Routledge, 2020.
GABIAM, Nell. Palestinians and Europe’s ‘Refugee Crisis’: Seeking Asylum in France in the Wake of the Syrian War. Journal of Refugee Studies, [s. l.], v. 34, n. 2, p. 1.327-1.347, June 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/feab015.
GIL, Antonio Carlos. Métodos e técnicas de pesquisa social. 6. ed. São Paulo: Atlas, 2008.
GILBERT, Geoff. UNHCR and Courts: Amicus curiae … sed curia amica est? International Journal of Refugee Law, [s. l.], v. 28, n. 4, p. 623-636, 2016. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/ijrl/eew039.
GOODWIN-GILL, Guy S.; McADAM, Jane. The Refugee in International Law. 4. ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021.
HAAS, Hein de; CASTLES, Stephen; MILLER, Mark J. The Age of Migration: International Population Movements in the Modern World. 6. ed. New York: Guilford, 2020.
HATHAWAY, James C. The Rights of Refugees under International Law. 2. ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2021.
HATHAWAY, James C; FOSTER, Michelle. The law of refugee status. 2. ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014.
HEINTZE, Hans-Joachim. Introdução ao Sistema Internacional de Proteção dos Direitos Humanos. In: PETERKE, Sven (coord.) Manual Prático de Direitos Humanos Internacionais. Brasília: Escola Superior do Ministério Público da União, 2010. p. 21-83.
HELTON, Arthur C. What is refugee protection? A question revisited. In: STEINER, Niklaus; GIBNEY, Mark; LOESCHER, Gil (ed.). Problems of protection: the UNHCR, refugees, and human rights. New York: Routledge, 2012. p. 19-36.
HUNGARIAN HELSINKI COMMITTEE (HHC) [Comitê Húngaro de Helsinque (CHH)]. One year after: How legal changes resulted in blanket rejections, refoulement and systemic starvation in detention. Information update by the Hungarian Helsinki Committee (HHC) 1 July 2019. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/4pxxbp8y. Acesso em: 29 jan. 2023.
JORNAL OFICIAL DA UNIÃO EUROPEIA. Directiva 2008/115/CE do Parlamento Europeu e do Conselho, de 16 de Dezembro de 2008, relativa a normas e procedimentos comuns nos Estados-Membros para o regresso de nacionais de países terceiros em situação irregular. 2008. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/374xzdh9. Acesso em: 17 fev. 2023.
JORNAL OFICIAL DA UNIÃO EUROPEIA. Diretiva 2013/32/UE do Parlamento Europeu e do Conselho, de 26 de junho de 2013, relativa a procedimentos comuns de concessão e retirada do estatuto de proteção internacional (reformulação). 2013. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/5n88suvs. Acesso em: 10 fev. 2023.
KOCHENOV, Dimitry Vladimirovich. Ending the passport apartheid. The alternative to citizenship is no citizenship – A reply. International Journal of Constitutional Law, [s. l.], v. 18, n. 4, p. 1.525-1.530, Dec. 2020. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/icon/moaa108.
LANG, Iris Goldner. No Solidarity without Loyalty: Why Do Member States Violate EU Migration and Asylum Law and What Can Be Done? European Journal of Migration and Law, [s. l.], v. 22, p. 39-59, Feb. 2020.
LANG, Iris Goldner; NAGY, Boldizsár. External Border Control Techniques in the EU as a Challenge to the Principle of Non-Refoulement. European Constitutional Law Review, [s. l.], v. 17, n. 3, p. 442-470, September 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1574019621000249.
MAJCHER, Izabella; FLYNN, Michael; GRANGE, Mariette. Immigration detention in the European Union: in the shadow of the ‘crisis’. Cham: Springer, 2020.
SHAH, Sangeeta. Detention and trial. In: MOECKLI, Daniel; SHAH, Sangeeta; SIVAKUMARAN, Sandesh (ed.) International Human Rights Law. 3. ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018. p. 257-284.
SINHA, Anita. Defining detention: the intervention of the European Court of Human Rights in the detention of involuntary migrants. Columbia Human Rights Law Review, [s. l.], v. 50, n. 3, p. 176-227, Spring 2019.
SMYTH, Ciara M. Towards a complete prohibition on the immigration detention of children. Human Rights Law Review, [s. l.], v. 19, n. 1, p. 1-36, Feb. 2019. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/hrlr/ngy045.
SQUEFF, Tatiana de A. F. R. Cardoso; SILVA, Bianca Guimarães. O caso Vélez Loor vs. Panamá da Corte Interamericana de Direitos Humanos como paradigma para a construção de parâmetros migratórios latino-americanos. Revista Brasileira de Políticas Públicas, Brasília, v. 11, n. 2, p. 756-781, 2021. DOI: 10.5102/rbpp.v11i2.7841.
STOYANOVA, Vladislava. The Grand Chamber Judgment in Ilias and Ahmed v Hungary: Immigration Detention and How the Ground beneath our Feet Continues to Erode. Strasbourg Observers, [s. l.], December 23, 2019. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/3ddyr987. Acesso em: 28 jan. 2023.
STUMPF, Juliet. The Crimmigration Crisis: Immigrants, Crime, and Sovereign Power. American University Law Review, [s. l.], v. 56, n. 2, p. 367-419, Dec. 2006.
TRIVIÑOS, Augusto Nibaldo Silva. Introdução à pesquisa em ciências sociais: a pesquisa qualitativa em educação. São Paulo: Atlas, 1987.
TSOURDI, Evangelia (Lilian). Asylum in the EU: One of the Many Faces of Rule of Law Backsliding? European Constitutional Law Review, [s. l.], v. 17, n. 3, p. 471-497, 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1574019621000250.
UNITED NATIONS (UN). Declaração Universal dos Direitos Humanos. 6 abr. 2009. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/3km6ye9w. Acesso em: 7 fev. 2023.
VÉLEZ Loor. In: Centro pela Justiça e o Direito Internacional (CEJIL). 10 maio 2018. Disponível em: https://tinyurl.com/2bwmhtcm. Acesso em: 12 fev. 2023.
VELLUTI, Samantha. Reforming the Common European Asylum System – Legislative Developments and Judicial Activism of the European Courts. London: Springer, 2014.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Ricardo Strauch Aveline, Augusto Jaeger Junior
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.
Authors who publish in the Journal agree to the following terms:
– Authors retain copyright and grant the Journal the right of first publication, with the work licensed under the Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International licence, allowing the work to be shared as long as proper credit is given to the authors and the initial publication in the Journal is acknowledged;
– Reusers must provide appropriate credit, include a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses the reuser or their use;
– Reusers may not apply additional restrictions, legal terms, or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits;
– Reusers must attribute credit to the creator and allow others to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, exclusively for noncommercial purposes and under the same terms, in compliance with Brazilian Law No. 9,610 of February 19, 1998, and other applicable regulations.
