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16 October 1992
Doc. 6711
1403-9/10/92-4-E
MOTION FOR A RECOMMENDATION
on the training of officials receiving asylum-seekers
at border points
presented by Mrs HACKLIN and others
1. In recent years, most Council of Europe member states have continued to receive a steady flow of asylum-seekers.
2. In the first instance asylum-seekers present their request to an official, usually a border guard or immigration officer. The competences and training of these officials vary from country to country and differences exist even between regions.
3. Some countries provide special training for the officials responsible for dealing with asylum-seekers and keep them informed about the human rights situation in the asylum-seekers' countries of origin. Officials are also made aware of the obligations arising from international and domestic legal instruments designed for the protection of refugees.
4. Other countries, however, provide no special training for officials working at border points. Consequently, there may be occasions when officials take decisions that violate the rights of refugees set out in international and domestic legal instruments.
5. The decision taken by the official in the first instance can have crucial consequences for the asylum-seeker. If the official has not been sufficiently trained to judge the request, the decision may be made hastily and result in the asylum-seeker's unjustified return.
6. The Assembly considers it important that officials receiving asylum-seekers at border points be properly trained so that they possess adequate knowledge of the applicable international and domestic legal instruments and are kept abreast of developments in the field.
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7. Consequently, the Assembly recommends that the Committee of Ministers:
i. examine ways to provide appropriate training and practical guidance for officials receiving asylum-seekers at border points, notably with regard to their legal protection;
ii. consider ways in which respect for the European Convention on Human Rights and other international legal instruments protecting asylum-seekers can be guaranteed in particular at border points.
Signed: Hacklin, Astgeirsdottir, Franck, Tiuri, Haglund, Gjørv, Espersen, Dromberg, Konecny, Schwimmer