Forced deportation from uae

STATEMENT ON THE FORCED DEPORTATION OF FOREIGN WORKERS FROM UAE ICFR strongly condemns the forced deportation of more than 70 Lebanese people residing in UAE as a serious violation of the International Law by UAE security forces.

Lebanese Ministerial sources confirmed that the United Arab Emirates had deported 70 Lebanese individuals. While these sources confirmed the expulsion decision, the reasons behind the decision remain undisclosed.

The Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil stated that the ministry had been informed by the Lebanese Embassy in Dubai that UAE authorities decided to deport 70 Lebanese within 24 hours. The Foreign Minister didn’t disclose any information about the reasons behind the expulsion decision. He didn’t make any official statement in response to the UAE procedures.

ICFR confirms that the UAE authorities’ decision is a serious one, and an explicit violation of the International Law which the Emirates should be respecting in light of the security crisis the country is witnessing; especially since the Emirati regime is always emphasising its compliance with the International Law and its will to open doors for the International Community to intervene when needed, yet it is the first to brush off and breach these laws.

ICFR also confirms that the UAE authorities’ decision breaches a number of abiding international instruments and treaties among which is the Principle of Non-Refoulement, one of the main aspects of the International Law. This decision also breaches the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by virtue of which all state parties undertake “to respect and to ensure all individuals within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction the rights recognised in the present Covenant, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status”.

The rights recognised in the abovementioned Covenant include: the right to a fair trial, freedom of expression and freedom from torture. By virtue of this Covenant, a foreign resident lawfully in the territory of a State Party to the present covenant may be expelled therefrom only in pursuance of a decision reached in accordance with the law.

ICFR also confirms that the forced deportation breaches the Declaration on the Human Rights of Individuals Who are not Nationals of the Country in Which They Live. According to this declaration, by virtue of local laws and based on the international commitments relevant to the country in which they live, foreigners are entitled to the right to security, to privacy, to be equal before the courts and to other natural rights.