This article investigates how detention of asylum seekers affects their wellbeing. Asylum seekers are substantially protected by the humanitarian protocols that resulted from World War II. The mode of handling asylum seekers in most western countries has changed greatly for the last few decades. Asylum seekers in western countries have reportedly suffered abuse that translates into psychosocial disabilities. This article investigates the plight of asylum seekers in relation to their human rights, health, and social welfare.
According to the article, the developed world took in more than five million asylum seekers within a period of twenty years beginning in 1980. The handling of these civilian populations has differed over the years. Initially, most asylum seekers were integrated into the western communities. However, over the last few years, several countries have chosen to detain immigrants without considering their asylum requests. Statistics indicate that there were approximately five thousand asylum detainees in the United States in the year 2000.
In Australia, over 3500 asylums seekers were detained in the year 2000. A written testimonial by an Australian asylum-seeking detainee reveals that the conditions in the country’s detention centers are quite inhumane. The asylum seeker reveals that the detention centers are stressful for the detainees who have to contend with deplorable judicial, residential, and administrative conditions. The testimonial concludes by expressing the dismay of the detained asylum seekers as they suffer in the hands of a developed western country.
Several human rights issues pertaining to living conditions at the asylum seekers’ detention centers have arisen. It has been observed that the human rights of various genders are not upheld in detention centers. In addition, the social welfare of asylum seekers is often overlooked in various detention centers. It is important to note that some asylum seekers are detained in prisons together with convicted criminals. The treatment of asylum detainees in some western countries such as Australia is in blatant disregard of human rights.
The article notes that the resolve to investigate the plight of asylum detainees is mainly undermined by administrative hurdles. However, the inhumane conditions in detention centers are manifested through constant disease outbreaks, deteriorating dental, mental, and physical health among the detainees, and the behaviors of the detainees. The article points out that most asylum seekers turn to western countries to escape trauma in their own countries but they end up suffering worse predicaments in their places of refuge.
Detention of asylum seekers contradicts several humanitarian, social, governmental, and health policies. It is the responsibility of both the society and the government to change the practice of detaining asylum seekers. The core principle in providing asylum to refugees is to provide a psychologically habitable environment to the seekers. Governments should direct their resources towards improving the plight of asylum seekers.
There are several points of misinformation when it comes to the issue of detaining asylum seekers. Political networks justify detentions by offering flimsy explanations for their actions. The issue of free movement among people also applies to the provision of asylum to refugees. It is imperative for governments to handle ‘free movement’ of people in the same way that they have handled ‘free trade’. Consequently, several countries are already experimenting with alternatives to detention.
The importance of this article is to call the reader’s attention to the plight of refugees who suffer in detention centers across the world. The article invokes several human rights concerns that relate to the plight of asylum seekers. The article correctly notes that when asylum is provided and adequately monitored, it cannot threaten the society’s integrity. Readers of this article should be able to adopt a proactive stance after being informed about the plight of asylum seekers.