Country Report: Access to reception centres by third parties
Last updated: 30/11/20
Author
Access to the IRC is regulated by AWAS. Family members are not granted access and only a limited number of NGOs and the UNHCR are granted access.
Access to open centres is regulated by AWAS or the Ministry for Home Affairs and National Security, for which permission is also required. Criteria to be granted access to the centres are unclear, although recently it has proven to be problematic for individuals/organisations wishing to provide a service to residents. In practice, only a limited number of NGOs, lawyers and UNHCR have effective access to any reception centre. Permission is not easily granted to non-service-related visits, as is the case for academics, friends, research students, reporters, and so forth.