Asylum-seekers entering Hungary to be detained in shipping containers

Asylum-seekers entering Hungary, as well as those currently in the country, are to be confined in camps composed of converted shipping containers while their applications are processed.


Three weeks ago, Hungary's parliament approved the systematic detention of all asylum-seekers in a move that has drawn criticism from human rights groups and the UN.

The interior ministry has said the purpose of the restrictions, which begin today, is to "prevent migrants with an unclear status from moving freely around the territory of the country and the European Union, and to thereby reduce the security risk of migration".

According to the government, 324 shipping container homes have been installed at two separate locations called "transit zones" built into a fence that Hungary erected along its southern border with Serbia.

EU member Hungary previously systematically detained all asylum applicants but suspended the practise in 2013 under pressure from Brussels, the UN refugee agency and the European Court of Human Rights.
 [rte.ie]
28/3/17