ZAGREB, January 18, 2018 – By August, 1,262 people claimed asylum in Croatia in 2017, including people returned to Croatia from other EU member states under EU asylum rules, only 76 asylum seekers were granted some form of protection in 2017 at the time of writing, and Croatia relocated 78 asylum seekers from Greece and Italy by late September, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW).
In its “World Report 2018”, HRW gave an overview of the state of human rights in more than 90 countries. The 28th report stretches on 643 pages.
During the year, Croatia forced back asylum seekers and migrants who entered the country from Serbia without examining their asylum claims, the report says.
“In July, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that Croatia breached EU law by allowing asylum seekers and migrants to cross into Slovenia and Austria without first examining their asylum claims,” read the report.
Asylum seekers and refugees continued to face social isolation and difficulties in accessing language classes, education, and employment. Unaccompanied migrant and asylum children continued to be placed in residential institutions for children without adequate arrangements for their protection and care. Out of 30 registered unaccompanied children, only one had been enrolled in school for the academic year of 2017/2018, read the report.
“People with disabilities continued to be denied the right to legal capacity and to live in the community. Adult persons with disabilities continued to be placed in residential institutions without their consent,” according to the report.
Members of national minorities, in particular ethnic Serbs and Roma, continued to face discrimination, ethnic intolerance, and hate speech. Thousands of Roma remain stateless. Roma children are effectively segregated in schools.
The Croatian judiciary continued to make slow progress on war crimes accountability, the report said.
