At the request of their lawyers, 62 Sri Lankan migrants were meeting with a judge of freedoms and detention (JLD) in Reunion on Wednesday. The latter will have to decide either to extend their stay in the waiting area or in accommodation facilities, or to grant them freedom.
The vast majority of migrants have already applied for asylum with the authorities. A couple, whose long-time asylum application was accepted, has already been released, reports France Info La Réunion.
Some could be returned to Sri Lanka
The migrants arrived on board the ship “Wasana 1” on Friday. Since then, women and children have been housed in a dedicated space at Gillot airport. The men were taken to two hotels on the island. A large security system was put in place around the court on the day of the hearing.
At the hearing, asylum seekers are assisted by two translators. Prefecture and border police will then make the views of the state heard, before the lawyers’ arguments. Migrants will have to return to court later – probably late at night – to hear the judgment.
Lawyers for the asylum seekers, supported by Cimade and the Human Rights League, are currently seeking accommodation for their clients. But if the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (Ofpra) does not validate their asylum applications, some could be returned to Sri Lanka.
