Bulgarian NGOs Want Investigation of Death of Syrian Refugee

The Special Facility for Temporary Accommodation of Foreigners in the Busmantsi Quarter in Sofia. Photo by BGNES

A group of Bulgarian NGOs have requested from the Interior Ministry and the Migration Directorate an investigation into the death of Syrian citizen Hasum Albaadzh.

Albaadzh died on October 6 in the Special Facility for Temporary Accommodation of Foreigners in the Busmantsi Quarter in Sofia.

Civic Initiative “Justice 21”, Foundation “Center for Legal Help – Voice in Bulgaria”, the Legal Clinic for Refugees and Immigrants at the Sofia University, and the Center for Helping People Who Experienced Torture insist on full transparency during an Interior Ministry investigation of the case.

The Syrian man started living at the Busmatsi Facility on November 30, 2006. According to other refugees residing in his room, several days before he died, the man asked for medical help but no one from the staff paid any attention to him.

Hasun Albaadzh was never taken to see a doctor despite his many medical complaints that the administration of the refugee dormitory was aware of, the NGOs say.

They are also asking for an explanation of the legal status of the Syrian man and the reason for his 34-month long detention at the Facility. Under Bulgaria’s new law from May 15, 2009, the maximum period for the detention of a foreign refugee is 6 months, and 18 months only in extreme cases. The last two months, the Syrian refugee was kept in the detention facility even without an order by the Sofia Administrative Court.

Hasun Albaadzh’s death led to tension among the 200 foreigners kept in the facility. According to the NGOs, this is not a precedent, and the reason for that is the brutal violation of those people’s rights.

The NGOs remind that recently Jonson Ibitui from Nigeria, a university professor, died soon after his release from the Busmatsi Detention Facility; they believe that his massive cardiac arrest was the result of the psychological stress he endured while staying at the Facility.

The NGOs say they are committed to watching closely the investigation and cooperating with the authorities in order to prevent similar occurrences.

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