In October, the Ministry of Immigration ruled it would no longer provide accommodation to male refugees travelling alone, provided they have already submitted an asylum application in a different EU country. The measure has resulted in an increase in asylum seekers sleeping rough in Luxembourg.
In a statement published on Friday, the collective of charities contested the decision, calling it discriminatory and calling for its annulment. “Each person requesting international protection in Luxembourg must be entitled to the same material reception conditions, regardless of their age, gender, nationality or administrative situation,” the collective wrote.
Charity workers on the ground observed the immediate impact of the controversial measure, with around thirty young men contacting the associations for support and accommodation within days of the announcement.
Amnesty International Luxembourg, Médecins du Monde, Passerell and Ryse have now filed an appeal with the Luxembourg administrative courts to challenge the legality of this practice, with a view to annulling the measure altogether.
The collective has also launched a petition to put further pressure on the authorities and to draw public attention to this “inhumane and illegal practice”.
Former minister Jean Asselborn previously explained the measure was implemented due to lack of capacity in refugee structures, and said Luxembourg had no choice but to place the affected refugees on a waitlist.
