From Iceland — Conflicting Reports About Asylum Seeker Facing Deportation

Conflicting Reports About Asylum Seeker Facing Deportation

Published November 20, 2013

The Ministry of the Interior claims an asylum seeker from Nigeria facing deportation has connections to human trafficking in Iceland, and is not the father of his girlfriend’s expected child. His girlfriend tells a different story.
DV reports that, in response to public protest over the planned deportation of Tony Omos, the Ministry of the Interior has commented publicly on the case. The ministry claims that Tony is suspected of having participated in a human trafficking case which came up in Iceland last summer, though they did not specify in what capacity or how they received this information.
The ministry also claims that he is not actually the father of the child being carried by Evelyn Glory Joseph, his girlfriend. Rather, they claim she has been pressured into claiming on paper that the child is Tony’s.
However, Evelyn tells a different story to reporters. She completely denies that Tony had put any pressure on her and insists that he is the father of her expected child. She added that she and Tony are willing to undergo a paternity test to prove as much, too.
A protest demonstration was held earlier today (seen above) in front of the Ministry of the Interior protesting the decision. Tony is still at large, and being sought by the police.
Tony’s asylum application had been in processing for 22 months at the time the decision was made, despite the fact that Article 19 of Dublin Regulation II – an international law regarding refugee rights and treatment – requires that either deportation occur “at the latest within six months” of an application submission or that the application process for asylum be completed within “a maximum of one year”. Iceland is a signatory of this agreement.
Furthermore, legal experts DV spoke to added, according to Article 9 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, “States Parties shall ensure that a child shall not be separated from his or her parents against their will, except when competent authorities subject to judicial review determine, in accordance with applicable law and procedures, that such separation is necessary for the best interests of the child.” Iceland became a signatory of this agreement last February.

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