A family of refugees successfully appealed against the refusal of the territorial division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to protect them in Russia.
The Main Directorate for Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation has sustained the complaint of Afghan nationals (a 25-year-old woman and her daughter) on the June’s decision of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation for the city of Moscow to deny temporary asylum in Russia to the family. It is worth noting that in its notification, the Main Directorate for Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation not only pointed out that the appealed decision had to be revoked, but also that a “clarification on the necessity to provide the status to the refugees has been sent” to the territorial division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Hajasta Mohammadi has been in Russia for almost three years. She has first filed for asylum in 2016. Back then, she and her husband lived in Moscow Oblast, and that is where Hajasta filed the documents. In reasoning the refusal, the regional division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that currently both governmental and international organizations are supervising compliance with human rights regulations in Afghanistan, and that according to the reports of human rights defenders, there had been significant improvements in this field, which means, the Afghan can come home, everything is well there.
Maiwand Abdul Ghani, The Civic Assistance Committee’s lawyer representing Mohammadi in the case, in his complaint on the decision of the Ministry of Internal Affairs pointed out that the information provided contradicted the data of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs: «According to the information of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the public healthcare system is underdeveloped in Afghanistan and is mostly represented in cities. Only 210 medical facilities in the country accept patients for in-patient treatment and, except for 4 provinces, for 10 thousand people there is only one doctor. According to UNICEF, Afghanistan keeps the second place worldwide on mortality rates: each year, approximately 15 thousand women die of pregnancy-related causes. The rate of infant mortality is 165 out of 1000, mortality rate under the age of 5 is 257 out of 1000, every fourth child under the age of 5 dies of preventable diseases.”
Having considered the arguments of the lawyer of the Civic Assistance Committee, the Main Directorate for Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation ruled to review Mohammadi’s case. However, the regional Directorate denied the asylum yet again. Now they had to address the court and appeal the refusal of the Ministry of Internal Affairs there.
While the proceedings on the case were going on, Hajasta’s husband was granted residence permit in Russia, the family changed their place of residence and moved to Moscow. Hajasta filed for asylum in the capital. Now she was not only claiming that it was dangerous to return to Afghanistan, but also that her husband had been granted residence permit in Russia, and her departure would lead to separation of the family, which would violate Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“Right to respect for private and family life”).
In the Moscow division of the Directorate for Migration, the Afghan and her daughter were denied the asylum anyway. Luckily, this time the case did not go up to the court, as the Main Directorate recognized the necessity to provide asylum to Mohammadi and her child.
Photo: Humanitarian mission in Kabul, Flickr/John Asselin
Translated by Daria Gorbacheva
