Nicosia, Cyprus. The supreme court has ordered the release of a Cameroonian asylum seeker held for six months, saying Cypriot authorities did not act with due diligence to ensure his deportation during that period.
Background and asylum proceedings
The man first applied for asylum in 2019, and the application was rejected in 2024. He was arrested on July 3 last year on suspicion of residing in Cyprus without the requisite residence documents, and a deportation order was issued the same day.
On July 20, he filed a new asylum application, which authorities agreed to examine. A new detention order was issued on August 21. His second application was rejected in September, after which he appealed to the international protection administrative court.
Court assessment of detention review and due diligence
The supreme court found that the first evaluation of the man’s detention took place two months after his arrest and said this was “short and compatible with the spirit of the legislation.”
It said the lawfulness of detention in such cases is also linked to whether authorities act with due diligence to achieve the stated objective, in this case deportation. The court said “administrative procedures must be carried out with due diligence and without undue delay,” but added that in this case “it has not been demonstrated that substantial steps have been taken in this direction.”
“It has not been apparent that the competent authorities are taking any action in the meantime with the aim of deporting him as soon as it becomes permissible,” the court said. It added that the justification for continued detention was “entirely general, vague, and unsubstantiated.”
Risk of indefinite detention
The court said that given the circumstances there was a risk the man could remain in detention indefinitely.
“Given the lack of determination of a timeframe for the progress and completion of the appeal and the inaction of the authorities regarding taking steps to enable the deportation of the applicant, if the requested warrant was not issued, the applicant will continue to be detained for a further, unspecified period of time,” it said.
What changes, if any, will authorities make to ensure deportation procedures are pursued with due diligence during detention?
