any “non-national on the territory or the jurisdiction of the State party.”13 Historically, detention
in CoE member States was limited. Detention was only permissible in order to facilitate either
the removal of an irregular migrant from the national territory, or the implementation of the
procedure to determine whether a foreign national shall be allowed to stay.14 Arbitrariness, as
defined by the CoE Commissioner for Human Rights, is when “detention…is not closely
connected to the grounds on which it has been ordered.”15
Article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights
Administrative detention of immigrants is limited under Article 5.1(f) of European
Convention on Human Rights.16 In Saadi v. United Kingdom, the ECtHR discussed
administrative detention for immigrants under Article 5(1) of the ECHR. The Court held that
“detention must be carried out in good faith; it must be closely connected to the purpose
of preventing unauthorized entry of the person to the country; the place and conditions of
detention should be appropriate, bearing in mind that the measure is applicable not to
those who have committed criminal offences but to aliens who, often fearing for their
lives, have fled from their own country; and the length of the detention should not exceed
that reasonably required for the purpose pursued.”17
The ECtHR also ruled that detention must satisfy a strict necessity standard; detention must be
necessary in order to effectively carry out entry or removal controls.18 This applies to any form
of detention, including immigration detention; the duration must not exceed the reasonable
period required to achieve the aim pursued.19
Detention of Asylum Seekers and Irregular Migrants in Europe Resolution 1707
13
Id.
COUNCIL OF EUROPE, ADMINISTRATIVE DETENTION IN COUNCIL OF EUROPE MEMBER STATES
– LEGAL LIMITS AND POSSIBLE ALTERNATIVES, AS/Jur (2016) 18
15
Id.
16
EUR. PARL. ASS.,supra note 1.
17
Saadi v. United Kingdom, App. No. 13229/03, Eur. Ct. H.R. para 64, 66, 73-74 (2008).
18
Id.
19
Massoud v. Malta, App. No. 24340/08,Eur. Ct. H.R., para 68 (2010).
14
10
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