Earlier today the Immigration Appeals Board rescinded the deportation order for two Somalian women – Idil and Sahra (not their real names) back to Greece. The decision to deport the women was made back in November 2021 and sparked widespread public discussion and protests about the general processing of cases for women asylum seekers by Icelandic immigration authorities. The immigration authorities were heavily criticized for not taking into consideration their vulnerability due to the risk of gender-based violence and discrimination, especially in light of their past experiences.
The women both claimed in an interview with Kjarninn that they had experienced unimaginable violence in their home country and Greece, all information the Icelandic immigration authorities had deemed credible. Despite this, the decision was made that they would be safe in Greece.
CPLS brought suit for the women with the Reykjavik District Court where the matter is pending. Whereas 12 months had lapsed from the time of application for international protection in Iceland, CPLS requested that the Immigration Appeals Board re-examined their cases.
“According to Article 36 paragraph 2 of the Act on Foreigners’ no 80/2016, If more than 12 months have passed since the application for international protection was first submitted to the Icelandic authorities and the delays in its process are not caused by the applicant, the application shall be processed.”
The next phase of their cases is the procedural examination of their applications.