"Migrant detainees endure systemic abuse at Bahrain's Al-Hidd deportation centre,"

As Bahrain intensifies detention and deportation campaigns targeting migrants with irregular status, it continues to house detainees in its overcrowded primary deportation centre, where migrants endure deplorable conditions...

Migrant representatives and community activists told MR that public health clinics and hospitals began notifying immigration authorities about migrants on irregular status last year...

Bahrain’s deportation and residency regulations do not explicitly address the situation of migrant children, particularly those with irregular status who are not registered with immigration and not sponsored. Consequently, these children, along with their mothers, may find themselves spending long periods in deportation centres until migrant community groups or friends and relatives to step in to cover the costs of flight tickets…

According to a lawyer in Bahrain who spoke to MR, there is no legal obligation for sponsors or the government to shoulder the repatriation expenses for migrant children who are not sponsored...

A community advocate, who requested anonymity, believes that the government should bear the expenses for such cases on humanitarian grounds…

Another migrant rights advocate in Bahrain confirmed to MR that migrants in deportation facilities lack access to essential medications…

They also reported that the deportation facility lacked designated rooms for mothers and their infants...

The absence of facilities to store possessions also pose an issue, with detainees dependent on community assistance to bring their belongings from their homes to the airport when departing...

None of the individuals interviewed indicated that they were ever asked about experiencing abuse or trafficking by their sponsors…

Migrant-Rights.Org strongly urges the Bahraini government to conduct a thorough investigation into the conditions of its detention and deportation centres. Additionally, MR calls for the provision of inmates with access to medication and basic necessities, the screening of inmates for indicators of human trafficking, and the provision of flight tickets to children of migrants.

Importantly, migrants should also be provided with lawyers who can assume power of attorney. Legal representation is crucial for challenging deportation charges and collecting any outstanding dues from their sponsors.