The Human Rights Watch (HRW) has urged the United Arab Emirates (UAE) authorities to refrain from deporting 19 Tamil refugees to Sri Lanka as they would be at serious risk of torture and persecution upon return.

According to the HRW, the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) has recognized all 19 as refugees, but the UAE authorities have told the group they must leave the country by April 11, 2013.

Following is the statement issued by the HRW today with concern to their request to the UAE authorities:
“For the UAE to return recognized Tamil refugees to a grave risk of torture in Sri Lanka would signal a total disregard for their well-being – and the most basic principle of international refugee and human rights law,” said Bill Frelick, refugee program director at Human Rights Watch. “Sri Lanka’s treatment of Tamils they deem politically suspect is dismal and under no circumstances should the UAE deport this group there.”

Read more: http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/04/06/uae-don-t-deport-tamil-refugees-sri-lanka

Source: http://www.hrw.org