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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Migrant crisis: Czechs accused of human rights abuses | Migrant crisis: Czechs accused of human rights abuses |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The UN has accused Czech authorities of "systematic" rights violations in their treatment of refugees and migrants. | The UN has accused Czech authorities of "systematic" rights violations in their treatment of refugees and migrants. |
| The Czech Republic was holding migrants in "degrading" conditions for up to 90 days, the UN's human rights chief said. | The Czech Republic was holding migrants in "degrading" conditions for up to 90 days, the UN's human rights chief said. |
| Zeid Raad Al Hussein said migrants had been strip-searched to find money to pay for their detention, and protested about "Islamophobic" statements by Czech President Milos Zeman. | Zeid Raad Al Hussein said migrants had been strip-searched to find money to pay for their detention, and protested about "Islamophobic" statements by Czech President Milos Zeman. |
| The president's spokesman said he "stood by his opinions". | The president's spokesman said he "stood by his opinions". |
| 'Designed to deter' | |
| While other European countries had implemented policies to restrict the movement of migrants, the Czech Republic was "unique" in its routine detention of migrants for long periods, Mr Hussein said in a statement. | While other European countries had implemented policies to restrict the movement of migrants, the Czech Republic was "unique" in its routine detention of migrants for long periods, Mr Hussein said in a statement. |
| He said the measures taken appeared to be "designed to deter migrants and refugees from entering the country or staying there". | He said the measures taken appeared to be "designed to deter migrants and refugees from entering the country or staying there". |
| Mr Hussein said one detention facility in Beza-Jezova has been described as "worse than a prison" by the Czech justice minister. | Mr Hussein said one detention facility in Beza-Jezova has been described as "worse than a prison" by the Czech justice minister. |
| 'Courting controversy' | |
| The UN rights chief added that he was alarmed by the "xenophobic public discourse" accompanying Czech government policy. | |
| Mr Zeman frequently courts controversy with Islamophobic remarks, says the BBC's Rob Cameron in Prague. | |
| While visiting a butcher shop on a recent visit to southeast Moravia, the president told reporters that Muslim refugees would not respect Czech laws and customs, our correspondent says. | |
| Mr Zeman said that on the contrary, they would stone women to death for adultery and cut thieves' hands off. | |
| His spokesman said the UN's criticism of Mr Zeman was part of an intensifying campaign against the Czech Republic over its stand on the refugee crisis. | |
| He said: "The president has long warned of the threat of Islamic fundamentalism. He stands by his opinion and he will not change it under pressure from abroad". |