ECHR fines Belgium for requesting bone test for suspected overage unaccompanied minor
(whatever)The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has fined Belgium for using a bone test to determine the age of an asylum seeker suspected of lying about being a minor.
In its judgment on Thursday, the Strasbourg court found that Belgium had violated the privacy rights of a Guinean national by subjecting her to the examination to determine her age, ruling the procedure was conducted without ensuring proper safeguards and suggesting that less intrusive methods should have been considered first.
The case dates back to August 2019, when the applicant arrived in Belgium and claimed asylum. She purported to be the age of 16 and presented an uncertified copy of her birth certificate. The applicant had claimed to have fled her home country to escape an abusive forced marriage, but officials were skeptical of her age as she looked considerably older.
The Belgium asylum office subsequently ordered her to undertake a bone test which comprises a radiographic scan of the body to more accurately determine a person’s age.
Authorities claimed she consented to the test, but she later disputed this, arguing that she had not been adequately informed.
The medical examination estimated her age at 21.7 years, with a margin of error of two years. As a result, she was classified as an adult, leading to the termination of her protection under the supervision service for unaccompanied minors. She was subsequently transferred to an adult reception center.
In its ruling, the ECHR emphasized that medical age assessments should only be used as a last resort due to their invasive nature. The court also noted that a preliminary interview with a trained guardianship service agent took place only after the bone test was conducted. Such an interview, the judges argued, could have helped identify a less intrusive method and ensured that the applicant had been fully informed of her rights.
As a consequence, Belgium has been ordered to pay €5,000 in moral damages to the applicant, who has since been granted refugee status.
https://rmx.news/article/echr-fines-belgium-for-requesting-bone-test-for-suspected-overage-unaccompanied-minor/
