Skip Ribbon Commands
Skip to main content
18/02/2020
ECHR ruled that the removal order of a Tunisian applicant without consideration of his paternity status breached Article 8 ECHR

ECLI
ECLI:CE:ECHR:2020:0218JUD001284815
Input Provided By
EUAA IDS
Type
Judgment
Original Documents
Relevant Legislative Provisions
European Convention on Human Rights
Reference
Council of Europe, European Court of Human Rights [ECtHR], Makdoudi (Tunisia) v Belgium, 12848/15, ECLI:CE:ECHR:2020:0218JUD001284815, 18 February 2020. Link redirects to the English summary in the EUAA Case Law Database.
Permanent link to the case
https://caselaw.euaa.europa.eu/pages/viewcaselaw.aspx?CaseLawID=1001
Case history
Other information
Abstract

According to HUDOC's press release:


The applicant, Montassar Makdoudi, is a Tunisian national who was born in 1989 and lives in Monastir (Tunisia). Mr Makdoudi complained about a removal measure issued against him by the Belgian authorities together with a 10-year ban on residence on account of his conviction for various offences committed in Belgium, and the national authorities’ refusal to take into account the fact that he is the father of a child with Belgian nationality. Mr Makdoudi allegedly arrived in Belgium in 2008. He was arrested in 2009, and then sentenced in 2010 to 42 months’ imprisonment. He served his sentence until December 2012. In the meantime, in 2011 he officially acknowledged paternity of a girl with Belgian nationality, born on 15 March 2010. A ministerial deportation order was issued against him in 2011, followed by several orders to leave the country, the last of which was issued in June 2016; Mr Makdoudi returned to Tunisia on 27 July 2016. Relying on Article 5 § 4 (right to a speedy decision on the lawfulness of detention) of the European Convention on Human Rights, Mr Makdoudi complained that the remedies he had used to challenge the lawfulness of his detention in a closed centre for aliens pending removal (from 15 May to 11 September 2014) had not enabled the domestic courts to take a final decision on this matter. Relying in particular on Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) of the European Convention, he complained about his removal to Tunisia coupled with the ban on residence, and the national authorities’ refusal to take his paternity into account.


Country of Decision
Council of Europe
Court Name
CoE: European Court of Human Rights [ECtHR]
Case Number
12848/15
Date of Decision
18/02/2020
Country of Origin
Tunisia
Keywords
Return/Removal/Deportation
Source
HUDOC
Other Source/Information
HUDOC Press Release