Krasimir Gigov, Director General of the Bulgarian Red Cross (BRC), opened the 9th European Working Meeting of the Immigration Detention Group of National Red Cross Societies, International Federation of Red Cross Societies, Crescent Red Cross and the International Committee of the Red Cross held from November 20 to 22 in Sofia.

"The Bulgarian Red Cross has been part of this group since 2015, since the time of the first such meeting in Oslo, Norway. For 9 years, along with nearly 20 other national associations, we have been working together with the offices of the International Committee in Belgrade, Paris and Geneva, as well as with the European Federation Office in Brussels, to discuss defense as a process and to contribute to the updating of policies and initiatives at the European level related to the ban on immigration", said Gigov.

He also highlighted the fact that despite years of advocacy, today there is still much to be desired in terms of alternatives to detention and how they are implemented.

Representatives of 15 societies from Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Great Britain are participating in the meeting in Sofia, continuing the work of their regular to create opportunities for national societies to fulfill their humanitarian mission.

The purpose of the meeting is to define a clearer direction in the positioning of the national associations of the Red Cross in a complex and dynamic environment, the communiqué states.