Amnesty: Curacao violating rights of Venezuelan migrants

The group also said authorities were holding migrants in overcrowded prisons where they faced alleged physical and verbal abuse as well as sensory deprivation.Curacaos General Prosecutors Office and the Office of General Affairs did not immediately respond to a message for comment.

Amnesty International on Monday accused Curacao and Dutch authorities of violating the rights of Venezuelan migrants, saying families are being separated and held under inhumane conditions.

The organization also accused authorities of denying migrants their right to seek asylum and of holding them under automatic detention.

An estimated 5.7 million Venezuelans have fled their country to escape hyperinflation, food shortages and some of the lowest wages in the Western Hemisphere. Amnesty said some 17,000 of them are estimated to live in the nearby Dutch Caribbean island of Curacao under irregular migratory status.

Amnesty accused the government of Curacao of deporting children without their parents, pressuring migrants to sign deportation forms and limiting access to legal assistance. The group also said authorities were holding migrants in overcrowded prisons where they faced alleged physical and verbal abuse as well as sensory deprivation.

Curacao's General Prosecutor's Office and the Office of General Affairs did not immediately respond to a message for comment.

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