Estonia's Rae Parish Considers Suing the State Over Lack of Support in Handling Migrants

Rae Parish in Estonia, which hosts the Tallinn temporary detention centre for foreigners, is considering suing the state. Local leaders say the state assigned the parish duties related to irregular migrants without discussing it with them and without providing resources. The pressure follows a rise in arrivals, as people from African and Asian countries travel to the European Union via Russia and Belarus.

Shortage of child welfare staff

Because the detention centre is located in Rae Parish, local child protection specialists must look after migrants who say they are under 18. There are dozens of such people, and their age cannot be verified. Alina Ader, deputy mayor of Rae Parish, explained that by law they are children, so they cannot be sent back immediately; their rights must be explained and extra attention given. She said that visually, nobody has appeared to be a minor, and in two cases age was estimated at 17 to 21, after which the people themselves admitted being adults.

The parish employs six child welfare specialists. Ader says their workload was already excessive and is now unbearable, and there is concern that staff will quit. The Social Insurance Board advised hiring more people, but no one has responded to a vacancy posting in a month. Kaja Rattas, head of the board's substitute care service, said the agency is seeking specialists who could be quickly engaged on a contract basis.

The situation at the border and in the centre

Since 21 July, more than 350 people who illegally crossed the Belarus–Latvia border have been detained in Estonia. Indrek Aru, head of the border guard bureau at the Police and Border Guard Board, said 120 people have been sent back to Latvia, while some were expelled to their home countries, including two to Bangladesh and one to India. According to him, cells are overcrowded, so reserve rooms were set up and extra beds ordered. Tension between ethnic groups among detainees has increased.

Aru said it is not yet a migration crisis, but the situation is difficult. He hopes the flow from Belarusian forests usually weakens as cold weather arrives.