The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor has hailed in a brief statement the Administrative Tribunal of Tunisia's decision to suspend the detention of 22 migrants in the Wardiya center, run by the Ministry of the Interior, stressing that all migrants illegally detained in the country should be included in the decision as well.

The decision is the fruit of a great legal effort and it is an opportunity to start a new era of treating migrants in Tunisia, settle their legal status, and stop their detention, which contradicts domestic laws and Tunisia's related international obligations.

The detention of migrants in the Wardiya center is illegal for it is legally classified as an accommodation and guidance center while the Ministry of Interior uses it to detain migrants and accumulate them in difficult humanitarian conditions.

While Tunisia seeks to preserve and advance its democratic experience after decades of dictatorship, the legislative and executive authorities should pay a special attention to migrants and asylum seekers, conduct a comprehensive assessment of the official way of dealing with them, and stop arbitrary measures that often deprive them of their most basic human rights.

The decision is an important step and the competent authorities should implement it as soon as possible, while all forms of arbitrary detention of migrants in illegal detention centers should end.