AsyLex is an independent Swiss NGO that provides free legal advice to asylum seekers. AsyLex started in Switzerland, and in the meantime we were able to set up teams in Italy, Greece, Lebanon and Afghanistan. More than a hundred volunteers advocate the rights of refugees. The volunteers are provided with free training and digital working tools. Unlike other legal advice centers, AsyLex functions completely digitally. As a result, we are not only available around the clock via Email and Facebook, but can also get in touch with people who would otherwise not have access to legal advice due to remote housing or territorial restrictions set by the authorities or by family members. Thanks to the multilingual website, we can also reach people who speak neither an official Swiss language nor English. We are supported by numerous volunteer translators who also have a refugee background themselves.
Since AsyLex was founded 4 years ago, we have already supported 2800 asylum seekers with legal advice and representation. Over this time, it became obvious that authorities and courts on the national level regularly fail to take into account the special needs of vulnerable persons such as victims of human trafficking, sexual violence, torture and inhuman treatment as well as children – which is why it is crucial to take these cases to international courts. However, this regularly fails due to lack of funding and since legal representatives do not
correctly challenge the specific human rights violations on a national level. As a result, such serious human rights violations usually remain unchallenged and access to justice at the international level remains denied to refugees. Therefore, AsyLex started to support refugees also at the international level and to represent them in international claims before UN bodies. In this way, we can ensure that the most vulnerable people also have access to justice at the international level.