Refugees Crossing the Mediterranean to Get Into Europe

Immigration is not only a matter of numbers; it is about individuals and their safety. States have a legal and moral obligation to protect their needs and make sure everyone is treated with dignity and respect. Thank you, Dee, for this informative article which gives us some insight into how European Member States are failing to meet basic human rights obligations.

It is estimated that in the past 20 years, up to 20,000 migrants and refugees have died as they crossed the Mediterranean Sea trying to get into Europe. According to the UNHCR, there have been 500 deaths this year alone. The EU border agency claims that there have been 42,000 attempted crossings so far in 2014. Such are the numbers using this route that the UNHCR is now considering the possibility of holding-centres for refugees outside Europe in countries such as Sudan or Libya.

Meanwhile, in light of these more recent tragedies, Cecilia Malmström, the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, has urged the EU to provide more resettlement places for refugees directly from refugee camps in third countries. The aim is to bypass the smugglers who make a small fortune out of, and create misery for, the thousands of people desperate to reach the safety of Europe.

Earlier this year, Salil Shetty, Secretary General of Amnesty International, speaking at the European Policy Centre’s 60-minute briefing, outlined his concerns that EU Member States were failing to support selected human rights obligations in relation to migration policy and to asylum seekers and refugees.

Amnesty raised five major points in relation to migration EU migration policies:

1. It is high time that a strong focus was put on improving search and rescue operations and protecting lives.

2. There is an urgent need to create safe ways for migrants and refugees to reach the EU, and access to work systems upon arrival.

3. The EU must stop outsourcing migration to places where there are no human rights safeguards, such as Libya.

4. Policies in line with international law must be the default position. On Malta, for example, there is mandatory detention. Several other countries practice detention, even though it should be used only as a last resort. In cases where detention is the only available option, conditions must be improved.

5. There should be burden sharing - both globally and internally, between front-line member states and others.