Europe, “Once again the ‘fortress’ rejects and tramples on the rights of those who flee”: the aim is only to defend the borders and third countries are delegated

ROME – “Once again – complaint OXFAM – the European Union brings into play old ideas based on the mere defense of European borders, which have already shown that they don’t work and that their only outcome is to trample on human rights. This is already happening in Greece, where thousands of people are left in limbo often without the possibility of applying for asylum, forced to survive in inhumane conditions in the hotspots set up on the islands by the EU; or in the central Mediterranean, where over 100,000 migrants have been brought back to Libyan concentration camps in the last 5 years, as a result of the recently renewed Memorandum between Italy and Libya”.

“A waste of time that doesn’t address the real issue.” OXFAM’s complaint comes on the eve of the Council of Interior and Justice Ministers of the EU, which tomorrow will discuss the new 20-point plan presented by the Commission, with the explicit aim of stopping migratory flows towards Europe, after the tug of war in recent weeks over the rescue of migrants in the Mediterranean. “This Plan is profoundly wrong – said Giulia Capitani, migration consultant of Oxfam Italy – and it’s a waste of time. It does not address the real issue, which is to bring the discussion back to the European Pact for Migration and Asylum in the wake of respect for the rights of individuals and existing legislation on the right to asylum. And yet, the European response offered to the more than 7 million Ukrainians – underlined Capitani – forced to leave the country since 24 February, is the demonstration that when there is the political will, it is possible to find a just agreement”.

Two weights and two measures for the Mediterranean. On the contrary, the European Union’s strategy in the Mediterranean continues to focus on the externalization of European borders, delegating control to countries such as Turkey and Libya, which are generously financed with taxpayers’ money despite the blatant and very serious violations of human rights, however, they have been denounced several times by the UN and by independent monitoring bodies. “Efforts and resources which, on the contrary – concluded Giulia Capitani – could be used to expand the reception possibilities of the member states and create mechanisms for sharing responsibilities, not only on a voluntary basis”.

OXFAM requests

– strengthen the common asylum system, reaffirming the centrality of the right to the protection of people fleeing;

– establish effective rules for a sharing of reception responsibilities among member states, mainly through the reform of the Dublin regulation;

– interrupt existing agreements which delegate the control of migratory flows towards Europe to third countries, avoiding entering into new ones.