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On December 3 Social Platform together with the Commission held a well attended hearing with civil society organisations on the Future of Migration and Asylum in Europe.

Here you can download the full report from the hearing.

Ms. Roy, President of Social Platform opened the meeting stating that ‘we need to consider the social dimension of migration and not see them as general commodities’. Mr. Muschel, Director of Migration and Asylum, the Commission called on civil society to play ‘a key role to put the debate on migration on a better footing’ by providing credible and balanced messages. He explained the problematic piece-meal approach by the EU in addressing migration issues, how we first need to implement what we have, make the case for legal migration by providing more facts and figures to change the debate before we can push for more legislation.  Ms. Peschke, Chair of the European NGO Platform on Asylum and Migration reminded that ‘we should start with looking back on Tampere 1999 and what Member States agreed’ and the proposal that has not yet been fulfilled.

Ms. Faure Atger, Senior Migration Advisor, Red Cross EU Office chaired the first session on Access to Europe. ‘The scarcity of legal ways to entering the EU has lead to migrants taking dangerous routes to enter’ and she encouraged the EU to play a role in promoting solidarity across the EU and to prevent the tragedies we witness. Ms. Baldaccini, Senior Executive Officer, Asylum and Migration, Amnesty International EU Institutions Office spoke about the need for public and independent monitoring of detention centers to tackle the horrible conditions of people, including children being detained across Europe. Ms. Hennessy, Senior Legal Officer, ECRE raised the issue of rethinking the Dublin system, implementing the Common European Asylum system properly and reminded that ‘access to protection is not only the physical access but it also includes fair examination in compliance with international law’. Mr. Moritz, Executive Secretary CCME continued with saying that ‘survivor of the fittest’ to enter Europe is not acceptable or sustainable. He proposed that, even if the volume of admission is a Member State competence the procedures of admission could be jointly organized in the form of a legal instrument. Mr. Moritz also suggested the establishment a Contact Committee for peer-to-peer exchange for the transposition of the Anti-trafficking Directive. Practical support on the basis of the Victims Directive should be unconditional and not just because victims are witnesses to crime. Ms. Babicka, Policy & Advocacy Officer Migration and Asylum at Caritas-Europe spoke about family reunification as a way into Europe but how it is difficult, lengthy and costly to access visas and that it can take between 4-5 years before a family can live together.

Mr. Niessen, Director MPG chaired the second session looking at access to rights for migrants living in the EU and highlighted the need to convey position messages and look at e.g. when legislation works. Mr. Caron, Policy Officer at EAPN focused on the failure of poverty and social inclusion strategies and how migrants are denied access to rights and resources. Ms. Natale, Coordinator of the European Network of Migrant Women pointed out that ‘without gender sensitive measures migration cannot be taken seriously because migration affects women and men differently’, she mentioned barriers such as dependent residence status for women and how many migrants enter legally but lapse into irregular status. Ms. Mallet, Policy Officer, Eurodiaconia told how service providers are under pressure to report to authorities and parents of children are afraid their children will be taken away. Her message was the EU needs to guarantee emergency care and earmark funding for services.  Mr. Spinnewijn, Director of FEANTSA explained how the homelessness sector caters for flaws in other areas and asked whether using the homelessness system for asylum seekers isn’t a breach of EU law when there should be reception conditions in place. He also explained how the role of shelters is to push people to sustainable housing situations but that this is impossible for undocumented migrants.

Mr. Pascouau, Senior Policy Analyst at the European Policy Centre chaired the last session looking at the future challenges of migration and asylum in Europe. Mr. d'Auchamp, Deputy Regional Representative for Europe Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights spoke on behalf of Mr François Crépeau, UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants who sent the message that the increasing competence of the EU is not corresponding with human rights for migrants. Sealing borders will fail because migrants will continue to arrive. Many migrants see no other option than to do dirty, difficult and dangerous work which fosters discrimination and exploitation. Detention should be necessary, reasonable and proportional and the EU needs to explore other alternatives. Ms. Pfohman, Deputy Director at ENAR asked what role the EU can take in addressing the spread of racist, xenophobic and anti-immigration policies when Member States are positioning themselves stronger than the Commission. Ms. LeVoy, Director of PICUM spoke about the shift from equality of all residence to rights belonging to citizens and how we need to debunk myths, such as: ‘detention deters irregular migration’ or ‘regularisation programmes is a migration magnet’. The EU needs to look at the use of regularisation as a policy tool and how to ensure a firewall between detection practices and migrants to access services. Mr. Pollet, Senior Legal & Policy Officer, ECRE raised the issue of sharing responsibility among Member States for a truly effective and fair system accessible to both protection and territory.

Ms. Schmitt, Head of Unit, Immigration and Integration, the Commission concluded with saying that she hoped ‘we will not have a Christmas tree for the future but a strategy taking into account all the aspects of migration based on a rights-based approach’. The last word was from Ms. Peschke who ended with a final message to the Commission, echoed throughout the day by civil society, about how ‘we need to build bridges between institutions and we don’t have time to wait 10 years – we need to change both the climate and the story’.

2013-12-06