Migration  [ to 30 May 2015]

UNHCR welcomes Bangkok proposals, calls for creative solutions for refugees, migrants at sea
Press Releases, 29 May 2015
The UN refugee agency is encouraged by the positive outcomes of a regional meeting to resolve the plight of thousands of refugees and migrants risking their lives at sea in the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea.

Organized by the Royal Thai Government, the Special Meeting on Irregular Migration in the Indian Ocean on Friday brought together 17 countries in the Asia-Pacific and UNHCR, IOM and UNODC. It concluded with a set of proposals and recommendations focusing on immediate responses to assist people in distress at sea, as well as efforts to curb people smuggling and trafficking, and address the root causes of these movements.

More than 88,000 people have departed on smugglers’ boats from the Bay of Bengal since 2014 and over 1,000 are believed to have died as a result of abuse and deprivation at sea.
“Saving lives must be the number one priority,” said UNHCR’s Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, Volker Türk, welcoming States’ commitment to rescue and disembark people in distress, and to ensure UNHCR’s access to them. “These proposals are a good beginning that will require robust implementation.”

UNHCR and other organizations have offered to help screen the boat arrivals – who include refugees, economic migrants, victims of trafficking and unaccompanied minors among others – to determine their needs and seek appropriate solutions. Migrants are likely to be able to go home; refugees cannot and will need temporary stay arrangements in host countries. Only the most vulnerable will have access to the limited resettlement places available globally.

“In essence, this means that those who cannot return now because of international protection reasons be allowed to stay temporarily and work,” said Türk. “This would simply recognize and regularize what has already been happening in reality for many years.”

UNHCR is ready to support governments with such arrangements through registration, documentation and other means as part of a comprehensive and creative approach to the growing regional problem.

“It would be disingenuous to suggest that there are any simple solutions to this phenomenon,” he said. “Yet, as the world has learned from South-East Asia, there is always an opportunity in a crisis and a real potential for a “win-win” situation for all involved. It will require political will and leadership, individually and collectively, to achieve that.”

A key part of the solution lies in addressing the root causes of flight, including citizenship issues in Myanmar. While welcoming initial steps taken in this regard, Türk said, “In the interim, a legal status for all habitual residents recognizing that Myanmar is their own country is urgently required. Access to identity documentation and the removal of restrictions on basic freedoms is needed to normalize and stabilize lives.”

Participants at the meeting agreed to explore ways to address the root causes of irregular movements and improve livelihoods in at-risk communities. Recommended actions included providing development assistance, enhancing a sense of security and belonging, and promoting full respect for human rights and adequate access to basic rights and services….

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Press statement by Commissioner Avramopoulos on the first measures under the European Agenda on Migration
Brussels, 27 May 2015
Today, the Commission has shown that it can act quickly and firmly to better manage migration.

Only two weeks after the adoption of the European Agenda on Migration, we are making another important step. We are moving from policy planning to policy making. We are taking concrete actions.

This new step underscores the Commission’s determination and commitment to implement this Agenda.

So, let’s see what we have put on the table today.

We have a European resettlement scheme for 20,000 persons who are in clear need of international protection. They will be resettled from countries outside Europe to EU Member States.

We also have a proposal for an emergency mechanism to relocate 40,000 asylum seekers. Syrians and Eritreans will be relocated from Italy and Greece to other EU Member States over a period of 2 years.

For the first time, we will trigger the emergency mechanism under Article 78 point 3 of the Treaty.

Malta faced a similar situation in the past and was supported, but not in the same way. We learned from this experience.

This time, we are ready to propose emergency measures if other Member States also face a sudden influx of migrants

Let me clarify some points.
The European Agenda on Migration has raised very diverse reactions in the press, in the Member States and in the European Parliament.

Overall, the comments on the Agenda are positive. But there are also some misunderstandings.

There is no proposal to relocate irregular migrants across the EU.

We do not propose the fixing of “quotas”; it’s a word we don’t like and we don’t use.

All this is about ensuring solidarity, but it is up to each Member States to decide on how many persons they will grant refugee status.

If countries want to relocate or resettle more persons, they can. But we want to ensure minimum solidarity.

As I said many times before, the European Agenda on Migration is a comprehensive policy.

The Agenda does not only address the situation in the Mediterranean, nor does it only deal with the distribution of asylum seekers across the EU…