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EU Nations Set to Discuss Migration 12/10 06:11
BRUSSELS (AP) -- European leaders will call for a toughening of migration
policies on Wednesday in a move critics say bends to pressure from far-right
groups and harms basic human rights protections for vulnerable people.
Ministers from 27 EU member nations are meeting in Brussels to discuss
countering migrant smuggling, with a keynote speech by European Commission
President Ursula von der Leyen. In Strasbourg, France, representatives from the
Council of Europe -- 46 countries from Iceland to Azerbaijan -- are expected to
debate making deporting migrants easier for signatories to key treaties.
Denmark was part of a nine-nation attempt last year to curtail the power of
the European Court of Human Rights, the independent legal arm of the Council of
Europe. Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Italy, Latvia,
Lithuania and Poland argued that the court's interpretation of rights
obligations prevented them from expelling migrants who commit crimes. That
effort ultimately failed, but support for its basic tenets has since grown.
The European Court of Human Rights handles complaints against the Council of
Europe, under the European Convention on Human Rights, including many cases
involving migrants and asylum-seekers. The intergovernmental organization is
not an EU institution and was set up in the wake of the World War II to promote
peace and democracy.
Centrist and left-wing parties across Europe are coalescing around the idea
of tougher migration policies as a way to blunt the momentum of far-right
politicians exploiting discontent over immigration.
The prime ministers of Denmark and the U.K. published an op-ed in the
Guardian newspaper on Tuesday calling for tightening migration controls to deny
entry to those seeking better economic opportunities as opposed to fleeing
conflict.
"For decades, citizens in our countries have demanded action. So we are
acting -- not to exploit these issues and stoke grievances as some do, but to
find real solutions," wrote Mette Frederiksen and Keir Starmer. "The best way
of fighting against the forces of hate and division is to show that mainstream,
progressive politics can fix this problem."
Illegal border crossings into the EU were down 22% from January to October
this year, according to Frontex, the EU's border and coast guard agency. The
agency recorded 152,000 unauthorized border crossings in the first 10 months of
the year.
Most migration to Europe happens legally, by air, with some immigrants
overstaying tourist visas.
The EU has spent billions of euros (dollars) to deter irregular migration,
paying countries in Africa and the Middle East to intercept migrants trying to
cross the Mediterranean of the Atlantic. At the same time, European nations
facing labor shortages and an aging population are in desperate need of more
workers and have been investing in programs to attract and train foreign
workers.
The secretary-general of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset, said ahead of
the Strasbourg meeting that the European Convention on Human Rights was "the
final safeguard of individual rights and freedoms across our continent."
"The convention's future and Europe's direction are inseparable," he said.
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