EU Migration and Asylum Pact

The European Parliament has voted in favor of the new Pact on Migration and Asylum, which constitutes a revision of the European Union's migration policy formed by nine legislative acts. The reform aims to establish shared rules for the management of reception and relocation of asylum seekers, in an attempt to rethink the current system, which has been under strain for years and has been a source of divergence among various member states.

The pact consists of 5 parts: asylum management, response to migration crises, procedure management, Eurodac, and screening. Although the new Regulation on asylum and migration management does not change the basic principle of the Dublin Regulation - which allows a migrant to seek asylum only in the first EU country they arrive in - it introduces some exceptions for situations such as family reunification, language proficiency, and obtaining a degree in a certain country. The responsibility of the first entry state will be for 20 months, or 12 months for people rescued at sea. Furthermore, a mechanism of "mandatory solidarity" is established, to be activated in case one or more member states are under pressure, whereby other member states can contribute by relocating asylum seekers to their territory or paying a contribution to address migration pressure.

Funding can also be allocated to measures to manage migration flows in non-European countries, although this point has raised criticism from some organizations in the sector. Finally, the "solidarity pool" provides for a minimum of 30,000 relocations and €600 million in funding annually for states most affected by migration dynamics, while others can contribute by choosing between relocations or economic funding based on their population and gross domestic product.

The Pact also regulates the procedures for handling asylum applications, providing for an accelerated border process called "border procedure" for some migrant people from countries with low refugee acceptance rates in the EU. All this serves to speed up procedures, but raises concerns that it may lead to the detention of numerous migrants and compromise the right to asylum. Moreover, the new rules for addressing migration crises provide for exceptional measures to be applied only in the case of massive and sudden arrivals, with the activation of a solidarity mechanism for requesting states. Additionally, the reform of Eurodac and the screening regulation will introduce biometric checks to better identify those arriving in the EU, including children from the age of 6.

This reform comes at a time when migration pressure at the European Union's borders is evidently increasing: last year, the number of arrivals in Italy and Spain exceeded the peak of 2017, reaching 380,000. Asylum applications in 2023 were 1.14 million, the highest level in the past seven years since the beginning of the "refugee crisis." Despite intense pressure and tough negotiations, legal experts and non-governmental organizations agree that the compromise reached by the 27 member states is not satisfactory and should not be approved. They believe that the legislation weakens the right to asylum and does not address the problems it should have tackled, including the tragic loss of human lives at sea during dangerous journeys across the Mediterranean. According to the International Organization for Migration, in the last 10 years, more than 29,000 people have died or gone missing during these crossings.

Ylva Johansson, Commissioner for Home Affairs and co-architect of the proposal along with Vice President Margaritis Schinas, stated that the new Pact represents a step forward in countering the rise of populist far-right parties ahead of the June European elections. Johansson also claimed that the agreement reached has taken many arguments away from the far right and added that it is an extraordinary result that demonstrates Europe's ability to achieve successes for its citizens.

According to the independent foundation OpenPolis, all aspects of the agreement seem to be based on the idea that migrants are not considered an asset - in terms of cultural enrichment, socio-economic benefits, and addressing Europe's low birth rate - but rather a challenge to be addressed with a more security-oriented approach. Furthermore, the agreement emphasizes the need for a fair distribution of responsibilities among negotiators. However, the documents reveal a tendency to reduce the responsibility of the European Union, which may be more or less evident depending on the sectors and flow amounts. Additionally, there is greater national autonomy in this regard, especially during crises.

Further criticism comes from human rights organizations, which describe the reform as "ill-conceived, costly, and cruel". About fifty NGOs have opposed the new system. Caritas has denounced that it limits access to asylum and the rights of protection seekers. According to French Green MEP Damien Carême, the Pact goes against European values and will serve to finance walls, barbed wire, and protection systems across Europe. Save the Children, on the other hand, hoped that the reform could offer effective solutions to help minors and families ending up living in precarious conditions in reception facilities at the borders. These situations are common on the Italian coast, Greek islands, Spanish territory, and in countries along the Balkan route, where minors suffer terrible violence from traffickers and border guards: there is a risk that the approval of the EU Migration and Asylum Pact will make the detention of families with children a common practice, undermining the safety of minors, especially unaccompanied ones, who will no longer be able to reunite with their families, including siblings, as envisaged by the new Pact. 

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Translated by Stefania Errico

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