Brussels, 15/05/2015 (Agence Europe) - The UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) have both welcomed the Agenda for Migration, presented by Commissioners Frans Timmermans, Federica Mogherini and Dimitris Avramopoulos on Wednesday 13 May. The agenda makes provision, inter alia, for a quota system for sharing migrants and war refugees among the member states.
In a press release, the UNHCR “applauds the European Commission's proposals”, which “represent a great breakthrough in terms of managing refugee flows and migration”. The UNHCR says it is now “enormously important, and vital … that these proposals be embraced quickly and fully implemented”.
The UNHCR is closely involved in the Commission plans, having advocated resettlement of 20,000 refugees, mainly Syrians, in the EU in 2015 and 2016. These refugees are currently living in UN camps, unable to return to their homeland. The agency notes that, so far in 2015, some 62,500 people have crossed the Mediterranean and at least 1,800 have died. In 2014, 3,500 people, out of a total of 219,000, died making the crossing.
The IOM also welcomed the Commission's proposals and was pleased that a number of its key recommendations were included in the Commission's plan. “These initiatives reflect serious and constructive approaches to a challenge which IOM expects to continue”, it said in a press release.
Ireland to take part in resettlement programme. On Wednesday evening 13 May, Ireland announced that it would be willing to take part in the Commission's refugee resettlement plans. It has not yet revealed its intentions with regard to the plan for sharing out migrants who have already arrived in the EU. Ireland, which has an opt-in in this area has indicated that it would take a further 300 refugees (of the 20,000), in addition to its previous promises to take in 220 people over the 2015-2016 period, making available a total of 520 resettlement places, the Irish government said in a press release.
Concerns.
The agenda presented on Wednesday was not enough, however, to satisfy some political groups, such as the Greens/EFA in the European Parliament. The Commission plan being essentially an emergency response to the crisis being faced by Italy and Malta, it lacks a long-term vision, in the opinion of Eva Joly.
“It is not possible to welcome an agenda which is an agenda in name only. An agenda suggests a long-term vision, something that today's text totally lacks. The European Commission's proposals are short of coherence and courage. They bring a short-term response to the disasters in the Mediterranean when what was needed was concrete, long-term proposals, including on legal channels for asylum seekers and low-skilled workers to enter the EU”, she said. (Solenn Paulic)