The debate in the plenary session of the European Parliament on the Global Compact reappeared on Thursday 29 November, bringing back the left-right divide on migration issues.
Recalling that in April the Parliament had called for this global agreement "by a large majority" (see EUROPE 12005), Tanja Fajon (S&D, Slovenia) took issue with those for whom this agreement will lead to the disappearance of the Western world.
Judith Sargentini (Greens/EFA, Netherlands) noted the "schizophrenia" of the Member States when, on the one hand, Austrian Minister Karoline Edtstadler acknowledges that "the EU Council has no common position" and, on the other hand, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Federica Mogherini, welcomes a pact aimed at making migration “orderly, humane and sustainable". For her, the EU must show that it can guarantee a dignified life for the children of migrants.
Despite the problems that the pact poses for his political family, Malin Björk (GUE/NGL, Sweden) spoke out in favour of global migration targets to avoid the exploitation of migrants in labour markets.
Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovenia do not wish to join the Pact. Italy could withdraw its initial commitment.
To the right of the political chessboard, the story is quite different. Anders Primdahl Vistisen (ECR, Denmark) criticised a "far-fetched" pact referring to "climate migrants". For Jörg Meuthen (EFDD, Germany), the left-wing lobby hopes to launch a frantic race in favour of migration. "The UN has no mandate to address the issue of migration," said Harald Vilimsky (ENF, Austria). Udo Voigt (NI, Germany) criticised integration as a "magic word" for opening borders.
Ms Mogherini recalled some of the fundamental elements of the Global Compact: - the initiative comes from Europeans, who in 2015 asked the international community to build a partnership; - the framework in question is "not legally binding" and consists of a menu of good practices from which States can draw inspiration.
According to Ms Mogherini, it is wrong to think that when it comes to migration, there is a fight between North and South. "Most countries - for example in Africa - are at the same time countries of origin, of transit and of destination," she noted. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)