Brussels, 08/04/2005 (Agence Europe) - In a confidential report, the European Commission has recommended the opening of practical cooperation and political dialogue with Libya in the fight against illegal immigration into the European Union via this country. This report was drawn up by the services of the European Commission further to the technical mission sent out there from 28 November to 6 December 2004, which was made up of experts from the Commission and the Member States. It will be presented by Commissioner Frattini to the Justice and Home Affairs Council in Luxembourg on Thursday 14 April.
Although there is no formal relationship as yet between the EU and Libya, the time may now be ripe, and this report recommends that the foundation stones be laid for cooperation in the field of asylum and immigration. The report raises many issues, including the conditions under which illegal immigrants are detained and the lack of an asylum policy. Amnesty International and the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) have frequently voiced their concern at the fact that many immigrants are sent from Italy to Libya (EUROPE 8915).
First and foremost a destination country for sub-Saharans immigrants, Libya is increasingly turning into a transit country, particularly for those trying to get to Italy, but also Malta, which is why it lies in the EU's interest to enter into this kind of cooperation with Tripoli. Libya, which has a population of around 5.5 million, is said to be home to some 600,000 legal immigrants and between 750,000 and 1.2 million illegal ones, and to have expelled 54,000 people in 2004; but the report stresses that none of these data is particularly reliable. Libya has 4,400 kilometres of ill-defined borders with six countries, and 1,770 km of seaboard, which is not properly monitored due to lack of personnel and funds, the report underlines.
According to the report, the Libyan authorities are very interested in cooperation with the European Union against illegal immigration. The Commission recommends that a dialogue mechanism be set up as soon as possible and that projects be carried out to reinforce the capabilities of the authorities (improving visa policy, fighting trafficking in human beings, returns…), staff training (training for a border guard, training staff to identify forged documents…), managing asylum (getting across the importance of this policy, training people, getting the HCR involved…), and trying to discourage illegal immigration via awareness campaigns. This will be coupled with cooperation with the countries of the region, especially the ones where immigrants transiting via Libya come from. The report particularly recommends that a pilot scheme be set up with Niger, and emphasises the fact that both this country and Libya have spoken in favour of cooperation of this kind. Immigration may also be a central feature of talks between the European Union and the African Union and the Maghreb countries. A conference could be organised, to bring together the countries of origin, transit and target of illegal immigration in Libya. The report stresses that concerted action with Community projects and the Member States' bilateral projects would be highly desirable.
Although the Libyan Constitution formally recognises the protection of refugees, the report makes it quite clear that in practice, no refugee policy exists. Libya has not signed the Geneva Convention on 1951 on refugees' rights, but it ratified that of the Organisation of the African Union. It tends not to expel people who arrive from regions in conflict, but there are no other objective criteria. Libya appears to consider migrants as groups, based on their nationality, the report indicates, but examining individual situations is the basis of international refugee law. Conditions in retention centres go from “relatively acceptable to extremely poor”, and women and children are said to be kept in here as well, not always separated from the men. The Libyan authorities have provided no clear information about how long detention lasts or on the conditions for expulsions.
Since November 2002, Libya has been on a list of countries with which the Council hoped to cooperate in the field of immigration. Further to an initial exploratory mission in May, contact was suspended by the Council. After the agreement on compensation by Libya in relation to the Lockerbie attack and that against the company UTA, the EU lifted its embargo on weapons, and immediately decided to send experts over to discuss illegal immigration.