The Assembly today called on the member States of the EU to adopt a comprehensive approach to deal with mixed migratory flows across the Mediterranean, with a view “to carrying out an urgent and concerted action”.
At the end of an urgent debate based on a report by Thierry Mariani (France, SOC), the parliamentarians called on EU governments to strengthen, as a matter of urgency, search and rescue operations at sea, “with increased contributions from all member States” and to adopt effective measures and “co-ordinate common action at European level in the combat against human traffickers and smugglers”.
According to the resolution, the declarations of the leaders of the terrorist organisation known as “Islamic State” announcing their intention to smuggle their own people in amongst the flows of refugees, tasked with committing terrorist attacks in Europe, “have raised legitimate questions about security”. Also, the recent tragic incident when, as a result of a fight which broke out on one of the boats, nine migrants of Christian origin were allegedly thrown overboard by passengers of Muslim confession, “raises very serious concerns”.
The parliamentarians said that the sharp increase in the number of arrivals puts into question the Dublin Regulation according to which the whole responsibility for receiving and processing irregular migrants is laid upon a limited number of receiving countries, Italy in particular, but also Malta, Spain and Greece. This raise “questions about the relevance of the present asylum law and procedures”.
Europe should step up humanitarian aid and development projects in the countries of transit and origin with a view “to improving standards of living” in these countries and help to develop capacity and institution building in countries of transit and of first asylum with a view to alleviating migration pressure.
