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UNHCR chief calls on EU states to build a "Europe of Asylum"

News Stories, 8 September 2008

© UNHCR/M.Cierna
A Chechen family wait to hear about their application for asylum in Slovakia. UNHCR chief Guterres addressed EU states on asylum issues at the Paris meeting.

PARIS, France, September 8 (UNHCR) – UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres appealed on Monday to member states of the European Union (EU) to continue their efforts to build a coherent and effective common asylum system.

Addressing ministers responsible for asylum and migration in the 27 EU member states at a conference in Paris, Guterres said a common European asylum system could "serve as an example to the entire world" if it truly guaranteed the protection of refugees.

As an important global actor, the EU has a key role to play to meet the challenges of forced displacement in the world. Guterres called the effort to build a common European asylum system an "ambitious and unprecedented venture" and a "unique opportunity to strengthen refugee protection."

However, he stressed that the European Union must remain accessible for people seeking protection, noting that many people put themselves in the hands of human smugglers and traffickers because of the plethora of barriers to entry.

The High Commissioner pointed out the need to ensure quality in asylum decision-making and to correct the wide disparities in the practice of member states. These disparities are not compatible with a common system which seeks to guarantee equal access to protection across the EU. He urged the EU to take up this challenge by enhancing practical cooperation among states.

More than 80 percent of the world's refugees are hosted by countries in the developing world. The High Commissioner appealed to EU member states to demonstrate their solidarity with third countries, not only by honouring their obligation to offer international protection to those who arrive across their borders, but also by increasing the number of refugees accepted through resettlement. Speaking of the resettlement of these refugees, Guterres noted: "The EU can – and should – do more."

In his presentation, Guterres also referred to the humanitarian situation in Georgia, where UNHCR is assisting tens of thousand of newly displaced people, in addition to the nearly 220,000 people displaced before the August conflict over the breakaway region of South Ossetia. "Such crises remind us that Europe is not spared the problems of forced displacement," he said.

The two-day ministerial conference, "Building a Europe of Asylum," has been convened in the Centre de Conférences Internationales Kléber by the French EU presidency. The aim of the meeting is to lay the foundations of the second phase of the Common European Asylum System. Practical cooperation in matters of asylum, the external dimension of the politics of asylum, and the future European Asylum System will be discussed.

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Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie joined UNHCR chief António Guterres on the Italian island of Lampedusa, where they met with boat people who have fled unrest in North Africa.

More than 40,000 people, including refugees and asylum-seekers, have crossed the Mediterranean on overcrowded boats and descended on the small island since the beginning of the year.

The UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador flew to Lampedusa from Malta, which has also been a destination for people fleeing North Africa by boat.

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In 2010, the Turkish border with Greece became the main entry point for people attempting by irregular methods to reach member states of the European Union, with over 132,000 arrivals. While some entered as migrants with the simple wish of finding a better life, a significant number fled violence or persecution in countries such as Afghanistan, Eritrea, Iraq and Somalia. The journey is perilous, with many reports of drowning when people board flimsy vessels and try to cross the Mediterranean Sea or the River Evros on the border between Greece and Turkey. The many deficiencies in the Greek asylum system are exacerbated by the pressure of tens of thousands of people awaiting asylum hearings. Reception facilities for new arrivals, including asylum-seekers, are woefully inadequate. Last year, UNHCR visited a number of overcrowded facilities where children, men and women were detained in cramped rooms with insufficient facilities. UNHCR is working with the Greek government to improve its asylum system and has called upon other European states to offer support.

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Every year, Europe's favourite summer playground - the Mediterranean Sea - turns into a graveyard as hundreds of men, women and children drown in a desperate bid to reach European Union (EU) countries.

The Italian island of Lampedusa is just 290 kilometres off the coast of Libya. In 2006, some 18,000 people crossed this perilous stretch of sea - mostly on inflatable dinghies fitted with an outboard engine. Some were seeking employment, others wanted to reunite with family members and still others were fleeing persecution, conflict or indiscriminate violence and had no choice but to leave through irregular routes in their search for safety.

Of those who made it to Lampedusa, some 6,000 claimed asylum. And nearly half of these were recognized as refugees or granted some form of protection by the Italian authorities.

In August 2007, the authorities in Lampedusa opened a new reception centre to ensure that people arriving by boat or rescued at sea are received in a dignified way and are provided with adequate accommodation and medical facilities.

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