Amnesty International Raises Alarm on EU Migration Pact

As we reported on the blog earlier this week, on Wednesday EU countries reached an agreement on European Union migration and asylum. The joint agreement promises to reform the EU’s shared migration system.

Amnesty International has issued a statement raising alarm about the EU pact. 

Eve Geddie, Director of Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office, had this to say:

“This agreement will set back European asylum law for decades to come. Its likely outcome is a surge in suffering on every step of a person’s journey to seek asylum in the EU. From the way they are treated by countries outside the EU, their access to asylum and legal support at Europe’s border, to their reception within the EU, this agreement is designed to make it harder for people to access safety.

The Pact will almost certainly cause more people to be put into de facto detention at EU borders, including families with children and people in vulnerable situations. There will be reduced safeguards for people seeking asylum in the EU, with more people channelled through substandard border asylum procedures, rather than receiving a fair and full assessment of their asylum claims.”

IE