The European Commission today launched its work on a new European Agenda on Migration, even as it was announced that Italyrescuednearly 1,000 migrants,10 of which died at sea. The College of Commissioners held a first orientation debate on key actions to step up the EU's efforts to implement the existing tools and cooperation in managing migration flows from third countries.
Last night, an Italian coast guard ship was taking the bodies of the ten drowned migrants to the Sicilian port of Augusta along with some 500 migrants who were rescued. Another 200 migrants were rescued and were being taken aboard a tanker to another Sicilian port.
Last month more than 300 people died trying to cross the sea from Africa to Italy in a one-week period. Most of the boats leave from Libya.
In Brussels, Commission Vice-PresidentFrans Timmermanssaid: "It is now time for a fresh approach in the way we work together: we must make better and more coherent use of all our tools, agree common priorities and pool more resources at EU and national levels to achieve real solidarity and a better sharing of responsibility between Member States. InMay we will present a new migration agenda with animproved governance to strengthen our asylum system, set a sound course on legal migration, act more vigorously against irregular migration and ensure more secure borders."
The EU will then alsoimplement the recently adoptedCommon European Asylum System.
In 2014, there were about 278.000 irregular border crossings according to Frontex – twice as many as in 2011. Many of these migrants make use of smugglers – or are taken advantage of by human traffickers. Building further on existing legislation on irregular migration and the fight against human trafficking, the Commission wants to enhance its actions in this area.
The EUsmaritime Frontex Joint Operation Triton has been extendeduntil at least the end of 2015. Secondly, the European Commission will award an amount of €13.7 million in emergency funding from theAsylum, Migration andIntegration Fund(AMIF) to Italy.
Under pressure from most EUcountries, Italy had to close, last year, its ownrescue operation known as Mare Nostrum (Our Sea in Latin).Mare Nostrum had been launched in 2013 after 360 migrants drowned off the coast of the Sicilian island of Lampedusa.The operation was costing Italy morethan 9 million euros per month, but it allowed the Italian navy and border guards torescue 170,000migrants from high seas onlylast year.
Other capitals didn’t appreciate Italy’s zeal, fearing that such efficiency would become an encouragement and an attraction for more and more illegal migrants. Critics of Mare Nostrum insisted that the Italian patrols close toLibyaonly encouraged migrants to take the risk, because they knew they would be rescued.
The Italian Mare Nostrum operation had thus to be closed down and replaced by the European Triton. Triton, run in the frame of the European Frontex (External Borders of the Member States of the European Union), has only between €1.5 and 2.9 million per month (compared with 9 million previously for the Italian Mare Nostrum). Triton doesn’t function automatically, as Mare Nostrum did, but is triggered only at the request of member states. It has only 65 guest officers in total. Member states are supposed to lend it resources in a case by case way.
http://www.neurope.eu/article/eu-wants-agenda-migration
Note: Sketch,
"EU Migration Policy", by
Latouff