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GENEVA, 10 February 2014 (ICMC) - The 'Stockholm Programme,' the European Union’s current strategic guidelines on migration policies, asylum and internal security, is set to be replaced by a new set of procedures that European heads of state will adopt in June. To feed into the new guidelines, EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmström hosted a consultation in Brussels last week, gathering representatives of EU countries, the European Parliament and national parliaments, other EU institutions, international organizations, civil society organizations such as ICMC, academics and researchers. ICMC contributed to the consultation as an active member of several alliances and networks, four of whom submitted written perspectives and recommendations in the consultation process. To read the full statements click on the PDF links below. “The Stockholm Programme called States to look at new ways to deal with ‘mixed migration flows”, notes Petra Hueck, ICMC Head of Office- Europe, “but there still remains much to be done to ensure that migrants, regardless of their immigration status, are treated with full respect of their basic human rights when they are approaching or accessing European borders.” As Ms. Hueck explains, “What we see is that, with increasing numbers of refugees fleeing from Syria, countries in the Horn Africa, Afghanistan and war and turmoil elsewhere, legal and safe channels for migrants and asylum seekers must be increased so that people will no longer need to take overloaded and insecure boats offered by traffickers and smugglers in order to cross the Mediterranean. Resettlement in safe countries remains in this context a vital protection tool that saves lives.” In general, Europe must be rethinking its migration policies, allowing more migrants to work in Europe, but not only the highly-skilled – a position brought forward in the written statement contributed by the Christian Group of organizations, including ICMC. Moreover, as the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Migration Peter Sutherland emphasizes, governments should not bend to nationalist parties, which are behind anti-immigrant feelings. Free movement is a core value that cannot be given up. Public perceptions about migration must be changed. |