Christian Churches, communities and organisations, such as the ones signing these documents, are deeply committed to the inviolable dignity of the human person created in the image of God, as well as to the concepts of the common good, of global solidarity and of the promotion of a society that welcomes strangers. Based on the conviction that the core values of the European Union must be reflected in its policies, including in the area of freedom, security and justice, this joint advocacy effort aimed at finding a common perspective, in order to speak up with one voice from a Christian faith-based perspective on these topics. The proposal of the European Commission for a new Pact on Migration and Asylum was presented on 23 September 2020. It took months to civil society organizations to analyze all the documents that have been presented by the European Commission : a set of proposals with the aim to strike a new balance between responsibility and solidarity among Member States, faster procedures, and stronger partnerships with third countries.
The purpose of these comments or position papers from Christian organizations, therefore, is to examine whether the new EU proposals are really innovative, to what extent they respect human rights, and how they address current dysfunctionalities in the asylum and migration framework. Together with all these organizations, DBI acknowledges the fact that the Commission has come forward with a holistic approach covering aspects such as asylum, solidarity and responsibility sharing, Schengen, cooperation with third countries and integration. DBI also acknowledges that the EU Commission has consulted, in particular Member States, prior to the publication of the New Pact and intends to accommodate different perspectives on this complex subject.
With its New Pact, the Commission announced “a fresh start for migration in Europe”. Contrary to the Commission’s message, however, the proposals seem to replicate, in many aspects, deficient policies from the past. The good intentions expressed by the Commission are overshadowed by a number of elements of the Pact, which raise concerns regarding the compliance with fundamental and international law and the effectiveness to provide immediate protection for those in need of it. Unfortunately, the proposals still seem to be influenced by the assumption that within the mixed migration flows arriving in Europe, most of the people are not entitled to protection and therefore accelerated border procedures and swift and efficient returns are core to manage migration in an orderly manner.
In the following documents you can find a detailed analysis (available in English only) with general and specific comments on different dimensions of the new EU Pact on Migration and Asylum :
- General comments on the EU New Pact on Migration and Asylum
- Comments on Pre-Entry Screening and Border Procedures
- Comments on Return Policies, Readmissions and Cooperation with Third Countries
- Comments on the criminalisation of search and rescue activities
- Comments on the proposal for a solidarity mechanism
