Negotiations to agree on a common European migration policy continue ahead of the next Justice and Home Affairs Council, which will be held in Brussels on December 4 and 5. At the same time that the European Commission was concluding a migration agreement with Egypt, Italy took one step further in the externalization of borders through an agreement with Albania, circumventing the protection and rescue obligations enshrined in international law and European conventions; France is debating a new Immigration Law, its 29th immigration law since 1980, which proposes eliminating the only mechanism that allows migrants in irregular situations to access health services; Germany sends worrying signals “to advance the process of externalizing asylum in countries outside the EU borders”; and Austria increased Rwanda style plan similar to a UK proposal that was recently rejected by the UK Supreme Court.

Therefore, even though most of the headlines focus on other issues, society and institutions that defend human rights continue to pay attention and warn.

A few weeks ago, at the European Union Summit in Granada, we witnessed with great disappointment how a partial agreement was concluded, which, instead of guaranteeing rights, would have serious consequences for the lives of thousands of people. When the right to life is not the backbone of the conversation, the consequences can be dire. Only in the case of Spain, In 2022, 2,390 people died trying to reach a safe place, according to data from Caminando Fronteras.

For almost four years, social organizations have been doing this driven action so that Spanish and European institutions adopted agreements in line with international asylum law. It is sad to remember that, initially, the right to legal and safe passage was the horizon of the European Migration and Asylum Pact. Instead, European leaders, lacking a consolidation of protector states, and not committing themselves to coordinated action and fair division of responsibilities, have instead chosen to define a catalog of dangerous and widespread exception states to international protection which helps asylum seekers. .

The steps taken by the European Union are not motivated by a lack of resources. In the summer, the European Commission and Tunisia signed an agreement stating that Tunisia would receive 105 million euros to “combat irregular migration and strengthen border management” as part of an aid package of up to 1 billion euros. And here is the difficulty: how to explain that under names like “support”, “solidarity”, “management” or “collaboration” failures in fulfilling the task of saving lives are really covered up? The European Union has had no solidarity with people who have been in danger for years. The same thing happened to the populations of the Mediterranean countries (Greece, Italy, Spain) which, due to their close proximity, saw thousands of exhausted people dropping into small towns. The abandonment of European countries in the asylum issue is only possible by moving the game board to another geographical area. If until now direct border maintenance – with all the improvements that must be made in that maintenance – fell mainly on Southern European countries, while the European Union remained largely uninvolved, then under these new regulations European countries They may not fulfill their duties to save lives. A new exception that could become the norm.

And this would be possible not only because they could ‘hand over the task’ to the states on the African coast of the Mediterranean, and thus provide a ‘way out’ of their internal disloyalty, but also because these treaties would not require compliance with any human rule. rights standards. For the Council of Europe, the so-called “breakthrough” is nothing more than giving EU governments carte blanche to violate human rights in a way that is considered legitimate through an exception mechanism (Crisis Regulation). What was thought to be major progress is nothing more than the most irresponsible solution with the most serious consequences: we now have a government that can use legitimate force against people entitled to international protection. To illustrate a completely identifiable situation in our society: the Tarajal case could become legal in the future.

In this way, the European Union hands over the search for safe and legal arrival conditions to the second stage. A step that could be realized by encouraging, for example, asylum procedures in consulates and embassies of countries of origin. The fact that this rarely happens results in the dramatic arrival of dangerous and unsafe ships like those that reached the Canary Islands recently; and in many cases, deadly shipwrecks that killed thousands of people seeking a better life.

We are halfway through the term of Spain’s leadership of the Council of the European Union and it is urgent that our turn does not end with an agreement that makes borders more dangerous, enables human rights violations and endangers people’s lives. . This reality contrasts with a very different reality: in Spain we also have decades of experience in reception mechanisms that are a clear reflection of a society that, even in the worst times, remains supportive and committed. This is what must be exported, complemented and renewed on the basis of Europe-wide agreements that guarantee human rights and build a present and future where life is protected. From human rights and environmental defenders, we have learned the value of truth, justice, reparation and non-repetition. We must follow their footsteps to stay away from the abyss. Let’s choose the good side of the story. We’re still on time.

Signed by María Fernández-Llebrez Torres, representing the Group of Civil Society Organizations for the Migration and Asylum Pact with Rights.

The group consists of Alianza por la Solidaridad-ActionAid Spain, Amnesty International, Andalucía Acoge, Spanish Refugee Assistance Commission (CEAR), Alboan Foundation, Entreculturas Foundation, Organization for Development-Spain Coordinator, Doctors Without Borders, MPDL, Oxfam Intermon, Red Acoge , Save the Children, Jesuit Migrant Services – Spain, Salud por Derecho.