You can access as a pdf file at:http://www.statewatch.org/news/2015/aug/e-mail-med-4-8-15.pdf
Statewatch coverage of the migrant crisis in the Mediterranean and its effect inside the EU
New key documents and Commentaries
1. Council Decision international protection - Italy and Greece
2. Frontex´ Annual Report on the surveillance of the external sea borders (pdf)
3. Agenda: including COMPULSORY FINGER PRINTING OF MIGRANTS
4. Implementation of the Eurodac Regulation as regards the obligation to take fingerprints
5. Commission: Staff Working Document “on the obligation to take fingerprints”
6. Commentary: Fingerprinting by force: secret discussions on "systematic identification
7. Commentary: Databases increases in "discreet surveillance" and asylum seeker fingerprinting
8. Commentary: EU common list of "safe countries of origin" and resettlement programmes
9. Conclusions on resettling through multilateral and national schemes 20 000 displaced persons
10. Council on relocating from Greece and Italy 40 000 persons in need
11. Draft Council Conclusions on safe countries of origin (LIMITE doc no: 10687/15)
12. EP: Working Document: Developing safe and lawful routes for asylum seekers and refugees
13 EP Working Document: Solidarity and fair sharing of responsibility, including search and rescue
14. Statement from Informal JHA meeting on 9 July
15. UK: HoL: UK: Opt-in to the proposed Council Decision on the relocation of migrants within the EU
16. European Commission's positions- Information note on “safe countries of origin”
17. European Commission: - the “Hotspot” approach "structured border zones"
18. European Commission: Frontex: Returns Agency
19. Letter from Dimitris AVRAMOPOULOS to Justice and Home Affairs Ministers
20. Commentary: The Calais crisis: which Member State is responsible? (EU Law Analysis, link)
21. Watch the Med
NEWS coverage (the crisis in the Med and reactions to it inside the EU)
1. Give me your tired, your poor … the Europeans embracing migrants
2. Italy counts 90,000 sea migrant arrivals so far this year
3. Slovakian town votes 'No' to asylum seekers
4. EU offers aid to France for migrants, shows little sympathy for UK
5. CZECH REPUBLIC: Unrest at asylum facility sparks fresh concerns over migrant crisis
7. UK: Illegal immigrants to UK face eviction without court order under new
8. Immigration bill will mean public sector workers 'must speak fluent English'
9. Italian coastguard rescues 1,800 migrants as five found 10. 4 vessels in distress, 2-3 intercepted, 1-2 rescued by Spain
11. Zeman: Refugees should respect Czech rules or leave
12. Cuatro subsaharianos ahogados al intentar llegar a nado a Ceuta
13. Monitoring of externalization policies on
14. GREECE: Two groups in distress in the Aegean Sea near Lesvos
15. SYRIA: Four reasons Syrian ‘safe zone’ unlikely to work
16. CALAIS: The only 'migrant madness' is the tabloid pretence about events in Calais
17. Calais migrant crisis: David Cameron branded 'disgraceful' for Mediterranean 'swarm' remark
18. UK: Emergency measures on Kent roads to combat Channel tunnel gridlock
19. HMS Bulwark's replacement yet to rescue any migrants in Mediterranean
20. GERMANY: Amid attacks on refugee homes, explosion destroys Left politician's car
21. GREECE: Seven children from makeshift refugee camp in Athens receive treatment
22. Czech Republic and Austria to re-enforce border patrols in view of growing number of
23. IRELAND: Welcome to Ireland: Migrants who crossed Med face flawed direct provision system
24. AUSTRIA: Vienna hotel a model project giving refugees hope
25. PRAGUE: Gov't prepares campaign to dispel Czechs' fears of refugees
26. GERMANY: Bavaria under fire for Balkan migrant 'deportation camp' plans
27. New York mayor attacks EU migration policy
28. EU states fall short on asylum targets
29. Eurodac fingerprint database under fire by human rights activists
30. ECRE expresses concern over the European Commission's guidance on Eurodac fingerprinting
31. IRELAND: State will take 600 extra migrants in EU initiative
32, Czech Republic expects about 400 asylum seekers to be accepted by end of year
33. Google pulls controversial map showing German refugee homes
34. ITALY: Anti-immigrant protests break out in Rome, Treviso - Fourteen cops injured in clashes
35. GERMANY: Refugees: German state of Baden-Württemberg sets up refugee task force
36. GREECE: Seven children from makeshift refugee camp in Athens receive treatment
37. Czech Republic and Austria to re-enforce border patrols
38. GREECE: Alarming humanitarian crisis at Pedion tou Areos’ park:
39 .GERMANY: Attacks against Germany's refugee homes on the
40. Calais crisis: Teenage migrant found dead on top of Eurotunnel train
41. GERMANY: Bavaria’s tough asylum policy gains support across Germany
42. ITALY: Amnesty stages flash mob for migrants in central
43. GREECE Minister mulling ‘open’ facility for migrants in city
44. CZECH REPUBLIC: Foreigner police detain 20 to 50 illegal migrants daily
45. MOROCCO: Morocco: The forgotten frontline of the migrant crisis
New key documents and Commentaries
1. EU: MED-CRISIS: Council of the European Union: Adopted text:Proposal for a Council Decision establishing provisional measures in the area of international protection for the benefit of Italy and Greece - General approach (pdf): "Delegations will find attached a document on the above issue as agreed by the JHA Council on 20 July 2015." and see:
2. Frontex´ Annual Report on the implementation on the EU Regulation 656/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 establishing rules for the surveillance of the external sea borders (pdf)
3. EU: MED-CRISIS: COMPULSORY FINGER PRINTING OF MIGRANTS including: "fingerprinting [with] the use of a proportionate degree of coercion" including on "vulnerable persons, such as minors or pregnant women" AGREED WITHOUT DISCUSSION at: Justice and Home Affairs Council, 20 July 2015, Brussels:
Not released until 21.7.15: "A" Points agenda: Non-legislative activities - Implementation of the Eurodac Regulation as regards the obligation to take fingerprints 11013/15 ASIM 60 EURODAC 8 (adopted without discussion, pdf)
4. Implementation of the Eurodac Regulation as regards the obligation to take fingerprints (EU doc no: 11013-15, pdf) agreed at the Council::
"On 16 June 2015, the Commission held an ad-hoc technical meeting with Member States and Associated Countries. The main focus of the meeting was to gain a deeper understanding of the challenges Member States face when taking fingerprints and to agree on a common best practice approach to taking fingerprints in circumstances where the migrant refuses to cooperate. At that meeting, participating Member States reiterated their different practices when fingerprinting asylum seekers and irregular migrants and talked about different ways to deal with non-cooperation and damaged fingertips. The meeting concluded with the unanimous agreement of all Member States present that the best practices put forward in the above Commission document should be followed...
All delegations welcomed the [Commission] document, which, based on existing EU law, provides useful guidance to facilitate the systematic taking of fingerprints in full respect of fundamental rights and more specifically of the right to data protection... Coreper is therefore requested to recommend that the Council, at its meeting on 20 July 2015, invite the Member States to follow the mentioned 10-step approach." [emphasis added]
There is no reference to the "fingerprinting [with] the use of a proportionate degree of coercion" on "vulnerable persons, such as minors or pregnant women" in the Commission proposal (below)
5. European Commission: Staff Working Document “on Implementation of the Eurodac Regulation as regards the obligation to take fingerprints”(pdf)
6. Commentary: Fingerprinting by force: secret discussions on "systematic identification" of migrants and asylum seekers - Including "fingerprinting [with] the use of a proportionate degree of coercion" on "vulnerable persons, such as minors or pregnant women"(Statewatch)
7. Commentary: Official reports on EU databases show massive increases in "discreet surveillance" and asylum seeker fingerprinting(Statewatch)
8. Commentary: Migration crisis: EU discussing common list of "safe countries of origin" and resettlement programmes Documents under discussion:
9. Draft Conclusions of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States meeting within the Council on resettling through multilateral and national schemes 20 000 displaced persons in clear need of international protection (LIMITE doc no: 10595/1/15)
10. Draft Resolution of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States meeting within the Council on relocating from Greece and Italy 40 000 persons in clear need of international protection(LIMITE doc no: 10849/15, pdf)
11. Draft Council Conclusions on safe countries of origin (LIMITE doc no: 10687/15)
12. Working Document from the European Parliament: Developing safe and lawful routes for asylum seekers and refugees into the EU, including the Union resettlement policy and corresponding integration policies (INI report on the situation in the Mediterranean and the need for a holistic EU approach to migration) (pdf)
13. Working Document from the European Parliament: On Article 80 TFEU – Solidarity and fair sharing of responsibility, including search and rescue obligations (INI report on the situation in the Mediterranean and the need for a holistic EU approach to migration)(pdf)
14. Statement from Informal JHA meeting on 9 July (pdf)
15. UK: House of Lords Select Committee on the European Union: The United Kingdom opt-in to the proposed Council Decision on the relocation of migrants within the EU (pdf): "We understand that the Government is minded not to opt into the proposed Council Decision establishing provisional measures in the area of international protection for the benefit of Italy and Greece. Nevertheless, we believe that it is in the United Kingdom’s interest to take part in the negotiation of this proposal, and that, should an amended or a new proposal be brought forward giving effect to the European Council’s Conclusions in April and June 2015, the Government should reconsider its position and opt in."
16. European Commission: Information note on “safe countries of origin” (18 pages, pdf): Steve Peers, Professor of Law, University of Essex comments:
"The CJEU ruled back in 2006 that the Council could not give itself special power to adopt a common list of supposed safe countries of origin, but had to follow the full EU legislative process. When EU law on asylum procedure was revised in 2013, the power to adopt such a common list was deliberately left out. But the Council now plans to draw up a de facto common list, with no democratic accountability whatsoever, in clear contempt for the rule of law."
17. European Commission: Explanatory note on the “Hotspot” approach (pdf): "structured border zones" are now referred to as "first reception facilities".or "pre-removal centres"
18. FRONTEX: Support to be provided by Frontex to frontline Member States on the return of irregular migrants (pdf) emphasises Frontex's role as a "returns" Agency rather that a Border Agency: "The Commission has announced its intention to propose to amend the Frontex Regulation to strengthen the role of Frontex, notably so that it can initiate return missions." [emphasis added]
19. Letter from Dimitris AVRAMOPOULOS to Justice and Home Affairs Ministers (pdf):
"The aim of the "Hotspot" approach is to provide comprehensive and targeted support by the EU Agencies to frontline Member States which are faced with disproportionate migratory pressures at the external borders.... Frontex will provide prompt support for the identification of irregular migrants, the acquisition of travel document for their return, as well as carrying out return operations to bring them back to their home countries... . establishment of a common EU list of "safe countries of origin" [emphasis added]
20. The Calais crisis: which Member State is responsible? (EU Law Analysis, link)
21. Watch the Med
News coverage (the crisis in the Med and reactions to it inside the EU)
1. Give me your tired, your poor … the Europeans embracing migrants - Away from the xenophobic hysteria aimed at desperate immigrants are people taking steps to help newcomers and promote the good things they bring (Guardian, link): "Judging from the headlines, it sometimes seems no one in Europe wants to help refugees..... But on a local level, there are thousands of people across the continent who are braving the vitriol of their peers, and filling the void left by the politicians. Many Europeans back their governments’ stance but their xenophobia masks another phenomenon – that of a huge drive by ordinary citizens to welcome refugees, rather than reject them."
2. Italy counts 90,000 sea migrant arrivals so far this year (euractiv, link) and More migrants land in Italy, adding to EU-wide crisis (ANSA, link)
3. Slovakian town votes 'No' to asylum seekers (euobserver, link)
4. EU offers aid to France for migrants, shows little sympathy for UK(euobserver, link)
5. CZECH REPUBLIC: Unrest at asylum facility sparks fresh concerns over migrant crisis (Radio Praha, link)
6. Landlords' Visa Checks Responsibility Would Create 'Two-Tier State', Government Was Warned (Huffington Post, link)
7. UK: Illegal immigrants to UK face eviction without court order under new plans - Landlords who fail to check tenants’ immigration status face five-year jail terms as part of government crackdown to reduce UK’s appeal as a migrant destination (Guardian, link)
8. I mmigration bill will mean public sector workers 'must speak fluent English' (Independent, link)
9. Italian coastguard rescues 1,800 migrants as five found dead - Almost 2,000 migrants have died in the Mediterranean so far this year, on top of 3,500 last year (Guardian, link)
10. 4 vessels in distress, 2-3 intercepted, 1-2 rescued by Spain (Watch the Med, link)
11. Zeman: Refugees should respect Czech rules or leave (Prague Monitor, link): "No one has invited refugees to the Czech Republic, but once they are here, they should respect the rules of this country or leave, President Milos Zeman said in an interview,,, "If you do not like it, just go away," he called on refugees."
12. Cuatro subsaharianos ahogados al intentar llegar a nado a Ceuta["Four sub-Saharan drowned while trying to swim to reach Ceuta"] (elpais, link)
13. Monitoring of externalization policies on immigration (Facebook, link)
14. GREECE: Two groups in distress in the Aegean Sea near Lesvos, rescued by Turkey, one boat punctured by Greek coastguard! (Watch the Med, link): " person contacted us and reported that he had knowledge of a vessel that sought to reach Lesvos but was intercepted by the Greek police. He said that the police boarded their vessel and took away their engine. They then punctured the vessel and left them behind at sea. They were now, of course, in a situation of distress."
15. SYRIA: Four reasons Syrian ‘safe zone’ unlikely to work ( (http://newirin.irinnews.org, link):
16. CALAIS: The only 'migrant madness' is the tabloid pretence about events in Calais - Analysis: It is time to end the lie that a few hundred migrants trying to enter the UK via the Channel tunnel amount to a mass invasion (Guardian, link)
17. Calais migrant crisis: David Cameron branded 'disgraceful' for Mediterranean 'swarm' remark (IBT, link): "“Cameron calling Calais migrants a 'swarm' is nothing short of disgraceful. [It] confirms there's no dog-whistle these Bullingdon Boys won't blow.” - Andy Burnham"
18. Emergency measures on Kent roads to combat Channel tunnel gridlock - Police reintroduce Operation Stack and close the M20 between junctions eight and nine to non-freight traffic after ‘continued disruption’ in Calais (Guardian, link)
19. HMS Bulwark's replacement yet to rescue any migrants in Mediterranean - HMS Enterprise was sent out in place of much larger vessel that saved nearly 5,000, as David Cameron insisted UK would continue to play full role (link).
20. GERMANY: Amid attacks on refugee homes, explosion destroys Left politician's car near Dresden - A local politician who supported a plan to house refugees in the town of Freital outside Dresden has been the victim of an arson attack. The Left party said that Michael Richter was the target of right-wing threats. (DW, link) and Refugees: German state of Baden-Württemberg sets up refugee task force - To deal with an influx of refugees, the wealthy south-western state of Baden-Württemberg plans to set up a task force and build more shelters. It also wants to speed up the deportation of migrants from "safe" countries. (DW, link)
21. GREECE: Seven children from makeshift refugee camp in Athens receive treatment (.ekathimerini.com, link)
22. Czech Republic and Austria to re-enforce border patrols in view of growing number of illegal migrants (Prague Monitor, link)
23. IRELAND: Welcome to Ireland: Migrants who crossed Med face flawed direct provision system (Irish Times, link): " the people who will be prima facie entitled to refugee protection will be forced to endure direct provision, is yet another condemnation of the isolating and punitive direct provision system. The Working Group on the Protection Process and Direct Provision, chaired by Dr Bryan McMahon, suggested a range of practical measures to improve Irish law, policy and administration of the Irish protection system..... A core issue that the McMahon Report examined is the length of time that individuals have to remain in the status determination system for their protection claim."
24. AUSTRIA: Vienna hotel a model project giving refugees hope - One NGO has found an innovative way to help refugees find employment and hope (aljazeera.com, link)
25. Gov't prepares campaign to dispel Czechs' fears of refugees(Prague Post, link)
26. GERMANY: Bavaria under fire for Balkan migrant 'deportation camp' plans (DW, link): "The Bavaria cabinet has announced plans to set up two centers close to its borders specifically to expedite the deportation of Balkan asylum seekers. Human rights groups have dismissed the plans as 'right-wing populism.' "
27. New York mayor attacks EU migration policy (euobserver, link)
28. EU states fall short on asylum targets (euobserver, link): "Interior ministers in Brussels on Monday (20 July) fell short of a European Commission-proposed target to relocate 40,000 asylum seekers arriving in Greece and Italy over the next two years. Instead they agreed to relocate 32,356 with Austria and Hungary refusing to take any asylum-seekers, despite the plan being billed by EU leaders last month as a demonstration of European solidarity."
29. Eurodac fingerprint database under fire by human rights activists(euractiv, link):
"The German Institute for Human Rights has criticised the repurposing of the EU's fingerprint database, Eurodac, for registering asylum seekers. Tagesspiegel reports. Biometric information, to which the police will soon be given access, will be stored there for ten years, just because an individual has fled their country, activists have warned.
The German Institute for Human Rights (DIMR) has come out strongly against the biometric registration of asylum seekers at Europe's external borders. The new regulation on Eurodac, scheduled to take effect on 20 July, is a misuse of the EU database and allows for "considerable interference into fundamental rights", said Eric Töpfer, a research associate at the institute."
30. ECRE expresses concern over the European Commission's guidance on Eurodac fingerprinting (aida, link): "ECRE has published comments on the European Commission’s Staff Working Document “on Implementation of the Eurodac Regulation as regards the obligation to take fingerprints”, issued on 27 May 2015 as part of the first round of implementing measures announced by the European Agenda on Migration. These comments point to some alarming elements in the Commission’s guidance that challenges several underlying principles of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights."
31. IRELAND: State will take 600 extra migrants in EU initiative - Government agrees to relocation scheme as part of bid to tackle crisis in Mediterranean (Irish Times, link)
32, Czech Republic expects about 400 asylum seekers to be accepted by end of year (Prague Post, link)
33. Google pulls controversial map showing German refugee homes - The US search giant deleted an online map that showed the location of homes for asylum seekers and planned shelters across Germany. Activists had urged Google to get rid of the map amid fears it could fuel violence. (DW, link): "Activists fear an online map apparently created by a neo-Nazi group and which shows the locations of refugee homes and planned shelters across Germany could lead to more attacks against asylum seekers."
34. ITALY: Anti-immigrant protests break out in Rome, Treviso - Fourteen cops injured in clashes in the capital (ANSA, link)
35. GERMANY: Refugees: German state of Baden-Württemberg sets up refugee task force - To deal with an influx of refugees, the wealthy south-western state of Baden-Württemberg plans to set up a task force and build more shelters. It also wants to speed up the deportation of migrants from "safe" countries. (DW, link)
36. GREECE: Seven children from makeshift refugee camp in Athens receive treatment (.ekathimerini.com, link)
37. Czech Republic and Austria to re-enforce border patrols in view of growing number of illegal migrants (Prague Monitor, link)
38. GREECE: PRESS RELEASE: Alarming humanitarian crisis at Pedion tou Areos’ park: The Greek Forum of Refugees, following the Press Release from Afghan Community in Greece, seeks to raise awareness concerning the situation of hundreds of Afghan asylum seekers. Fleeing the war in Afghanistan and seeking for protection and safety in Europe, they arrived in Lesvos Island and ended up in Athens.
39.GERMANY: Attacks against Germany's refugee homes on the rise - The rate of violence perpetrated against refugee homes in Germany in 2015 has already outstripped the whole of 2014. The Interior Ministry has warned that right-wing violence is on the rise in the west of the country. (DW, link)
40. Calais crisis: Teenage migrant found dead on top of Eurotunnel train (Independent, link)
41. GERMANY: Bavaria’s tough asylum policy gains support across Germany (euractiv, link): "Horst Seehofer’s confrontational policy against asylum seekers from Balkan states sparked protest in Berlin. But now a growing number of Germany states and municipalities are calling for a tougher approach."
42. ITALY: Amnesty stages flash mob for migrants in central Rome - Group hands over petition to prime minister's office (ANSA, link)
43. GREECE: Minister mulling ‘open’ facility for migrants in city(ekathimerini.com, link)
44. CZECH REPUBLIC: Foreigner police detain 20 to 50 illegal migrants daily (Prague Monitor, link)
45. MOROCCO: Morocco: The forgotten frontline of the migrant crisis (http://newirin.irinnews.org, link):
"It's late afternoon on the forested slopes of Mount Selouane. In single file or knots of friends, young West African men are trudging down the hillside to the dusty, dishevelled outskirts of the Moroccan village of Shadia.
Nearly everyone is carrying an empty water bottle, part of their daily routine to fill them for free from standpipes outside the few general stores. They come as well to get a better network connection, to check their Facebook, make calls home, or catch up on friends who have made it to Europe."
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