Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Emmanuel Macron’s plans for asylum requests to be handled in Libya, Chad and Niger to try and stem the flow of refugees to Europe has been branded “racist and inhumane” by left-wingers in the European Parliament.
The leaders of France, Germany, Italy and Spain agreed the plan to stem the flow of people travelling the Western Mediterranean migration route to Europe at a summit in Paris on Monday.
The approach would in part involve European nations helping to set up migrant processing centers in African countries so people could apply before travelling across the sea.
The plan, part of a package of measures including extra EU funding for the countries’ border controls and coastguards, comes despite the fact the Libya does not have a functioning government in control of the whole country, and is in some parts still a war-zone.
European Parliament’s Rapporteur on the Commission’s Union Resettlement Framework, Left MEP Malin Björk, said the plan was “tainted by structural racism towards the African population”.
“Europe has no right to criminalise mobility or movement - especially not in third countries,” the Swedish MEP said.
“Irregular migration is not a crime - by calling it a crime is akin to calling these people criminals. The most worrying aspect of this plan is that it is coupled with stopping spontaneous arrivals at European territory completely. This breaches the international right to leave one's country and to seek asylum.
“Furthermore, using resettlement as the framework within which EU externalises its borders is to destroy over five decades of humanitarian work and international solidarity. In terms of increased loss of human lives and suffering, the consequences of this plan will be disastrous.”
The parliamentary Left GUE/NGL’s coordinator at the Parliament’s committee on civil liberties, justice and home affairs, Cornelia Ernst, said “I am appalled by how this proposal ignores once again the fact that there is no state in Libya at the moment.
The German MEP added: “There is no accountable authority there, no judicial system - and we hardly know who controls what part of the country. This is lawlessness and that is the opposite of asylum.”
Mr Macron has said that the plan would “avoid people taking crazy risks when they are not all eligible for asylum”.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments