95 organizations: The future EU must uphold the right to asylum in Europe

Ahead of the first joint session of the newly elected European Parliament, more than 90 human rights and humanitarian organizations are sounding the alarm that the EU and its member states are trying to transfer their migration responsibilities to countries outside Europe.

The organizations, which include Amnesty International, the Danish Refugee Council, Human Rights Watch, and Oxfam, warn of recent attempts by several EU countries to circumvent or "externalize" their international legal responsibilities by shifting asylum procedures and refugee protection to countries outside the EU. These controversial proposals aim to dismantle the core of international protection: that people within a country have the right to seek asylum in that country and have that claim fairly assessed.

"These proposals are not innovative or new. They undermine the very building blocks of asylum law while signaling to the rest of the world that the EU is flouting its own laws to evade its own responsibilities and dump them on others."

Stephanie Pope, Policy Advisor Migration Oxfam EU

Wherever these plans have been staged, they have been riddled with rights violations, put countless people in prolonged detention and unbearable legal limbo, while costing taxpayers exorbitant sums. At a time when 3 out of 4 refugees worldwide are hosted by low- and middle-income countries, these proposals send a dangerous signal about EU countries' lack of commitment to the rule of law and international conventions.

The organizations call on the EU to drop these proposals, which are in stark contrast to existing EU legislation and the recently agreed EU Migration Pact. Instead, the EU must support humane, sustainable and realistic migration and asylum policies that benefit both people seeking safety and the societies that welcome them.

"This is a crucial moment for the future EU to turn the tide and protect people's right to asylum in Europe. If the EU fails, they will be gambling with people's lives."

Stephanie Pope, Policy Advisor Migration Oxfam EU