European Commission issues ten point action plan on migration in response to the crisis in the Mediterranean

Following the deaths of around 1,200 refugees and migrants in the Mediterranean Sea in recent days, the European Commission yesterday presented a 10 point plan of immediate actions to be taken in response to the crisis.

High Representative/Vice-President Federica Mogherini and Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos jointly stated: "We need to show that same collective European sense of urgency we have consistently shown in reacting in times of crisis. The dire situation in the Mediterranean is not a new nor a passing reality. That is why the Commission will come forward with a comprehensive European Agenda on Migration in May to address the structural problems. The 10 actions we have agreed upon today are the direct, substantial measures we will take to make an immediate difference."

The ten points are:

• Reinforce the Joint Operations in the Mediterranean, namely Triton and Poseidon, by increasing the financial resources and the number of assets. We will also extend their operational area, allowing us to intervene further, within the mandate of Frontex;

• A systematic effort to capture and destroy vessels used by the smugglers. The positive results obtained with the Atalanta operation should inspire us to similar operations against smugglers in the Mediterranean;

• EUROPOL, FRONTEX, EASO and EUROJUST will meet regularly and work closely to gather information on smugglers modus operandi, to trace their funds and to assist in their investigation;

• EASO to deploy teams in Italy and Greece for joint processing of asylum applications;

• Member States to ensure fingerprinting of all migrants;

• Consider options for an emergency relocation mechanism;

• A EU wide voluntary pilot project on resettlement, offering a number of places to persons in need of protection;

• Establish a new return programme for rapid return of irregular migrants coordinated by Frontex from frontline Member States;

• Engagement with countries surrounding Libya through a joined effort between the Commission and the EEAS; initiatives in Niger have to be stepped up.

• Deploy Immigration Liaison Officers (ILO) in key third countries, to gather intelligence on migratory flows and strengthen the role of the EU Delegations.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said today that the 2015 death toll of refugees and migrants in the Mediterranean is now more than 30 times the total in the corresponding period last year.

Responding to the recent deaths, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said in a statement yesterday that the EU needs to take a "more sophisticated, more courageous and less callous approach" to coping with the flows of migrants towards Europe.

"Human rights violations form the backdrop of these desperate sea voyages. We have repeatedly underscored that no one who has food to eat, who is safe from torture, and rape, and from falling bombs, who has healthcare for his family, education for her children, decent and productive work would readily embark on these perilous journeys. Amidst all the talk of 'pull factors,' let us understand that these are the 'push factors,' and let us be clear that today's movements across the Mediterranean are rarely entirely 'voluntary', in the true sense of the term."

"Europe is turning its back on some of the most vulnerable migrants in the world, and risk turning the Mediterranean into a vast cemetery rather than acknowledge that European economies and societies need the low-skilled labour that migrants are desperate to contribute, that refugees have a right to seek asylum, or that families are entitled to live together, and opening up safe and legal channels for their entry," Zeid said.

He continued: "It is time for politicians to show courageous leadership on this issue, instead of joining the mindless clamour for ever harsher deterrence policies. Not only do such policies not work, they operate at an unacceptable cost in terms of human lives, human suffering and human rights."