Fundamental Rights at Europe's Southern Sea Borders

Fundamental Rights at Europe's Southern Sea Borders

doi:10.2811/26971 TK-31-12-373-EN-C EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS DIGNITY FRA HELPING TO MAKE FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS A REALITY FOR EVERYONE IN THE EUROPEAN UNION Fundamental rights at Europe’s southern sea borders southern sea Europe’s at rights Fundamental Each year, hundreds of men, women and children board overcrowded and ill-equipped boats in an attempt to reach Europe, a phenomenon that started in the late 1980s after European countries tightened immigration policies and made it more difficult to enter such countries in a regular way. They may be fleeing violence and persecution or seeking improved opportunities for themselves and their families. Many do not survive the trip, never reaching their destination, as documented by media headlines and substantiated by several reports. Others are intercepted and turned back. Those who do make it may be detained until their legal status is clarified. This FRA report examines the conditions at Europe’s southern sea borders with respect to the most fundamental rights of a person, the right to life and the right not to be sent back to torture, persecution or inhuman treatment. It looks at sea border surveillance and disembarkation procedures, as well as general issues such as European Union (EU) policy, training and Frontex-coordinated operations, and examines practices across the EU Member States researched – Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Malta and Spain. By mapping the fundamental rights challenges at Europe’s southern sea borders and by identifying promising practices, this report is intended to offer advice to EU policy makers as well as practitioners at both the EU and Member State level. Fundamental rights at Europe’s southern sea borders FRA - EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS Schwarzenbergplatz 11 – 1040 Vienna – Austria Tel. +43 158030-0 – Fax +43 158030-699 fra.europa.eu – [email protected] facebook.com/fundamentalrights linkedin.com/company/eu-fundamental-rights-agency EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS twitter.com/EURightsAgency European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights Fundamental rights at Europe’s southern sea borders 2013 — 154 p. — 21 × 29.7 cm ISBN 978-92-9239-085-3 doi:10.2811/26971 A great deal of information on the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights is available on the Internet. It can be accessed through the FRA website at fra.europa.eu. Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers to your questions about the European Union. Freephone number (*): 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (*) Certain mobile telephone operators do not allow access to 00 800 numbers or these calls may be billed. Photo (cover & inside): Picture provided by the Italian Coast Guard, rescue operation some 50 miles from Lampedusa More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://europa.eu). FRA – European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights Schwarzenbergplatz 11 – 1040 Vienna – Austria HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS Tel. +43 158030-0 – Fax +43 158030-699 Email: [email protected] – fra.europa.eu Free publications: • via EU Bookshop (http://bookshop.europa.eu); Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication. • at the European Union’s representations or delegations. You can obtain their contact details on the Internet (http://ec.europa.eu) or by sending a fax to +352 2929-42758. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2013 Priced publications: ISBN 978-92-9239-085-3 • via EU Bookshop (http://bookshop.europa.eu). doi:10.2811/26971 Priced subscriptions (e.g. annual series of the Official Journal of the European Union and © European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2013 reports of cases before the Court of Justice of the European Union): Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. • via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union (http://publications.europa.eu/others/agents/index_en.htm). Printed in Luxembourg Printed on process chlorine-free recycled paper (PCF) EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS Fundamental rights at Europe’s southern sea borders Foreword An Olympic athlete from Somalia pursuing her dream to participate in the London Olympics drowned in the Mediterranean Sea in April 2012, according to media accounts. This FRA report is about those people who risk their lives crossing to the European Union by sea to pursue a dream or escape war or persecution. It examines the conditions at Europe’s southern sea borders with respect to the most fundamental rights of a person, the right to life and the right not to be sent back to torture, persecution or inhuman treatment. Migrants who put their lives at risk by crossing the sea in unseaworthy boats to reach the shores of southern Europe highlight an alarming and unresolved chink in the European Union’s protection of core rights of individuals. Boat people are neither new nor solely a European Union phenomenon. The South Chinese Sea in the 1970s witnessed boat people. The strait of Aden in the Red Sea, the Caribbean and the sea between Indonesia and Australia, for example, are witnessing similar challenges. It is, however, in the Mediterranean Sea where this problem has recently gained the most visibility. Migrants seeking safety from persecution or better opportunities for their future agree to or are forced to make the perilous sea crossing. With its findings, this report intends to contribute to the discussion on finding solutions to a disquieting phenomenon. It also highlights a number of concrete measures that the European Union and its Member States can take to address specific shortcomings identified by this research. The FRA believes, however, that only a comprehensive approach including all states, organisations and other parties involved can succeed in putting to an end the high death toll at sea. Morten Kjaerum Director 3 Contents FOREWORD ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������3 INTRODUCTION �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������7 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND FRA OPINIONS�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 9 PART ONE: THE SITUATION AT SEA ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������18 1 THE PHENOMENON AND THE RISKS FACED BY PERSONS CROSSING THE SEA ����������������������������������������������������������19 1.1. Number of persons crossing the EU’s external borders .......................................................................................19 1.2. Figures on irregular arrivals by sea ......................................................................................................................... 20 1.3. Migrant profiles ...........................................................................................................................................................23 1.4. Extreme crossing conditions .....................................................................................................................................23 Conclusions ............................................................................................................................................................................ 28 2 RIGHT TO LIFE ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 29 2.1. Deaths at sea .............................................................................................................................................................. 29 2.2. The duty to rescue and render assistance to persons in distress at sea .......................................................... 32 2.3. Rescue operations in practice ...................................................................................................................................33 2.4. The role of fishermen .................................................................................................................................................35 2.5. The role of military vessels ...................................................................................................................................... 37 Conclusions ............................................................................................................................................................................ 38 3 INTERCEPTION AND NON-REFOULEMENT ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 39 3.1. The applicability of the principle of non-refoulement at sea ............................................................................. 39 3.2. A multitude of players ................................................................................................................................................41 3.3. Penalisation of irregular exit by third countries ....................................................................................................42 3.4. Patrols at points of departure ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������44 3.5. Push backs ...................................................................................................................................................................46

View Full Text

Details

  • File Type
    pdf
  • Upload Time
    -
  • Content Languages
    English
  • Upload User
    Anonymous/Not logged-in
  • File Pages
    160 Page
  • File Size
    -

Download

Channel Download Status
Express Download Enable

Copyright

We respect the copyrights and intellectual property rights of all users. All uploaded documents are either original works of the uploader or authorized works of the rightful owners.

  • Not to be reproduced or distributed without explicit permission.
  • Not used for commercial purposes outside of approved use cases.
  • Not used to infringe on the rights of the original creators.
  • If you believe any content infringes your copyright, please contact us immediately.

Support

For help with questions, suggestions, or problems, please contact us