EuroMed Rights research: The Obsession on return policies in the Mediterranean Region Terms of reference for research consultancy EuroMed Rights is seeking to recruit 1 research consultant to carry out a mapping study on EU return policies in the Euro-Mediterranean region. 1. Project description and background In recent years, returns of foreign nationals, including those seeking protection, have emerged as the main focus of both EU and non-EU countries, who have increasingly shaped their migration and asylum policies accordingly and allocated funding to facilitate returns. This chapter of the research will analyse the EU’s and Member States’ migration and asylum policies which have a disproportionate focus on returns, i.e. the so-called ‘EU obsession’. Attempts to increase the number of returns and deportations, from EU Member States to countries of origin or transit, were made, for instance, by intensifying the external dimension of migration policies, through increased readmission agreements and bilateral cooperation with third countries. Also, the role and power of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex), the European body in charge of return operations, have been significantly strengthened, and return policies are also one of the main pillars of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum. The recast of the Return Directive will also be taken into consideration. All these attempts translate into systematic violations of fundamental rights, at the expenses of a human-rights based migration and asylum system which truly protects people’s rights. For example, numerous cases of unlawful pushbacks, in violation of the principle of non-refoulement as enshrined in EU and international law, occurred and have intensified all across the Euro-Mediterranean region, with examples from the Central Mediterranean, Croatia and the Balkan routes and the Greek- Turkish border, to name but a few. Analyses will also cover the impact of the EU-Turkey Deal and its future renegotiations. Another attempt to systematize returns is the use of so-called “voluntary” returns, which cannot, however, be considered completely “voluntary” in some cases, such as the “voluntary” returns from Libya’s detention centres or from Lebanon and Turkey to Syria, which are made by signing “voluntary return forms” without any translation nor legal support and under coercion. 1. Research Index The EU obsession on return policies. Member States’ and EU responsibility. 1.1 Readmissions agreements and bilateral cooperation with third countries 1.2 Frontex Agency, the European body in charge of return operations 1.3 The recast of the Return Directive, 10 years after its adoption 1.4 The return policies in the new Pact on Migration and Asylum 1.2.1 Push back in the Mediterranean Region, be returned before arrivals (examples of Central Med, Croatia, Greece-Turkey including EU-Turkey Deal) 1.2.2 “Voluntary” Return (the example of “voluntary” return from Libya’s detention centres) 1 Recommendations 2. Methodology This research aims at providing an overview of the current return policies and practices in the Euro- Mediterranean region by giving concrete examples of this inhumane approach and by shedding a light on the systematic violations of human rights that this “return obsession” entails. By providing concrete recommendations, it will call on decision-makers to change direction and respect their EU and international obligations in order to avoid further suffering and loss of innocent lives. The researcher is expected to map the EU’s and country-specific policies and legal frameworks as well as its international obligations relating to migrants, asylum seekers and refugees’ protection and human rights, including to: - identify and analyse the EU’s and Member States’ key instruments relating to returns and deportations (including readmission and bilateral cooperation agreements, the recast of the Return Directive, the Frontex regulation) - outline the EU’s and Member States’ obligations arising from international human rights law. This information will be gathered by: - desk research, - interviews with returnees in focus countries - interviews with EU officials (in Brussels, and, as need be, in South Mediterranean Countries) and other experts on the issue, as appropriate. - Contact with civil society organisations in the relevant countries. The study will be conducted in close coordination and agreement with EuroMed Rights’ Migration and Asylum Programme Officer and Assistant, in regular consultation with member organisations. 3. Timeline - 20 October 2020: deadline for applications - 30 October: contract signed - 30 October - 15 December: research and interviews - 15 December: submission of interim report, followed by comments and re-drafting adjustments - 05 January: submission of second draft of study, followed by comments and adjustments - End of January: submission and approval of final study, followed by translation and publication. 4. Practical information The researcher is expected to work independently and to closely coordinate with EuroMed Rights’ both Programme Officer and Assistant on Migration and Asylum. S/he will be working remotely. The study should be in English or French and not exceed 5 000 words (app. 10 pages). Please submit your application, including your CV and a motivation letter, to [email protected] and [email protected] by 20 October 2020. Applications will be scored according to proven expertise on 2 migration and asylum and the EU policy and legal framework, as well as strong research, analytical, writing and editing skills, and experience in drafting advocacy-oriented reports. 5. About EuroMed Rights EuroMed Rights was founded in January 1997 in response to the Barcelona Declaration of November 1995 and the establishment of the Euro Mediterranean Partnership. It is the coordinating body of about 80 human rights organisations and institutions as well as individuals from over 30 countries. EuroMed Rights’ organisational structure is built on a general assembly, an executive committee, working groups and a secretariat. Rooted in civil society, EuroMed Rights seeks to develop and strengthen partnerships between NGOs in the EuroMed region, i.e. networking aimed at strengthening the capacity of members to act and interact within the context of the region and the Barcelona process and other EU-Arab cooperation frameworks. The EuroMed Rights head office is situated in Copenhagen; we also have offices in Brussels and Tunis. EuroMed Rights aims to ensure that no job applicant or employee receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of race, colour, nationality, religion, ethnic or national origins, gender, marital status, caring responsibilities, sexual orientation, disability or chronic illness. *** 3 .