Refugees in Europe
INTRODUCTION
Between the years 2015 and 2016, nearly 5.2 million refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants reached European shores, undertaking treacherous journeys from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and other countries torn apart by war and persecution. (According to the UNHCR,2019) the top three nationalities among over one million Mediterranean Sea arrivals were Syrian refugees, Afghan refugees, and Iraqi refugees. The European migrant crisis sparked a crisis in the country as it struggled in creating division in the EU over how best to deal with people resettling in. Asylum seekers are people seeking international protection from a county other than their own. A refugee is a person who has fled their country of origin and is unable or unwilling to return because of a well-founded fear of being persecuted because of their race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion. A migrant is a person who leaves his country for a reason like economics. Migrants are, however, able to move back and forth between countries.
Syria has the most significant number of refugees across Europe. The refugee crisis in Europe is due to the following factors. One of them being that the developing countries in Europe, such as Turkey and Jordan are hosting the largest group of refugees which Syria. The refugees as seen, would rather make the long and dangerous trip that be left in their countries with uncertainty of the war and conflicts on going. Koroutchev, R. (2015).
Refugees and migrants got into Europe through the Mediterranean Sea. The movement to Europe continues to take a devastating toll on human life. People are believed to have died or gone missing while crossing the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe, with many others perishing en route. These risks do not end once in Europe. Those moving onwards irregularly have reported numerous types of abuse, including being pushed back across borders. Those who arrived in Europe needed adequate reception and assistance, particularly those with specific needs, including unaccompanied and separated children and survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, and access to fair and efficient asylum procedures. The refugees knew the risks of taking such a long and dangerous journey with unforeseen dangers. They willingly too the risk of embarking on this journey rather than being left in their unstable war zone countries. Nevertheless, they wouldn’t have chosen to risk their lives on a long, dangerous journey if the country where they came from was not in war. (Fargues, P. (2008)
EXTENT OF THE PROBLEM
People move from their country of origin for reasons like war in Syria, Somali and Afghanistan. There are those who are seeking employment and stability, better health care system than the one provided in their counties of origin. Most of the refugees crossed over to Europe through the Mediterranean Ocean. According to the IOM (December 31, 2015), more than 3,770 migrants were reported to have died trying to cross the Mediterranean in 2015.
When the refugees first arrived in Europe some of the had health issues as a result of the long journey. This heavily burdened the European health sector because they were not prepared to have such large influx of people coming into their countries.
Most if not all of the countries in Europe were not financially prepared to receive refugees. Nevertheless, they accepted into the countries and integrated them into their systems. The government had to bear the cost of treating the refugees, providing food, water, shelter, introducing them to the labor market and providing education to the children as well as protection to those who needed it.
For the European government, it has been a challenge identifying those who need protection and those who are not proves to be difficult. When the refugees and migrant move to EU there is a blurred line of those who migrated voluntarily and involuntarily. For the government to be able to identify especially those who migrated involuntarily especially because of war in their country of origin. Those who arrive using illegal channels and claim for asylum are rejected. The government face a major challenge of safely returning the failed asylums to their countries of origin where they are not necessarily accepted back or the country is not in safe conditions. (Metcalfe-Hough, V. (2015)
The countries receiving a large number of refugees have a substantial financial cost in providing housing, food, medical care and international protection to those who need it. With the slow recovery of the economy there is concern of how long these refuges will be in the country, therefore that cost will be hard to bear for many countries in the EU.
REFUGEES COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN AND REASONS FOR FLEEING.
SYRIA
The Syrian civil war is an ongoing multi-sided civil war in Syria fought between the Ba’athist Syrian Arab Republic led by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, along with domestic and foreign allies, and various domestic and foreign forces opposing both the Syrian government and each other in varying combinations. The war is currently the second deadliest of the 21st century. The war began in March 15 2011. Due to this war many families have been torn apart, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed from the brutal conflict in Syria, the country has been torn apart and the standard of living has been set decades back. (Carpenter, T. G. (2013).
According to an article by world vision organization (march 10, 2020), about 5.6 million Syrians are refugees, and another 6.2 million people are displaced within Syria. Nearly 12 million people in Syria need humanitarian assistance. At least half of the people affected by the Syrian refugee crisis are children. In a satellite video shown in the article, Syria has been left completely destroyed and people displaced. All the health centers, water sources, market places, utilities, schools and sanitation places have all been completely destroyed. Other countries broke their ties with Syria due to this war therefore no aid can come from outside like doing business with those still in Syria.
The booming has destroyed infrastructure, and all the important sectors such as hospitals, food market, schools etc. when it gets cold children particularly suffer because they are forced to sleep in flooded places without proper protection from this harsh environment.
Syrians left their homes because of the violence of the war, the Syrian observatory for human rights reports that an estimated half million people have been killed since the war began in March 15 2011. They also left their homes because the children of Syria where in danger. They have suffered unspeakable crimes, lost their loved ones, missed an opportunity to enjoy their childhood, they lacked basic need such as water and education. In addition, collapsed infrastructure drove them out of Syria. According to an article by (world vision organization (march 10, 2020), 95% of the people in Syria lack enough healthcare and 70% lack regular access to clean water. The conflict shattered the economy and 80% of the population now lives in poverty.
Refugees from the war in Syria have since fled to nearby countries some keeping an eye hoping that the war will come to an end and they can return to their homes. Inside Syria the war is intensifying in all regions, the situation of the economy and generally the poor state of the country continues to drive more people away and those that moved nearby hoping to get back to their homes lost hope and have since moved further away.
The first Syrian refugees migrated to EU in August 2012 by sea. Unfortunately, some of the refugees didn’t make a successful trip as some died before they got to Europe. In April 2015 a boat carrying 800 refugees capsized due to overcrowding. By December 2015 an estimated 500,000 Syrian refugees had entered Europe with 80% arrived by sea (Fargues, P., & Bonfanti, S. (2014). Syria has contributed largely to the Europe migrant crisis. In 2017, for the first time 50,000 asylum applications were made by Syrians in Europe. And in mid-2017, an estimated 260,000 refugees returned to Syria since 2015 and more than 440,000 internally displaced persons returned to their homes, to search for family, check on property and, in some cases, due to improved security in parts of the country.
European countries such as Greece, Italy and Hungary the large numbers of refugees simply overwhelmed their asylum system at a time when their economy was simply weak. Accepting large numbers of refugees with a weak economy was simply risk taking because the European government had to provide basic needs to the refugees. There was concern of how long the refugees would stay in their countries. Thus, how long they will have to receive support. Some of the refugees who came through irregular channels, and claim for asylum were rejected. This was challenging to the government because they had to return the failed asylums-seekers back to Syria because of the unsafe conditions in their country of origin, the refugees government rejecting the returnees. The financial costs of all that would throw a financial recovering country off balance and it would take some years to recover back. (Morrison, J., Director, E., & Crosland, B. (2000).
In the context of increasing refugee flows from Syria, multiple European countries’ populations believe that refugees’ presence could increase terrorism and take jobs and social benefits away from residents, (according to the Pew Research Center’s spring 2016 Global Attitudes Survey (July 11 2016). In Greece and Italy, for instance, a majority of respondents stated their countries would be a worse place to live in if an increasing number of people from different races, ethnic groups, and nationalities lived there. Most respondents in Germany, Greece, Italy, and the U.K. agreed with the statement that refugees would increase the likelihood of terrorism in their respective countries.
The crisis has severely affected Turkey as well, since most Syrians who live in cities reside in slums and face social isolation, deepening the cultural rift already present between refugees and local citizens. Negative attitudes toward refugees may increase as shantytowns and makeshift housing areas grow, and as the government is increasingly pressed to provide adequate jobs, infrastructure, transportation, schooling, security, and other public services to the refugees. (Akgündüz, Y., Van den Berg, M., & Hassink, W. H. (2015)
Turkey – it received a large influx of refugees from Syria. But in Syria, hostility is raising between the hosts and the migrants. According to international crisis group (January 29, 2018), turkey perceive Syrians as a threat to their community. Turkish community believe that some of the new commers in their society will be bad weed and may bring terrorism in their country since they are from a country that has terrorists.
Jordan – according to Carnegie (November 21, 2015), Jordan also receive many refugees with Syria taking the largest number of the all. This brought about political, economic and social challenges in Jordan. Syrian refugees have stressed economic and resource infrastructure in Jordan, which was already suffering from structural issues before the refugee crisis. And addition of the refugees would father bring down the economy in Jordan.
AFGHANISTAN
According to IMF county focus (January 26, 2017), Afghanistan refugees are nationals of Afghanistan who left their country as a result of major wars or persecution. The 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan marks the first wave of internal displacement and refugee flow from Afghanistan to neighboring Pakistan and Iran that began providing shelter to Afghan refugees. When the Soviet war ended in 1989, these refugees started to return to their homeland. In April 1992, a major civil war began after the mujahideen took over control of Kabul and the other major cities. Afghans again fled to neighboring countries.6.3 million Afghan refugees were hosted in Pakistan and Iran by 1990. As of 2013 Afghanistan had the largest number of refugees until Syria took the first place.
Currently, there are three main Europe-related groups of Afghan refugees, each facing different problems. First, there are those who see themselves as compelled to flee an Afghan war that continues to escalate. The number of Afghans currently leaving the country is not known. Indications for the intensification of war are the number of security-related incidents; the increasing number of conflict-related Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) (over 400,000 Afghans were newly displaced in 2017 by December 17, according to the Afghanistan analyst org. ( December 30, 2017) growing numbers of civilian casualties and losses of the Afghan armed forces; the extension of Taliban territorial control and influence.
Afghanistan Analyst Network (ANN) guest author Bill Byrd pointed out in this recent AAN dispatch that, based on World Bank figures, Afghanistan’s economy suffered an enormous shock when most western troops withdrew by the end of 2014 and the associated “massive reduction” in military expenditure in the country. Economic growth fell sharply. Combined with a rising population, that meant the Afghan economy “has essentially been ‘running in place’ with no gain in average per-capita incomes.” (Rutting, T. (2017).
It can be assumed that only a small proportion of those Afghans still leaving the country have been able to move into Europe, as entry has become more hazardous. Alternatives are to join the millions of their countrymen and women still living in neighboring Pakistan and Iran, although there pressures to return are high, too, to venture to the Gulf countries or Turkey for work, or chose more dangerous, or costly, ways to destinations more afield.
There are large numbers of afghan refugees who are already in Europe, but they came in late between the year 2015 and 2016. They are referred to us stuck refugees because they avoid applying for asylum with hope, they will cross the border. However, border closures, combined with local pressure to claim asylum or leave, has forced them to rethink.
Afghan communities in in several European countries have grown as a result of the refugee crisis. Only few of them have been given the right to stay permanently, with the other given a temporary right to stay. Afghans in Germany live under precarious circumstances, either still waiting for a decision or already rejected, with most of the latter being prevented from deportation on humanitarian grounds.
One case that has been extensively reported in the media (Guardian 2017) that of a six year-old Afghan girl who was hit and killed by a train while trying, with family members, to cross the border between Serbia and EU member-state Croatia in the night of November 20 2017. In contrast to many refugees losing their lives on their way to Europe, this girl did not remain anonymous.
IRAQ
(Harper, A. (2008) Refugees of Iraq are Iraqi nationals who have fled Iraq due to war or persecution. Throughout the past 30 years, there have been a growing number of refugees fleeing Iraq and settling throughout the world, peaking recently with the latest Iraq War. The Iraq War began in 2003 with the invasion of Iraq by a United States-led coalition that overthrew the government of Saddam Hussein. The conflict continued for much of the next decade as an insurgency emerged to oppose the occupying forces and the post-invasion Iraqi government. The Iraq War caused at least one hundred thousand civilian deaths, as well as tens of thousands of military deaths. The majority of deaths occurred as a result of the insurgency and civil conflicts between 2004 and 2007.
The Second Iraqi Civil War was a war which began in 2011 and its currently on going. The Iraqi insurgency escalated into a civil war with the conquest of Ramadi, Fallujah, Mosul, Tikrit and in the major areas of northern Iraq by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. At its height, ISIL held 56,000 square kilometers of Iraqi territory, containing 4.5 million citizens. This resulted in the forced resignation of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, as well as a massive airstrike campaign by the United States and at least a dozen other countries, participation of American and Canadian troops in ground combat operations, a $3.5 billion U.S.-led program to rearm the Iraqi Security Forces, a U.S.-led training program that provided training to nearly 200,000 Iraqi soldiers and police, the participation of Iranian troops including armored and air elements, and military and logistical aid provided to Iraq by Russia. (Hashim, A. S. (2007)
There is also a significant number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Iraq. As of April 2017, International Organization for Migration estimated that there were about 3 million Iraqis displaced within the country. Recent statistics from United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) state that as of 2019 there are 2 million internally displaced refugees within Iraq. As the battle to retake areas from ISIS continues, thousands of Iraqis are being displaced on a daily basis. Many IDPs face difficult conditions, and due to continued instability and lack of resource are unlikely to be able to go home in coming months. Margesson, R., Sharp, J. M., & Bruno, A. (2008, August)
Its further stated that Iraqi refugees have mainly fled into urban centers across region, rather than in refugee camps. There are roughly 2 million Iraqi refugees living in countries neighboring Iraq and 95% of them still live in the Middle East – although other nations in Europe have begun to accept Iraqi refugees. It is difficult for refugees and their children to obtain legal status in a middle eastern country as they are treated as temporary “guests” rather than as “refugees”. Current regional host countries include Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, Kuwait, Iran, small numbers in Iraq, the Gulf States, and Turkey. Only Egypt and Turkey have signed the UNHCR refugee convention, and even then, with heavy restrictions and limited effective protection.
Europe has hosted an important population of Iraqi exiles since the 1980s with the outbreak of the Iran–Iraq War. Europe’s performance in addressing the refugee crisis that resulted from the US-led invasion of Iraq has been widely criticized by the UNHCR, which denounced the small number of asylum applicants accepted by the EU. By the end of 2008, only 10% of the Iraqi refugees resettled by the UNHCR were hosted by EU countries, mainly Sweden and the Netherlands. The UK, a country that not only had historically hosted a large number of Iraqi refugees but one that had also participated in the invasion of Iraq—granted refugee status or complementary protection to only 8.7 percent of the Iraqi asylum-seekers in 2005, a significant decrease if considered that from 1997 to 2001 that rate averaged 44%. 107 In 2007, the UN called on western nations to accept more Iraqi refugees, signaling specifically the US and the UK and adding that the latter should “take the lead in Europe by immediately announcing a program to resettle some of the Iraqi refugees currently living in the most difficult conditions”. After 18 months of pressure by the UNHCR, the EU reached a (non-binding) agreement in November 2008 for accepting up to 10,000 Iraqi refugees, giving special treatment to those living in extreme conditions in Syria and Jordan. Yet, unpleasant living and working conditions for Iraqi refugees in Jordan continue to trigger their further migration to Europe.
According to the UNHCR (June 20, 2019), every asylum-seeker than comes from the central and southern regions of Iraq should be granted refugee status. However, many European countries are not following these guidelines and argue that the post-war situation in these areas of Iraq is not enough for qualifying Iraqis as refugees. These discrepancies about the current situation of violence in Iraq which has important political connotations, especially for those countries that participated in the invasion and whether Iraqis are eligible for protection or not has enabled some countries not only to reject asylum applications, but also to repatriate asylum-seekers back to Iraq.
Iraqis who want to reach Europe are left with two options. They can either access the UN resettlement program by arriving to Damascus or Amman and wait indefinitely for being resettled; or they can try to reach Europe illegally. The majority of Iraqis that enter the EU illegally do so through Greece, either by land crossing the Greco-Turkish border, or by reaching one of the numerous Greek islands by sea. Once in Greece, the majority travels to northern European countries and applies for refugee status from there. The estimated cost of this second and illegal option is around $10,000, an expensive alternative that only those with financial means can afford. In addition to the UNHCR, the European Council on Refugees and Exiles along with human rights groups have denounced the EU’s strict policies, which force many Iraqis to undertake long, dangerous and expensive journeys in order to find refuge in Europe.
Last year, beckoned by news reports of easy passage to Europe through Turkey, tens of thousands of Iraqis joined Syrians, Africans and Afghans in the great migrant wave to the Continent. Now, thousands of Iraqis are coming home. Many say they arrived in Europe with unrealistic expectations for quick success. Some also say the warm reception they received from Europeans last summer gave way to suspicion after the Paris terrorist attacks carried out by the Islamic State in November. (Tim Arango (September 8, 2015)
Many Iraqis have stayed in Europe, of course, especially those who were displaced from lands controlled by the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. And others are still risking everything to cross the seas to get there.
SOMALIA
The Somali civil war is ongoing. (topples Barre, USC (august 7,2015). The civil war grew out of resistance to the military junta led by Said Barre during the 1980s. By 1988–1990, the Somali Armed Forces began engaging various armed rebel groups, including the Somali Salvation Democratic Front in the northeast, the Somali National Movement in the northwest, and the United Somali Congress in the south. The clan-based armed opposition groups eventually managed to overthrow the Barre government in 1991.
(Omaar, R. (1992). Around 500,000 people are estimated to have been killed in Somalia since the start of the civil war in 1991. The Armed Conflict Location & Event Dataset estimates that 3,300 people were killed during the conflict in 2012, with the number of fatalities dropping slightly in 2013 to 3,150.
Although the distribution of Somalis abroad is uncertain, due to confusion between the number of ethnic Somalis and the number of Somalia nationals. Whereas most recent Somali migrants in the diaspora emigrated as refugees and asylum seekers, many have since obtained either permanent residence or citizenship.
The distribution of Somalis per country in Europe is difficult to measure since the Somali expatriate community on the continent has grown so quickly in recent years. Ethiopia was the main destination country for Somali refugees during 2012. This is despite the fact that the Ethiopian government requires all refugees to reside in camps. Since 2007, six new refugee camps have opened to accommodate the growing Somali refugee population in Ethiopia, and the country’s Dollo Ado camp has since become the world’s second largest refugee complex after Dadaab.
The resettlement process in Dadaab has been complicated by growing insecurity in the camp and subsequent difficulties in accessing populations living there, meaning progressively smaller numbers of refugees have been submitted for resettlement in recent years (from 8,143 refugees in 2010 to 2,170 in 2012) and a lack of resettlement places for refugees in Dadaab. Besides the small number of Somali refugees who can actually be resettled, main challenges also include long resettlement processing periods with average processing time between selection and departure of Somali refugees being 458 days. Some resettlement countries such as Canada, Australia and the UK tried to circumvent the security issue by using video conferencing tools for selection interviews. While Somali refugees in Ethiopia have been listed by the EU as a common resettlement priority for 2013, Somali refugees in Kenya have not. Most Somali refugees are resettled to the US, Canada, and Australia. In Europe, particularly Norway, Sweden, and the UK have received Somali refugees. Horst, C. (2006)
IRAN
The Iranian Revolution, also known as the Islamic Revolution or the 1979 Revolution, was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was supported by the United States, and the replacement of his government with an Islamic republic under the Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, a leader of one of the factions in the revolt. The revolution was supported by various Islamist and leftist organizations and student movements. (Parsa, M. 1989)
Demonstrations against the Shah commenced in October 1977, developing into a campaign of civil resistance that included both secular and religious elements. The protests rapidly intensified in 1978 as a result of the burning of Rex Cinema, which was seen as the main cause of the revolution. Between August and December 1978, strikes and demonstrations paralyzed the country. The Shah left Iran for exile on January 16 1979 as the last Persian monarch, leaving his duties to a regency council and Shapour Bakhtiar, who was an opposition-based prime minister. Ayatollah Khomeini was invited back to Iran by the government and returned to Tehran to a greeting by several million Iranians. The royal reign collapsed shortly after on February 11 when guerrillas and rebel troops overwhelmed troops loyal to the Shah in armed street fighting, bringing Khomeini to official power. Iran voted by national referendum to become an Islamic republic on April 1 1979 and to formulate and approve a new theocratic-republican constitution whereby Khomeini became the supreme leader of the country in December 1979. The revolution lacked many of the customary causes of revolution, such as defeat in war, a financial crisis, peasant rebellion, or disgruntled military. (Juergensmeyer, M. 1993),
Reports on the dramatic rise in the number of Iranians seeking asylum in Europe, especially unaccompanied children, are profoundly unsettling. Prominent human rights lawyer Shadi Sadr recently drew attention to this phenomenon in which she highlighted the rise in the number of Iranian asylum seekers between 2013 and 2018. (Koser, K. 1997)
DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
GENDER
Female migrants comprise slightly more than half of all international migrants in Europe. The larger portion of female migrants in these regions is because of a combination of two factors: the presence of older migrants in the population and the tendency of longer life expectancies of female migrants in comparison with males (Anthias, F., Kontos, M., 2012).
The number of female migrants in Europe increased over the years. Initially, men had formed the majority of immigrants to Europe post the war periods in their countries of origin. In this group of the men that migrated to Europe, they were also some but a few women among them. The women who were left in their countries, later made the journey to migrate to Europe to join the men who already reside in Europe. Family reunification remains the major reason for entry of women into Europe.
However, more women are migrating independently, for economic reasons as students and refugees. The significance of women in migration to Europe lies not only in these increased numbers, but also through their contribution to the economic and social life in Europe (Kofman, E. 2000).
RELIGION
The largest religion in Europe is Christianity. However, in recent years, Europe has experienced a record influx of asylum seekers fleeing conflicts in Syria and other predominantly Muslim countries. This wave of Muslim migrants has prompted debate about immigration and security policies in numerous countries and has raised questions about the current and future number of Muslims in Europe (Bansak, K., Hainmueller, J., & Hangartner, D. 2016).
Muslims are a relatively small minority in Europe, making up roughly 5% of the population (Park, J. 2015). However, in some countries, such as France and Sweden, the Muslim share of the population is higher. And, in the coming decades, the Muslim share of the continent’s population is expected to grow – and could more than double, (according to Pew Research Center projections.) In the wake of the recent arrival of millions of asylum seekers, many of whom are Muslims.
AGE
According to Kaya, A. 2009, the ongoing surge of refugees into Europe from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and other war-ravaged countries presents a striking demographic contrast: hundreds of thousands of predominantly young people trying to get into a region where the population is older than in almost any other place on earth. Europe has been graying for decades, primarily because of longer life expectancies and low birthrates. The research showed that majority of the age group was children of the age of 18 years and below followed closely by young youth. These young migrants are on a journey to either to look for lost family, look for education opportunities since their chance to have proper education back in their home country was unsuccessful. Others seek for employment to better their lives.
SERVICE NEEDS OF REFUGEES
Health
Refugees are particularly vulnerable to contagious infectious diseases during their travel because of the destroyed health care systems, including vaccination services in their countries of origin, and public health infrastructures (e.g. potable water network and housing), overcrowded conditions with sub-optimal hygiene standards during travel, malnutrition and lack of access to health care services (Watters, C., & Ingleby, D. (2004). On arrival, the most common health problems in migrants and refugees recorded may be related to problems in their country of origin (e.g. political crisis, war) and the journey including accidental injuries, hypothermia, gynecological and obstetric complications, gastrointestinal and respiratory illnesses, dermatological, cardiovascular events, mental illness and metabolic problems ( Semenza, J. C.et al 2015). Unaccompanied minors, female and children migrants and refugees are vulnerable for specific problems in relation to maternal, newborn and child health, gynecological issues and violence. Although women and young people among migrants and refugees are vulnerable to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) worldwide, little evidence exists concerning SGBV against refugees in Europe (Keygnaert et. al 2012).
Before migration, access to health care services may have been restricted or unavailable, which makes several health conditions less effectively managed in migrating people. Health needs of displaced refugees hosting countries have become increasingly complex in light of the protracted war conflicts in their countries. Mental and psychosocial illness is a significant health problem for migrants and refugees, in particular newly arrived people, including depression, anxiety disorder, alcoholism and drug abuse as a result of traumatic experiences prior to dislocation or during the migration process which may be related to war, hunger, physical and sexual abuse (Hebebramd et al. 2016). Language difficulties, cultural and religious issues, racism and unemployment may further aggravate mental problems. Risk factors for mental illness in migrants and refugees include also age, gender, lower socio-economic status and lack of social support. Older people are more vulnerable. Women are also more vulnerable due to the increased risk of sexual abuse and pregnancy because of poor or lack of access to oral contraception.
Vulnerable groups, such as children, are prone to respiratory and gastrointestinal infections and dermatologic conditions like scabies due to sub-optimal hygienic and inadequate living conditions, and nutritional deprivation during migration. Gender-specific problems, such as maternal, reproductive and access to contraception and family planning also constitute important challenges for migrants. Therefore, access to reproductive health services, prenatal and obstetric care and preventive health care is crucial.
After migrants and refugees arrive in Europe, they are usually hosted in reception centers before reaching their final destination. They originate from countries affected by war or economic crisis and undertake long, exhausting journeys to be accommodated in overcrowded reception centers or camps under poor hygienic conditions; these factors increase their risks for communicable diseases. Communicable diseases are associated with war, poverty, population movement, overcrowded conditions, poor hygiene and malnutrition; in particular, immunocompromised or elderly people under such conditions are at higher risk for acquiring infectious diseases. Although the likely hood that certain infectious diseases will occur among migrants is low, they should still be considered, to ensure that they are diagnosed and treated in a timely manner, or prevented by vaccination when indicated, in order to control the risk of disease spread.
According to academic, Access to health care of newly arrived migrants and refugees is shaped by legal frameworks in regards to migration status of each person. Other barriers in accessing health care services include cultural issues, language difficulties, bureaucratic barriers such as social allowances. Health regulations towards refugees vary significantly among the EU countries and may influence a refugee’s access to health care services. There are different entitlements to care for different migrant groups; undocumented migrants and unaccompanied minors need special attention. In the majority of EU countries, most undocumented migrants only have access to emergency health care. The funding of the medical care for refugees was backed by local authorities; however, the requirements for documentation and billing were completely different from other patients and therefore caused an extra workload for the emergency department.
Prescribing medications as usual was impossible as most refugees could not obtain the medication with a prescription from local pharmacies due to a lack of health insurance and money. After having received treatment, patients that had arrived by ambulance did not know how to return to the refugee center as they had neither money nor knowledge of the place to use public transport systems (Pavli, A., & Maltezou, H. (2017).
Access to health care across the EU is adjusted to legal frameworks of the migration process and is further influenced by communication, language and financial difficulties and cultural problems. Non-governmental and humanitarian agencies often support communication and access for refugees and asylum seekers, but their ability to provide ongoing care and to co-ordinate with other organizations is limited. Therefore, there is a need for improvement in communication with asylum seekers and co-ordination between agencies within and beyond the medical system. It is important for WHO (2020) European Region and policy-makers to develop specific and coherent policies addressing the health needs of all migrants, including asylum seekers and refugees
In conclusion, provision of health care at point of contact and reception centers of newly arrived migrants and refugees should be person-centered, compassionate, affordable, comprehensive and integrated for all ages and all illnesses. Health care should be provided by a multidisciplinary team and care providers with ‘cultural humility’ in co-ordination with the local health care system and other organizations.
In order to facilitate co-ordination of care provision and follow-up among various providers and settings, the use of portable medical records and personal medical documentation is advisable. Communication services like cultural mediators, interpreters for health care providers should be available, or improved, for the promotion of an inclusive and culturally sensitive health system.
The great majority of migrants and refugees are in a good physical condition; however, many are challenged with medical and mental problems, social isolation and economic devastation. There are different migrant groups with different rights to access of care. Many European countries are experiencing an increased wave of migrants and refugees and should consider therefore assessing their overall preparedness and response capacity for the management of the disease burden in this population which should be based on the actual migration flows, global disease patterns and consequent needs.
Public health interventions in refugee camp settings will not only benefit migrants and refugees at individual level but also assist their integration in to the new home countries. In particular, it is important to consider the economic benefit of early interventions. Providing newly arrived migrants and refugees a more systematic health-reception will not only benefit migrants and refugees but also will protect the public health of host countries.
Protection
Providing physical protection which, as the name indicates, focuses on the physical needs of refugees and asylum seekers. Physical protection covers all sorts of accommodation and sheltering to start with. Depending on the context, the situation and the country of asylum, accommodation of refugees can be done in camps, shelters, urban areas, host families…etc. The main idea is that persons of concern are safe and are accommodated in a secured place. This also encloses other sorts of physical needs like food and sanitation. In order to fulfill physical protection minimum standards, refugees need to be provided with adequate food, sanitation, hygienic products and any non-food items that are needed in a specific context or emergency.
Governments normally guarantee the basic human rights and physical security of citizens. But when civilians become refugees this safety net disappears. UNHCR’s (2014) main role in pursuing international protection is to ensure that states are aware of, and act on, their obligations to protect refugees and persons seeking asylum. However, it is not a supranational organization and cannot be considered as a substitute for government responsibility.
Countries may not forcibly return refugees to a territory where they face danger or discriminate between groups of refugees. They should ensure that refugees benefit from economic and social rights, at least to the same degree as other foreign residents of the country of asylum. For humanitarian reasons, states should allow a spouse or dependent children to join persons to whom temporary refuge or asylum has been granted (Arsenijević, J et al. 2017).
Food
Many factors causing people to leave their homes. Persecution, war and economic hardship are among them, as well as climate change-related incidences of severe weather, such as prolonged droughts. Food, conflict and migration are closely connected. The world food program reports (2018) that migrants from ten countries in Greece, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey found that food insecurity increases the risk and intensity of war, which often prompts migration.
Hunger can be both the result of war and contribute to prolonging or intensifying armed conflict, which in turn can prompt new waves of migration. And even in the absence of war, an influx of migrants can disrupt agricultural markets and create new pressures on the food supply, leading to tensions between the arrivals and the existing population. Food insecurity is a direct cause of migration, particularly as climate change increases the incidence and severity of extreme weather conditions in many parts of the world.
When it comes to immediate responses, new ideas are emerging, with technology playing a role. In Syrian refugee camps in Turkey, for example, the WFP has developed a system of e-food cards, with funding from the EU, the US, Australia, Denmark, France, Germany, Japan, Kuwait, Norway and the Republic of Korea.
The system allows refugees to buy food in supermarkets set up in the camps using an electronic card that is topped up every month. The cards not only enable refugees to choose the food they prefer but the ability to shop in a supermarket also brings a sense of normality to life. Efforts by host countries to strengthen their own food systems could also play a role. This includes reducing food waste, increasing the sustainability of production and conducting research into nutrition.
However, while technological innovations, collaborative refugee strategies and greater food sustainability in host countries could make it easier to feed displaced people, the real challenge is to address the root causes of food insecurity and migration.
Which means looking broadly at everything from conflict resolution to climate-change adaptation as well as development plans that promote sustainable agricultural systems that are more resilient to the effects of extreme weather.
Education
On both the Eastern and Central Mediterranean routes many children have left their countries of origin due to violence, deprivation and conflict, and most did not initially aim to travel to Europe. However, among those who eventually did undertake the journey to Europe, education was a key factor shaping their decision. Education is also a key element for refugee and migrant children’s social inclusion into host communities.
Although all children have a fundamental right to basic education, in practice the type, quality and duration of schooling offered to asylum- seeking, refugee and migrant children depends more on where they are in the migrant/asylum process than on their educational needs. All European States that were affected by the 2015-2016 refugee and migrant crisis have made an effort to ensure children can go to school (Lyons, K., & Stathopoulos, P. 2001).
Insufficient school capacity both in terms of resources and staff trained to work with refugee and migrant children, language barriers, psychosocial issues, as well as limited catch- up classes are among the most common challenges faced by refugee and migrant children in need of education. Lack of information on enrolment procedures and transportation to/ from remote asylum facilities can also present a barrier
Students with a migrant/refugee background, especially new arrivals, may initially underperform academically, especially when they do not receive the required additional support. Yet, their education performance improves significantly over time when provided with adequate support, as many show determinations to improve their prospects in life.
If host countries ensure quick access to quality education and training opportunities, they can equip this young, but disadvantaged, generation of refugees with the tools to succeed either in their host country or, in the case of return, eventually back in their home country. Education is also a key vehicle to transmit host country values and provide orientation on civic life. It is obvious, education and training will be central to successful integration efforts.
Refugee children and youth need targeted support as they enter the school system, such as through intensive language and general induction programs to allow them to participate in mainstream classes as soon as possible. Some might come with war trauma, suggesting that schools need to offer psychological support. But beyond that, refugees will benefit from measures that make education systems more inclusive. This includes ensuring that students are not segmented into different types of schools based on socio-economic grounds, promoting early childhood development and education programs, making their parents part of the education process, offering remedial programs, and equipping teachers with the tools to provide support to students with multiple disadvantages. It is important that students feel welcome at school.
Employment
For the refugees themselves, a rapid assimilation is obviously desirable: after being forced to leave their homes and undergo strenuous trips to reach safe countries, the possibility of a new life in which to productively employ existing skills and gain new ones is of crucial importance.
Despite the enormous benefits refugees can bring to European economies and societies, their integration remains a long and arduous process that requires improvement. Refugee integration has become even more challenging with the increased number of arrivals in the past few years. It has, in certain countries, put national services dealing with the reception and integration of refugees under strain and contributed to the rise of antimigration forces in European societies.
Europe should start with ensuring and facilitating the access to the labor markets in the member states, which is a crucial element of refugee integration. As well as being a source of income, jobs serve as a vehicle for social inclusion. More specifically Europe need to priorities the dialogue with employers, who play a pivotal role in bridging the gap between the initial reception of refugees and their sustainable inclusion into the host society (Scarpetta, S., & Dumont, J. C. (2016).
Refugees want to become self-supporting and contribute to their new communities. They are, however, often hampered by poor understanding of language and business practices, non-recognition of their qualifications, and sometimes the impact of their experiences before reaching safety in Europe. There are measures that can be taken to support refugees into employment. These include: adapting recruitment and interview processes to put refugees at ease; recognizing experience and qualifications from abroad; offering integrated English language workplace training; ‘buddying’ and training in workplace culture; ensuring equal progression opportunities for part-time and flexible workers; and creating apprenticeships, traineeships or voluntary schemes to allow refugees to add skills and qualifications, or adapt their experience to new sector (Castaño-Muñoz, J., Colucci, E., & Smidt, H. (2018).
Europe is committed to supporting refugees as they rebuild their lives here, including with opportunities in the workplace. Employing refugees can bring great benefits to businesses, individuals and communities. Companies report that employing refugees has a positive impact on their own workforces, including better cultural awareness and diversity, reduction of unconscious bias and the addition of new skills and thinking. This comes as more citizens are looking to businesses to act as forces for positive change in the community.
Shelter
Floods, earthquakes, cyclones or conflicts can destroy thousands of homes in an instant. Shelter is a basic human need crucial for survival in cases of natural disasters and when people are uprooted due to conflict. Shelter provides security, personal safety and protection from the weather, and prevents ill health and disease. Adequate housing provides people with dignity and the opportunity to lead a normal family and community life.
When hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants started arriving in Europe in 2015, many cities started quickly building simple shelters, sometimes repurposing old shipping containers as temporary places to sleep instead of tents (Wain, J. F. (2017). But these makeshift sites were also often on the edges of cities, isolating the arriving community from other residents and any sense of normalcy.
In many European cities and municipalities, housing for migrants, refugees, asylum seekers and other vulnerable and low-income groups is becoming increasingly difficult to find. For humanitarian programs such as resettlement, which involves transferring a refugee from a country of first asylum to a European country, a lack of appropriate housing is increasingly highlighted as a factor affecting countries’ readiness to receive refugees, for whom resettlement is often a lifesaving solution. With increasing numbers of refugees in need of protection, such as those affected by the current Syrian refugee crisis, there is a need for many more European cities and their local partners to offer a safe haven. housing strongly affects refugees’ integration and that the preconditions for their integration differ significantly, depending on where they live.
Access to clean water and sanitation and hygiene
There is no life without water. Water is a driver of development and plays a crucial role in alleviating poverty: it is vital for human nutrition and health, and essential for ecosystem management, agriculture, energy and overall planetary security. Water-related risks can have grave human and economic costs and represent some of the causes of migration. Water scarcity has the potential to affect peace and security.
Access to water and sanitation has been recognized as a human right. However, in a world increasingly confronted with population growth and climate change, this right is often limited or denied: billions of people live in areas where water is scarce and societal inequalities persist.
This situation particularly affects women and girls who are often responsible for collecting water, managing the household and dealing with specific hygienical circumstances such as menstruation or child birth. Difficulties with physical access to water and sanitation also affect older persons, persons with disabilities, victims of natural disasters, persons living in disaster-prone areas, refugees, asylum-seekers, migrants, internally displaced persons and returnees (Semenza, J. C et al 2016).
Both the planning and undertaking of comprehensive research on water, sanitation and hygiene promotion issues among refugee populations has remained a challenge. Reasons include security restrictions, complex operational conditions, scarce resources, understaffing or high staff turn-over, the difficulty of undertaking thorough measurements during emergency situations and the fact that refugee camps are often forcibly located on marginal lands. Hence, these very real constraints hinder efforts by water and health professionals to systematically document and build on lessons learnt in order to improve services in these areas in subsequent refugee operations. It has also meant that all the available time and resources are needed simply keeping water supply and sanitation control mechanisms functioning and so the need for research is overlooked.
According to UNICEF (2018), it works closely with the EU’s humanitarian aid to provide emergency life-saving WASH supplies and services to children living in the midst of humanitarian crises. UNICEF provided safe water in humanitarian settings to more than 43 million people in 64 countries with interventions like water tanking, treatment and water infrastructure building.
RETURNS
Many refugees are not given much of a choice about when and how they return. As governments around the world try to reduce the number of refugees in their countries, they are often putting pressure on refugees to leave – whether they’re ready or not.
The return of people found not to be in need of international protection has become a key component of the debate relating to the interface between asylum and migration and is increasingly considered as an integral part of migration policies and strategies of countries of destination.
Asylum procedures are the primary mechanism to ensure that individuals are not returned to situations where they face a risk of persecution or other irreparable harm. However, some individuals in the return procedure may not have had access to asylum procedures or, if they have, new risks may have developed, including in the country of origin. It is therefore important that the return process includes safeguards to ensure respect for the principle of non-refoulement.
According to UNHCR(2018), while under international law States are entitled to expel individuals found not to be in need of international protection and countries of origin have an obligation to receive back their own nationals, the return should be undertaken in a humane manner, in full respect for human rights and dignity.
Rejected asylum-seekers are often would-be migrants who move as a result of adverse economic conditions, fragile social structures, pressures from poverty, environmentally-driven factors or scarcity of natural resources. The very conditions of survival within some countries are so harsh as to affect the ability of people to live in full human dignity, fueling movements to countries where work prospects are believed to be better (Niemann, A., & Zaun, N. 2018).
The presence of refugees contributes to significant security issue for several countries in the region. There have been reports of some refugees joining armed groups or terrorist organizations, occupying large territories to exploit mineral resources, attacking local communities to expropriate land, and acting as cheap labor, to the detriment of locals. These factors advance the perception among original inhabitants that crime, impunity and weapons trafficking, among other scourges, increase with the settlement of foreigners in their communities and countries. On the other side of the debate are considerations that refugees bring important skills and knowledge into host countries, participate in entrepreneurship and development projects that contribute to local economies, and boost local markets due to increased demand for products and services.
There are many reasons why people around the globe seek to rebuild their lives in a different country. Some people leave home to get a job or an education. Others are forced to flee persecution or human rights violations such as torture. Millions flee from armed conflicts or other crises or violence. Some no longer feel safe and might have been targeted just because of who they are or what they do or believe – for example, for their ethnicity, religion, sexuality or political opinions.
These journeys, which all start with the hope for a better future, can also be full of danger and fear. Some people risk falling prey to human trafficking and other forms of exploitation. Some are detained by the authorities as soon as they arrive in a new country. Once they’re settling in and start building a new life, many face daily racism and discrimination. Some people end up feeling alone and isolated because they have lost the support networks that most of us take for granted – our communities, colleagues, relatives and friends.
Voluntary return is generally more cost-effective and administratively less cumbersome than forced return for the returning country. Countries of origin also prefer voluntary return because it helps ensure that the rights of their nationals are respected and avoids the stigma of forced returns. Voluntary return can be promoted and supported in many ways, ranging from pre-return support to post return monitoring.
The events that contributed to the displacement of refugees might disappear on the short or long run; and refugees would then be able to return to their country of origin. However, if this is not the case, it is likely that the refugee will have to consider his final settlement in another country and to take a new nationality, thereby ceasing to be uprooted.
One of the essential functions of UNHCR Refugee Agency is “to seek permanent solutions to the problem of refugees, by assisting Governments and, subject to the approval of the Governments concerned, private organizations to facilitate the voluntary repatriation of such refugees, or their assimilation into new national communities”.
The solutions aim empowering refugees, especially women, and strengthening their productive capacities and self-reliance.
The first of these solutions is “voluntary repatriation” in the country of origin. This implies the cessation of refugee status. It is therefore the reintegration of the individual to his home nation-state. This solution is put forward by UNHCR as the best for the refugee in the case of cessation of the reasons that led to his/her displacement in the first place.
When voluntary return is not possible, and in the case where the host country offers the possibility of “local integration”, it is therefore assimilation to the host country that is proposed, either by remaining a refugee (thus deprived of citizenship rights) or by taking the nationality of the host country. This is the second option that is being considered by UNHCR. Refugees are then caught in a legal process of granting them rights that are more and more similar to those of the nationals of the host country. Over time, this process should lead to permanent resident status and, in some cases, the nationality of the country of asylum. We should not forget, however, that access to nationality is a discretionary right of states.
The third solution is resettlement in a third country or the continuation of migration and access to citizenship in this third country. It is considered both as a last resort solution, when the other two have failed, and as a means to achieve a more equitable burden-sharing of refugees. UNHCR recommends to host countries cases that it considers to be in need of special protection.
PRACTICAL POLICY SOLUTIONS
The refugee crisis poses a serious challenge, both to the welfare of refugees and to European societies. In 2015, more than 1.5 million migrants crossed into the European Union. From Italy to Poland, and from Greece to Germany, countries face immense challenges in responding to requests for humanitarian aid, asylum, and integration. The associated integration challenges in housing, language, work and welfare are already formidable. Failing to manage them properly poses serious threats to social cohesion and political stability. European countries have had sufficient time to analyze and assess the long-standing challenges which created the current crisis. Humanitarian help is regularly to refugees which includes basic needs such as water, food, shelter and sanitization.
Most refugees in refugees in camps in developing countries, with certain groups now stranded in neighboring or transit countries that themselves have become conflict zones. With the refugee’s death toll that keep rising because of crossing of Mediterranean Sea. The member state thought that introducing of vessels and a search and rescue would reduce these accidents in the sea.
Opening up safe routes to sanctuary for refugees is one important solution. That means allowing people to reunite with their relatives, and giving refugees visas so they don’t have to spend their life savings and risk drowning to reach safety. It also means resettling all refugees who need it. Resettlement is a vital solution for the most vulnerable refugees including torture survivors and people with serious medical problems. The receiving countries should put to saving lives first. No one should have to die crossing a border
And whether they travel by land or by sea, people fleeing persecution or wars should be allowed to cross borders, with or without travel documents. Pushing people back and putting up massive fences only forces them to take more dangerous routes to safety.
Control of Europe’s borders
First, it is important to control Europe’s external borders so that only refugees fleeing war and persecution, who have a legitimate right to seek asylum, can enter and potentially remain in Europe. The porous nature of Europe’s external borders has meant an unacceptable loss of control in the eyes of many Europe citizens and has raised false hopes for irregular migrants trying to enter the Union. The control of the borders of the Schengen Area should be a collective effort of the EU and all Member States, coordinated by European Institutions with professional staff and with financial support provided to Member States at Europe’s boarder. Regaining control of Europe’s external borders is essential to preserve open internal borders.
The border is the central pillar of external border management. It lays down rules on external border crossings and conditions governing the temporary reintroduction of internal border checks. It obliges member states to carry out systematic checks against relevant databases on all persons, including those with the right to free movement under the law.
The Schengen Information System, it helps in keeping internal security. The Schengen information system and border checks help in keeping away returning illegal third parties. Authorities across the EU use the Schengen information system to enter or consult alerts for wanted or missing people.
The entry and exit regulation were set to reduce border check delays and improve the quality of border checks by automatically calculating the authorized stay of each traveler. Also, to ensure systematic and reliable identification of over stayers strengthen internal security and the fight against terrorism and other serious crime by allowing law enforcement authorities access to travel history records
Providing of asylum at the border.
There should be a measure to improve, standardize and speed up the processes to determine asylum applications. The sooner refugees know whether they can stay, the more energy can be invested in their integration into host countries’ societies and in family reunions. The sooner a decision is taken, the fairer and more feasible it is to send back those whose requests are refused in full respect of international law and human rights. And EU members cannot afford to have vastly different standards in granting asylum status. Under international law, there can be no limit set on the number of those eligible to request asylum.
The EU legal framework has improved and has been enhanced with additional safeguards to protect persons arriving at the border against forcefully retuning back refugees and to ensure access to the asylum procedure in EU Member States.
Training of border officials and authorities likely to come first into contact with migrants is important to ensure effective access to the procedure and to make referral mechanisms work in practice. Training efforts must be stepped up for border guards.
The establishment of functioning and effective referral mechanisms at the border is key to guarantee access to the asylum procedure at the border. It is the primary responsibility of the State to ensure that an effective referral mechanism is in place and this is a precondition for NGOs to play a meaningful role in the referral mechanism.
Monitoring of application of EU legal standards must be a priority and NGOs need to be consulted. This is necessary for EU institutions and Agencies to get the real picture. NGO’s reporting human rights violations to the European Commission must also be informed about the follow-up and steps taken to address those complaints.
The government is trying to control and minimize the accidental death of refugees trying to cross at the sea. By introducing states and commercial vessels which must uphold their search and rescue obligations in practice. There is also need for more capacity and resources to address the needs of traumatized persons at first reception and throughout the system to address the specific needs of such vulnerable groups. Consecutively addressing the issue of what to do with those who died at sea there is need to have a system in place to contact families, arrange funerals, identification etc.
In cases where asylum seekers refuse to apply for protection. The effective implementation of the asylum at high level of protection must be ensured and should be a key priority. There is not only need for measures to ensure mutual trust between Member States but also to ensure and warrant trust of asylum seekers in the system. Take the necessary steps to ensure mutual recognition of positive asylum decisions and transfer of protection status across the EU to achieve the objective of a uniform status, valid throughout the Union as laid down in.
Protection of refugees
Specific attention has to be paid to vulnerable groups such as minors, physical and mental trauma, women with a dependent legal status and the illiterate. The experience of detention, poor reception conditions, unmet health needs and forced economic and educational inactivity create new traumas for refugees that lead to their long-term social exclusion. Member States should therefore promote societal integration by granting asylum-seekers early and equal access to the labour market, decent housing as well as basic language and vocational training.
Equal rights and secure legal status for refugees and their families should be seen as preconditions for their integration. Member States should facilitate the requirements and procedures for family reunification and long-term residence based on the most favorable provisions allowed in the EU.
A welcoming society must build and show solidarity with beneficiaries of international protection. Projects should prioritise cooperation with NGOs practitioners and the use of extensive networks of volunteers in order to build skills, social networks and solidarity. Mainstream specialised service-providers and ministries must make specific commitments to support BIPs. Effective employment services, long-term language learning options and in-kind/in-cash housing support are critical in this transition phase. Public schools are also powerful tools for social inclusion
Expanding safe and legal channels
They could help to avoid some dangerous migrant journeys, and allow for appropriate planning, preparation, and orderly arrivals. There are a range of policy options for safe and legal channels for asylum seekers, refugees, and migrants. We focus here only on refugee resettlement. A permanent Europe resettlement program, proposed by the European Commission, is a good step in the right direction, but includes conditionalities and restrictive criteria that will undermine the overall goal. The Commission proposed that the EU resettle refugees from countries that demonstrate effective cooperation European migration control.
The European union should establish a permanent wide resettlement program commensurate with capacity and global need, with ambitious minimum targets rather than low maximums, based on UNHCR eligibility and exclusion criteria.
They should also ensure that refugees with family members in the EU are processed under family reunification mechanisms to reserve resettlement places for people without other means to reach the EU. Resettled refugees should receive a secure status in keeping with the goal of providing durable solutions and encouraging integration.
In addition, ensure that resettlement out of countries of first asylum is not linked to the level of migration cooperation by those countries with the EU. And that resettlement is not used as a substitute for asylum procedures or as a rationale for returning asylum seekers in the EU to countries of first arrival.
European countries should share responsibilities.
The number of arrivals at Europe’s external borders is manageable across all member states, but not across two or three. The failure to share responsibility drives a sense that the numbers of arrivals are unmanageable and undermines public confidence in policy responses to migration.
The EU and its Member States should work vigorously towards ending the violent conflicts that are the principal causes of the crisis. Europe must invest heavily in the Syria peace process, in particular. The EU must also raise the ambition and resources of its Neighborhood Policy, with a focus on helping to stabilize the region and on improving the living conditions and economic opportunities in the Southern neighborhood.
But action is also required at the national level, especially in the EU countries where significant numbers of refugees have received or are expected to receive asylum. The distribution of refugees across municipalities and regions should be fair and should come with adequate support and resources from the national level, emphasizing education and language training. The recognition of professional competences and support to enter the labour market should be available at a very early stage. Within our societies, we need a dialogue between refugees and the host society. It should be made clear that respect for human rights, democratic values and cultural norms is indispensable for a prolonged stay in the respective European host country
The EU should conduct safe returns.
While the EU countries have the right to return persons with no legal claim to remain, following fair procedures and in accordance with human rights and refugee law. While carrying out safe and timely returns for rejected asylum seekers who have exhausted their remedies is a reasonable policy objective alongside fair asylum procedures, removing people is difficult in practice and return rates are low.
Member of states place a high priority on increasing effective returns of undocumented migrants and rejected asylum seekers. The removal of all irregularly-staying migrants is an unrealistic objective, and it has proven difficult to reach agreements with countries of origin for the identification and return of their nationals.
Therefore, the member states should ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place as they work to carry out safe and timely returns. High-quality asylum procedures across the EU space will help justify confidence that returns of rejected asylum seekers are permissible, as will strong safeguards against unsafe returns of rejected asylum seekers and undocumented migrants, who while not deemed beneficiaries of protection may face risks upon return or have other claims to remain, such as EU-citizen children, that should be factored into the removal decision.
As well as ensure that readmission agreements with third countries include strong human rights conditions, particularly with respect to the return of third-country nationals to countries they have transited. Removals should ensure procedural fairness, including the right to contest a removal decision.
They should also offer incentives to countries of origin to cooperate on returns of their own nationals in the form of visa schemes for legal migration for students and workers at all skill levels. If such visas are offered in sufficient numbers, they could provide a meaningful alternative to irregular migration. Children are not supposed to be detained.
Save life
According to International Organization for Migration, the EU and member states have implemented various policies over the years, including everything from physical pushbacks to Libya to a vast humanitarian rescue operation. Overall, the default response has been to ignore, to prevent, and to shift responsibility. The focus now is on building capacity of Libyan coast guard forces and enabling them to intercept boats in international waters as well as preventing departures from Libyan waters.
They are now focusing on building capacity of Libyan coast guard forces and Increased insecurity in the central Mediterranean. There is also regional agreements on search-and-rescue and disembarkation can help ensure timely rescues and predictable procedures.
Therefore, the state members should consider adopting a commitment of shared responsibility for saving lives at sea. Dedicated rescue mission with an operational plan that provides for disembarkation in a place of safety in EU countries including but not limited to Italy. Refrain from enabling Libyan coast guard forces to intercept boats in international waters until Libya can be considered a place of safety
CONCLUSTION.
Europe is strong enough to manage the migration challenges, but only if political leaders act now, act responsibly and use the resources at their disposal, including support for civil society working in this area. We must not leave the public space to populists and nationalists offering false promises. Only a European solution will be workable and sustainable.
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