EU-Turkey deal on refugees disregards human rights

In an opinion editorial published in the International New York Times today, Council of Europe commissioner for human rights Nils Muižnieks warned that the deal the European Council is discussing with Turkey to stem the flow of refugees runs contrary to human rights standards.

“The automatic forced return that the deal allows is illegal and will be ineffective,” he said.

“Instead of racking their brains to find a legal fig leaf for measures like collective expulsions, the European Council’s members should have the courage to scrap the deal. They should adopt bold measures at the summit meeting this week that would radically shift the union’s approach to migration.”

Among the measures the Commissioner’s recommends are a more prominent EU role in finding a political solution to the conflict in Syria, a ramped-up relocation of asylum seekers from Greece and Italy and more legal avenues available to refugees to seek protection in Europe.

Muižnieks said that the European Union’s deal with Turkey is unlikely to work: “It is obvious that as soon as the agreement goes into effect, the Syrian refugees — together with their smugglers — will find other ways to reach Europe.

“They will keep taking dangerous routes because, risky as they are, these journeys offer more hope than the prospect of living for years in refugee camps or, worse, of being caught up in the continuing violence of the Syrian conflict.”