Illegal migration

The phenomenon of illegal migration is becoming a problem for the European Union.

România Internațional, 10.08.2015, 13:05

The immigrants coming from Africa and the
Middle East threaten the European Union’s social structure and living
standards, said recently the British foreign secretary Philip Hammond,
explaining that the European bloc does not have the capacity to receive
millions of people who are looking for a better life. Many are fleeing
instability of the Middle East and Africa, trying to reach the European Union.
Some of the migrants try to reach Britain through the Channel Tunnel linking it
to France. The British foreign secretary said that Brussels has to solve this
issue by repatriating the persons who do not have the right to seek for asylum.

European Union regulations allow immigrants to
be confident enough that they will not be sent back to their countries of
origin, Philip Hammond, quoted by the BBC, warned. Last week the French and
British officials said they were determined to cooperate in order to stop the
wave of immigration, which they see as a top priority. All the measures taken
in this regard convey a very clear signal, they say, namely that borders are
safe and the people who smuggle thousands of refugees into Europe are
committing a criminal act.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees on Friday
called on the French officials to present a global emergency plan meant to
solve the immigrant crisis in Calais, a port in the north of France that has
been flooded for several weeks by thousands of migrants trying to reach Britain.
Immigrants are also a problem for Italy and Greece, two other countries that
can no longer cope with the high number of refugees from the Middle East and
Africa.

A recent estimate by the UN High Commissioner
for Refugees made public last Thursday, shows that more than 224,000 immigrants
have reached Europe via the Mediterranean Sea since the beginning of the year,
of whom 98,000 reached Italy and 124,000 Greece. During these dangerous boat
trips over 2,100 people have lost their lives. The European countries faced
directly with the immigration wave have asked the other EU members to share the
burden. That is why, from Brussels’s perspective, this issue should be solved
at European level. All EU states should fight the smugglers’ networks that
endanger the lives of immigrants coming from northern Africa and should also
show solidarity as regards the immigrants’ relocation.

At the end of July, European countries, Romania
included, agreed to temporarily take over a little more than 32,000 immigrants
from outside the EU. The issue of illegal migration has become a priority for
the Union, the latest Euro barometer showing that immigration is the main
concern for 38% of European citizens, 14% more than in 2014. Immigration is now
a bigger concern for Europeans than the economic crisis and unemployment, two
issues that have dominated their agenda in previous years.