12 July 2022
The Selective Nature of a pan-European Willkommenskultur
Four months into Russia’s war on Ukraine, there has been a tremendous show of support for Ukrainians fleeing violence and the atrocities of war – in Europe and elsewhere in the world. As is well-known, European states have hammered out pragmatic administrative solutions to accommodate large numbers of incoming person, going to great lengths to provide for beneficial welfare arrangements. Against this backdrop, it may not be unreasonable to present the crisis in Ukraine as a tipping point for humanitarian protection more generally. Continue reading >>
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02 May 2022
Trapped in a Lawless Zone
The treatment of asylum-seekers – predominantly from the Middle East – crossing the Latvian border from Belarus is in sharp contrast with the recent decision of the Latvian government to support at least 23,000 people who have arrived in the country from war-torn Ukraine. Those who have paid the highest price for this policy are people who have been forced to remain in the forest for months under inhuman conditions just to be ultimately returned to their country of origin, an experience that has left most of them severely traumatised. Continue reading >>
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06 April 2022
Enlarging the Hole in the Fence of Migrants’ Rights
With the judgment in A.A. and others v. North Macedonia, the European Court of Human Rights further branches out the creative exception to the prohibition of collective expulsions and turns it into an obligation to offer a place to apply for asylum somewhere at the border. But not only are these legal access points for asylum applications often de facto restricted, the ever more creative exceptions to rights of the Convention and its Protocols threatens the credibility and authority of the Court. Continue reading >>
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10 March 2022
A Tale of Two Borders
Poland has an over 500 km long border with Ukraine and – right next to it – an over 400 km long border with Belarus. At the border with Ukraine, tens of thousands of persons are crossing each day, and the authorities are making a huge effort to make the crossing smooth. At the border with Ukraine, tens of thousands of persons are crossing each day, and the authorities are making a huge effort to make the crossing smooth. At the border with Belarus, people who are trying to cross into Poland are still forced to wander in minus temperatures through thick woods. Continue reading >>
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10 March 2022
On the Brink of a New Refugee Crisis
The EU Council decision on temporary protection adopted on 4 March not only conveys a political message of solidarity with the Ukrainian people; it also reveals the awareness that the 2015 refugee crisis was mainly an administrative crisis and that, this time, a more pragmatic approach is required to prevent the national asylum systems from being overwhelmed. Moreover, a less hostile view of secondary movements seems to emerge, with potentially far-reaching consequences. At the same time, temporary protection is not a silver bullet for what is a complicated and long-lasting challenge. Continue reading >>
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05 March 2022
Temporary Protection for Ukrainians
One might have expected that the activation of the Temporary Protection Directive would witness a remake of the toxic disputes about ‘burden sharing’ following the mass influx of 2015/16. None of this happened, although the contents of the Implementing Decision is quite different from what many might think intuitively. Inter-state distribution keys or quotas give way to a simple allocation mechanism: ‘free choice’ is the surprise outcome of Thursday’s Council meeting. Continue reading >>12 July 2021
The Limits of Indirect Deterrence of Asylum Seekers
The ECtHR judgment M.A. v. Denmark is significant for several reasons. Firstly, because it adds to an already growing international criticism of Denmark’s asylum and immigration policy. Secondly, because the judgment helps clarify the Court’s position on an issue, family reunification for refugees, where case law has hitherto been somewhat ambiguous, and where several European States have introduced new restrictions since 2015. Third, and finally, the judgment represents – to paraphrase Harold Koh - another “way station…in the complex enforcement” of migrant and refugee rights by international human rights institutions. Continue reading >>03 June 2021
From Denmark to Damascus
In recent weeks, Denmark made international headlines with its refusal to extend residence permits for Syrian subsidiary protection holders in Denmark from the Damascus province. Denmark’s emergence as the first state in Europe to end the protection of Syrians on the basis of improved conditions in the wider Damascus area is the result of a self-described ‘paradigm shift’ in Danish refugee policy dating back to 2015. Continue reading >>
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21 December 2020
Still Waters Run Deep
That lawsuits taken by a Hungarian human rights NGO can reach the CJEU swifter than those launched by the Commission is clear evidence that strategic litigation and determined advocacy can move mountains. At the same time, this is also a cause for great concern. It speaks volumes of the Commission’s reluctance to promptly and effectively go after a Member State that deliberately ignores and breaches EU law. Continue reading >>02 October 2020
The Global Politics of Refugee Protection and Return
Voluntary, safe and dignified return is one of the durable solutions to forced displacement and, thus, hosting states have the responsibility to provide international protection to refugees until the conditions for voluntary repatriation are met. Premature or forced return that is falling short of international standards would mean a violation of the principle of non-refoulement. Current global governance of forced displacement impeding seeking asylum, delaying resettlement, and facilitating return ends up violating the very founding principles of the international refugee regime while exposing refugees and asylum-seekers to violence and higher risks. Continue reading >>
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