Politicising refugees

In 2016, the EU signed a deal with Turkey which saw Ankara agree to stop refugees from entering the bloc, and take back “all migrants not in need of international protection” who already crossed from Turkey into Greece, in exchange for funds allocated to the handling of the millions of refugees it hosts, among other benefits. The deal, however, did not result in these migrants and refugees finding safety and stability in Turkey. Ankara repeatedly accused Europe of not fulfilling the promises it made, and threatened to send all refugees into Europe if it does not receive further support. As a result, millions of vulnerable migrants and asylum seekers found themselves in a limbo state, uncertain of their future.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has already made it clear that his country is not willing to agree to a similar, disastrous deal in the aftermath of the US’s exit from Afghanistan. “On the issue of Afghan migrants,” he stated on September 1, “there will be no such cooperation if [the EU’s] approach would be based on ‘We give money and you keep them there’”.

For years, the EU has also been providing support to the Libyan coastguard to enable it to intercept at sea migrants and asylum seekers headed towards Europe, and take them back to Libya – with devastating consequences. Migrants and asylum seekers intercepted by the coastguard have been taken to detention centres in Libya, where they face inhuman and degrading conditions and the risk of torture, sexual violence, extortion, and forced labour.

As stated by Human Rights Watch, and many other international NGOs and activists, the cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of migrants and asylum seekers in Libyan detention centres violate international law. While the Libyan authorities are undoubtedly accountable for these abuses, the EU, which continues to pursue a flawed strategy to empower Libyan coastguards to intercept migrants and asylum seekers and take them back to Libya, is also complicit in these violations.

Europe should not repeat these mistakes in its response to the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan. Many EU member states have been involved in Afghanistan since 2001 and they have just left the country alongside the Americans. They are similarly responsible for the ongoing humanitarian emergency in the country – they cannot wash their hands of millions of suffering Afghans saying they are the responsibility of Washington alone.

There are many ways in which the EU can fulfil its moral responsibility towards the Afghan people swiftly and efficiently. One of these ways is through the EU Temporary Protection Directive – an exceptional measure passed in 2001 with the aim of providing “immediate and temporary protection to displaced people from non-EU countries ”.

Excerpted: ‘Europe is politicising Afghan refugees instead of helping them’

Aljazeera.com