In response to the recently reached agreement on the new EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, COMECE issues a statement, on Friday 22 December 2023, raising the alarm about the potential risk that “the European Union will fail to protect the right to asylum and other human rights”. Read the Statement
POZZALLO, SICILY, ITALY, 31 December The humanitarian rescue ship Seawatch 3 disembarks in Pozzallo with 440 migrants on board on 2021. (Photo: Shutterstock)
The recent agreement between the Parliament and the Council on the new EU Pact on Migration and Asylum is seen as a manifestation of the European Union’s capacity to deliver, even on divisive issues, as well as the recognition that “migration is a common challenge for all the EU, and no Member State can be left alone”.
However, while acknowledging such collaborative effort, COMECE expresses deep concerns about the potential consequences of this agreement.
“There is the real risk that with this Pact on Migration and Asylum the EU will fail to protect the right to asylum and other human rights”, the statement of COMECE reads.
The European Union is called to be courageous in facing this epochal challenge of people on the move who seek a safer and better life for themselves and their dear ones.
Moreover, according to the Bishops of the European Union, “the fear of people coming with different cultural or religious backgrounds, who may challenge our ‘European way of life’, as well as the fear of populism and of losing elections, cannot be the guiding principles of our asylum and migration policies”.
Instead, they emphasise that solidarity and respect for the dignity of every person must be the guiding values of such policies. “Europe’s vocation is to work for a more just and fraternal world for all, not only for Europeans” – the statement continues.
