18 August 2021 — Ahead of today’s JHA meeting of EU interior ministers, the International Rescue Committee urges European leaders to pour their effort and resources into protecting the people of Afghanistan, rather than preventing them from reaching Europe.
Imogen Sudbery, IRC Executive Director of Policy and Advocacy for Europe says:
“The EU has a deep responsibility to the Afghan people - not least those who have worked tirelessly alongside European and US teams in the hope of building a brighter future for their country. So as the situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated leaving millions in grave danger, it is not surprising that EU leaders’ thoughts have quickly turned to managing the inevitable consequences in terms of asylum and migration.
Yet, it’s extremely disturbing to see that rather than focusing on what Europe can do to protect the people of Afghanistan and support countries in the region such as Iran and Pakistan, EU leaders continue to instead pour their efforts into preventing people from reaching safety in Europe.
There is no need for hysteria. As in most crisis contexts, the vast majority of Afghans who have been forced from their homes will remain in the region. Moreover, with a fair, humane and efficient system in place, the EU would have no problem managing the arrivals of those who do make it to Europe in search of safety and protection.
Tragically, in recent years, the EU has wasted precious opportunities to agree on such a system. Now it has a responsibility to ensure that the people of Afghanistan are not the ones to pay the price for these failures. Instead, when they meet later today, EU interior ministers should focus on Afghanistan with three clear priorities.
First, in order to prevent people having to risk their lives through dangerous irregular routes, the EU must urgently open up new safe and legal pathways for Afghans to access asylum in Europe.In addition to the immediate expansion of relocation opportunities for those most at risk, the European Commission should encourage member states to make ambitious additional resettlement pledges through a dedicated programme for the most vulnerable refugees. This is vital to ensure that neighbouring countries, like Pakistan and Iran, already hosting very large numbers of refugees do not shoulder protection responsibilities alone.
Second, EU countries must commit to upholding the right to protection for the small numbers of people who do manage to make it to Europe. This must include halting all forced returns of Afghan nationals to Afghanistan or the region, including the re-evaluation of asylum claims of Afghans who received negative decisions.
And finally, the EU must scale up targeted support to neighbouring countries to mount a regional refugee response. The EU has an important role to play to ensure neighbouring states allow refugees and asylum seekers from Afghanistan to enter and seek protection, and to support them in these efforts.
Europe’s interior ministers must not repeat the mistakes of the past. Today they have a golden opportunity to show bold humanitarian leadership and stand in solidarity with one clear goal - protecting the people of Afghanistan who are relying on them to provide a crucial lifeline.”