Welcome to the PICUM newsletter, where we will update you about issues concerning undocumented people. The updates will focus on systemic issues including regularisations, criminalisation of solidarity, detention and returns, labour rights and channels, access to health-care, access to justice, undocumented children and families.
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October newsletter
 
Welcome to the PICUM newsletter, where we will update you about issues concerning undocumented people. The updates will focus on systemic issues including regularisations, criminalisation of solidarity, detention and returns, labour rights and channels, access to health-care, access to justice, undocumented children and families.

Let us know what you think of our newsletter on communications@picum.org.
 
 
EU flag on the sea
THE EU FIGHT AGAINST MIGRANT SMUGGLING IS FAILING MIGRANTS
 
The renewed EU action plan against migrant smuggling (2021-2025), presented by the European Commission at the end of September, risks exacerbating all the reasons why migrant smuggling happens in the first place. The Action Plan furthers common misconceptions about migrant smuggling and uses them to justify measures that are actually counterproductive and harm the fundamental rights of migrants. Crucially, it fails to recognise that restrictive migration policies often incentivise smuggling activities: the more limited the regular pathways, the more people will be forced to rely on smugglers to access Europe. In line with such biases, the Plan focuses on stemming irregular migration through stepping up returns, and on increasing pressure on third countries to prosecute and punish smugglers, with little consideration for basic safeguards. Read more in our blog.

One year after the European Commission presented the 2020 EU Migration Pact, several migration policies are currently being negotiated in the European Parliament. In two recent Briefing Papers, we analyse two proposed reforms: the proposal to link asylum and return procedures, which risks closing access to national-level residence permits for people who don’t qualify for international protection, and provisions around the criminalisation of solidarity with migrants. For more about what the Migration Pact means for migrants arriving to and living in Europe, check out our latest Frequently Asked Questions.
 
BORDER MANAGEMENT
 
Twelve Member States call for walls at EU external borders
 
Twelve EU Member States have addressed a joint letter to the European Commission, calling for amendments to the Schengen Borders Code, to allow for the construction of walls at the EU external borders as a tool to fight against irregular migration. The signatories further call for the walls to be funded by the EU budget. The letter follows tensions with Belarus as the country has been allowing migrants to cross its territory and reach the borders of neighbouring EU countries. The European Network Against Racism has denounced this latest attempt to further legitimise violence against migrants.
Violence against migrants at Lithuania’s borders increase
 
In the first week of October, Frontex reported 14 collective expulsions from Lithuania, while indicating the EU agency itself had not been involved in the forced removals. In more recent declarations, Frontex Executive Director Fabrice Leggeri hinted at the possibility that violations could be even higher. Frontex chief failed to comment about the possibility of suspending the agency’s operations in Lithuania, which EU law foresees in case of serious fundamental rights abuses. The EU’s border agency presence in Lithuania has recently increased to 126 officers. See our blog for more information on the current situation in Lithuania.
European Human Rights Commissioner calls on states to protect people fleeing Afghanistan
 
The Human Rights Commissioner of the Council of Europe has called on Member States to guarantee the respect of Afghans’ human rights. In particular, the Commissioner highlighted the need to protect people in vulnerable situations, and ensure that the fight against irregular migration does not interfere with safeguarding human rights and offering protection to Afghans already in the Member States territories. The Commissioner further endorses the resolution passed by the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly which calls Member States to respect the principle of non-refoulement, ensure safe pathways, introduce humanitarian visas, and re-evaluate asylum applications from people who have already fled from Afghanistan.
Human rights organisations call on Cyprus to end illegal pushbacks
 
EuroMed Rights, KISA and other civil human rights organisations are calling on Cyprus to end pushbacks, to facilitate family reunification procedures and increase regular pathways and humanitarian corridors. The calls follow recent cases of illegal pushbacks of Syrian nationals to Lebanon, including cases of family separation. In one instance, a pregnant mother was separated from her two children and her husband, who were pushed back to Lebanon at the end of August.
European Council adopts visa restrictions against The Gambia
 
The EU Council has adopted visa restrictions against the Gambia in retaliation against the country’s “insufficient cooperation” on readmissions. By further restricting access to regular pathways to Europe, it is likely that this kind of measure will only increase irregular migration from the Gambia. Following proposals from the European Commission, the Council is currently discussing similar measures against Bangladesh and Iraq.
Italian court condemns ship captain for violating the principle of non-refoulement
 
The Court of Naples has sentenced the Asso 28 ship captain to one year in jail for delivering 101 migrants to the Libyan coast guard in 2018. The Asso 28 had first rescued the migrants at sea, but then proceeded to hand them over to the Libyan authorities, disregarding calls from search and rescue crew Open Arms. This is the first time that such a verdict has been issued in Europe.
 
CHILDREN
 
The European Council fails to adopt Conclusions on child rights strategy
 
The EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child (2021-2025), a flagship EU initiative to ensure all children in and outside the EU have equal rights and opportunities, has been warmly welcomed by institutions and civil society alike. However, the Council, and through it the EU Member States, have failed to showcase their support for the strategy and its implementation, as Council Conclusions in support of the EU Strategy are still not adopted. A coalition of NGOs, including PICUM, call for a swift, strong and clear signal from the Member States in support of the strategy.
 
CRIMINALISATION OF SOLIDARITY
 
Former Italian mayor faces 13 years in jail linked to local inclusion policies
 
Domenico Lucano, former Mayor of South Italy village Riace, has been sentenced in first instance to 13 years in jail on charges related to policies of inclusion of migrants he had implemented. In Riace, Lucano had put in place a model for welcoming and successfully including asylum-seekers while making the village thrive. This system was fiercely criticised by right-wing forces and later became the target of criminal prosecutions in line with broader attempts to delegitimise the Riace model.
Lithuanian woman under investigation for helping Afghan asylum-seekers
 
In Lithuania, a woman is currently under investigation for charges of aiding irregular migration after providing water, food and shelter to five Afghan asylum-seekers. The woman lives close to the border with Belarus, where migrants have been enduring violence, push backs and deprivation as both Lithuania and Belarus are failing to provide adequate protection and reception conditions.
Frontex shuns protest from transparency activists
 
In May, the European Parliament called on Frontex to drop its demand for legal fees from transparency activists who had sought information about its operations in the Mediterranean. Originally, Frontex had asked for 23,700€ in legal fees but the EU General Court decided to reduce it to 10,520 €. Frontex continued to seek 10,000€ in legal fees and as the deadline to pay was 4 October, the activists decided to bring the sum in cash to the agency’s headquarters in Brussels, as a protest. The activists were not received, as the building had been evacuated and was being surveilled by police.
 
DETENTION AND RETURNS
 
Maltese government sued for detaining migrants offshore for weeks
 
32 asylum seekers are suing the Maltese government for violating their human rights after they were detained in tourist boats in April 2020 after being rescued at sea with around 400 other people. During the offshore detention, they lacked access to basic services and had no support or legal assistance, and were not informed about their right to seek asylum. The government had further denied lawyers and human rights groups access to the boats.
New report outlines the situation of rejected asylum seekers and returns in Denmark
 
In a latest report on the situation of migrants who have had their asylum application rejected, Refugees Welcome Denmark highlights how strict migration policies and the lack of regular pathways have led to the criminalisation of migrants and people who help them. This has pushed migrants to live irregularly without access to services and rights. The report calls for better living conditions during and after the asylum procedure and strongly suggests reducing deportation and detention of those who do not want to voluntarily return.
 
DATA RIGHTS
 
UK plan to introduce biometric travel permissions raises concerns
 
As part of its “new plan for immigration”, the UK is proposing legislation that increases penalties for people applying for asylum who arrive in the UK via another country or without first receiving permission, and introduces a new electronic travel authorisation system for people who do not need a visa to enter the UK. Critics argue that this would require processing the personal data of vast numbers of people, and that such systems typically rely on profiling tools to inform decisions about whether to grant a visa, which risks discrimination. Indeed, in 2020 the UK Home Office agreed to stop using a biased algorithm in its visa processes after a legal challenge.
Dutch court rules that border police can use ethnic profiling
 
On 22 September, the Hague District Court ruled that border police can use ethnicity as a criterion for choosing passengers at airports and on trains and buses from EU destinations for border checks. According to the court, these checks are not discriminatory because ethnicity can be an important indication of nationality, and if it is not the only indicator considered and the selection decision is explainable. The case was brought by several NGOs together with two Dutch citizens who argued they were singled out for checks because of their skin colour and who sought a general ban on the use of ethnicity in these checks. The plaintiffs have said they will appeal the decision.
 
HEALTH CARE
 
World Health Organisation renews call for equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines for migrants
 

The World Health Organisation has published new guidance on COVID-19 vaccination of refugees and migrants, based in part on surveys of the national vaccination plans of 104 countries. 72 percent of these plans failed to explicitly include migrants, and only 17 percent explicitly included migrants in irregular situations. The guidance recognises that social, political and economic exclusion, and related poverty and exploitation, can result in higher rates of COVID-19 infections among migrants. It identifies various barriers facing migrants – particular when undocumented – in accessing vaccination and health systems more generally, including stigma, mistrust and fear of deportation. WHO calls for ensuring universal and equal access to the COVID-19 vaccines for refugees and migrants, regardless of status, and underscores the need to work with communities in designing and implementing vaccination programs, as well as for better communication about the vaccines to build trust and counter misinformation.

 
LABOUR
 
European Commission calls for effective complaints mechanisms for undocumented workers
 

In a recent communication on the Employers’ Sanctions Directive, the European Commission has set out recommendations to governments and EU actions to improve implementation of the Directive, including access to information, justice and remuneration, and temporary residence permits for undocumented workers. Crucially, the Commission recognises that undocumented workers are deterred from filing complaints due to risks of immigration enforcement, including during inspections. It acknowledges the calls for ‘firewalls’ which would guarantee that irregular migrants detected during inspections would not be referred to immigration authorities for return procedure. Furthermore, the Commission calls for governments to establish safe reporting policies to ensure that irregular migrant workers can report employers in violation and engage with law enforcement without facing immigration consequences, and to improve accessibility of complaint mechanisms to encourage irregular migrants to lodge complaints. Read ETUC and PICUM’s initial reaction here.
European Court orders Azerbaijan to pay compensation to 33 undocumented workers
 
In a case taken by 33 undocumented workers from Bosnia and Herzegovina, the European Court of Human Rights has found that the Azerbaijani government failed to effectively investigate the applicants’ claims concerning alleged forced labour and human trafficking. In its judgement, the Court found that the state of Azerbaijan was aware that workers were potential victims of human trafficking and forced labour, and ordered that the workers be paid 5,000€ in compensation for non-pecuniary damage. Among the factors considered by the Court in finding that the work was extracted under the menace of penalty was the irregular status of the workers, including threats of immigration enforcement. The verdict raises hopes for other workers in the “SerBaz” case, in which about 700 workers from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Northern Macedonia were exploited while working on the construction of state facilities in Baku, Azerbaijan.
UK High Court rules victims of trafficking should be granted leave to remain
 
The UK High Court has ruled that recognised victims of trafficking who are also asylum seekers should be granted leave to remain in the UK. Prior to the ruling, these victims could risk deportation to their country of origin, where they may be in danger of further victimisation. Because of this, many would seek international humanitarian protection in the UK and spend years in legal limbo before the resolution of their case. During that time they could not work, study or access mainstream benefits. See the full ruling here, and analysis from Free Movement here.
 
WOMEN
 
EU Court of Justice fails to unblock EU accession to the Istanbul Convention
 
The EU Court of Justice published its opinion on the EU becoming a party to the Istanbul Convention, the international treaty on violence against women, which explicitly extends to all women regardless of migration status. According to the opinion, the Council can take additional time to achieve greater political support among member states but cannot make “common accord” a prerequisite for a decision on accession, which should be made based on a qualified majority. In 2019, the European Parliament had asked for the court’s opinion hoping to clarify the process and thus overcome the political stalemate in the Council regarding the ratification of the Istanbul Convention. Some advocates have expressed frustration that the opinion does not provide the hoped-for clarity. In September, the Parliament adopted a legislative initiative on gender-based violence reiterating its call for the EU to ratify the Istanbul Convention, and noting the importance of addressing the situation of migrant women, especially those on spouse-dependent visas.
UN publishes new guide on gender-responsive migration policies
 
UN Women, the UN agency working for the empowerment of women, recently published a guide to provide guidance to governments and other key stakeholders on gender-responsive implementation of the Global Compact for Migration (GCM). The guide address the specific needs, obstacles, and vulnerabilities of women, girls, and gender non-conforming people at all stages of migration. For each of the 23 Objectives of the GCM, the specific issues relating to migrant women and girls are outlined and concrete measures on how to address them in policies and practice are provided. Objectives concerning undocumented women include: access to services irrespective of one’s irregular status, as well as free or affordable legal assistance to all migrant women; access to permanent residence permits for migrant women who are at risk of being trafficked or are victims of trafficking; employment policies centred around equality of opportunity and treatment, including equal pay; access to effective reporting, complaint, and redress mechanisms for migrant women in the informal economy.
 
LAST MONTH ON TWITTER
 
PICUM 20th anniversary


 
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Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants
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