Ivan Camilleri, Brussels
EU pilot burden sharing project
Some member states oppose 'compulsory' burden sharing
In an unprecedented move, the EU yesterday launched a pilot burden-sharing project tailor made to Malta's needs.
EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot announced the pilot project following an EU Council meeting of Justice and Home Affairs Ministers in Luxembourg. At the meeting, the European Commission presented member states with a set of urgent proposals aimed at providing added help to overburdened member states such as Malta and Italy.
"We have today discussed thoroughly the problems Malta and Italy are facing with illegal immigration and the Council of Ministers endorsed my proposal to set up for the first time an intra-community voluntary burden-sharing pilot project specifically for Malta. Through this pilot project, refugees and other persons with humanitarian protection currently in Malta will have the opportunity to move to other EU member states and resettle there," Mr Barrot said.
Although no specific details on how the burden-sharing mechanism will work were given yesterday, EU sources said this would be similar to a bilateral agreement in place between Malta and the US.
The US takes a number of refugees from Malta and resettles them in its territory.
The EU Executive is now expected to draw up guidelines for the pilot project with the intention of putting it in motion as from this summer.
Mr Barrot said last week that, although the burden-sharing mechanism would remain voluntary, as the EU could not force member states to take asylum seekers, it was the intention of the Commission to ask member states to pledge how many migrants they could take from Malta.
"We are showing that solidarity is not just words but action," he said. "This is a very important step and a first for the EU in the area."
Meanwhile, a set of urgent proposals submitted by Mr Barrot to help southern EU member states tackle illegal immigration were discussed by EU Home Affairs Ministers and have now been put on the agenda of the EU Foreign Affairs Ministers' meeting to be held in Brussels next week.
The proposals, which were also drawn up with Malta in mind, include concrete measures to start discussions with Libya on the possibility of opening up joint EU-UNHCR reception offices able to assess asylum applications, increased funding for over-burdened member states, reinforcement of Frontex patrol missions and a permanent burden-sharing system.
Mr Barrot said that, although his proposals were received positively by all member states, certain countries were still opposing "compulsory" burden sharing and this would make it impossible for the EU to have as from now a "compulsory" system.
According to EU treaty rules, member states have to agree unanimously in this area in order to implement measures. Mr Barrot however said he was confident that EU Foreign Ministers would give their green light to his proposals and announced that he would soon be going to Libya together with UNHCR chief Antonio Guterres for talks on cooperation on the illegal immigration issue.
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Joe Fenech
Jun 7th 2009, 19:32
It's a disgrace the Barrot proposes such nonsense. One wouldn't tell he' s French!!
Joe Fenech
Jun 7th 2009, 19:24
Refugees or Illegals..there place is not in Europe. Let's do like USA, Australia and Canada and be selective in who we take in. Why does it have to be people who are illiterate, unskilled and bearing disease?
P. Schembri
Jun 6th 2009, 09:10
If no one has noticed it, then please check again. The talk is about refugees not illegal immigrants!
Joseph V. Grech
Jun 5th 2009, 15:56
EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot presents a hackneyed ''solution'' that has already been shown to be ineffective - Solidarity with the illegal immigrants who are invading Malta, Italy and other European country but no real solidartity with the countries that are being ruined.
How can Barrot present a scheme whereby the ''burden-sharing mechanism would remain voluntary, as the EU could not force member states to take asylum seekers''? This is crass inefficiency and not the wonder of wonder solutions it is being presented as!
European leaders need to understand that helping illegal immigrants and taking them in will encourage millions more to come to try their luck. This will magnify the problem, deplete European funds and introduce the seeds that may in time promote serious social unrest. It is the road leading to destabilisation with Europeans losing fast dwindling jobs to outsiders. Is this just a bleak picture? Facts certainly show that Europe is fast heading towards a situation that is economically, socially and culturally counter productive by harbouring the illegal arrivals.
We need statesmen who make Europe's interests their Credo; not inefficient bureaucrats who come up with silly half measures. Begin by ignoring the 'Holier than Thou' irresponsible NGOs!
r ferriggi
Jun 5th 2009, 11:13
No burden sharing, assitance , funds etc will solve the problem.
the problem needs to be eradicated from the roots.
i.e. stop them leaving libya in the first place. THAT is the solution.
actually,,, the more schemes for repatriation, burden sharing etc etc ,,,, the more the illegal immigrants are encouraged to do the crossing!!!
lgalea
Jun 5th 2009, 10:34
Barrot, keep your burden sharing and take all our illegal immigrants.
Alex Spiteri
Jun 5th 2009, 10:10
"burden-sharing project tailor made to Malta's needs"
Burden Sharing will never accommodate Malta’s needs, but only Africans needs!
As a ‘Dutch’ Socialist MP this week stated, if a Burden Sharing project would ever be in place around Europe, it will only boost the ongoing African mass-invasion and encourage more Africans to try their luck.
What Malta needs is to halt this invasion once and for all by applying the Italian method, and most importantly repatriate ALL illegal immigrants back to Africa!
Denis Catania
Jun 5th 2009, 10:03
I hope we get more volunteers than we got from the immigration pact that GonziPN signed last October. Which resulted in NO volunteers. The word volunteer need to replaced with mandatory.