Home Affairs Minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici yesterday explained to Parliament what happened when a migrant granted refugee status accepted reallocation to another country. He was answering a parliamentary question by Labour MP Anthony Agius Decelis, who had asked what happened if a reallocated refugee found he or she could not settle down in the new country of residence and wished to return to Malta.

Dr Mifsud Bonnici said any refugee could, totally voluntarily, benefit from opportunities of reallocation to another country, as had happened in recent years with EU countries and the United States. This voluntary aspect also applied to the registration of interest in reallocation, the referral to a particular country, and the departure to the country the refugee would have accepted to move to.

In these cases the accepting country assumed all the obligations inherent in the giving of protection, which meant that Malta would be relinquishing all responsibility for the refugee. Although the person could have the right to travel, one would no longer enjoy one’s former status in Malta because the person would be enjoying the rights of protection in the new country of residence.

Answering another question by Mr Agius Decelis, minister Mifsud Bonnici said EU member states were bound to issue any refugee with documents as per the Geneva Convention for travel outside their territories, unless national security or public order precluded such travel.

But he pointed out that refugee status did not confer the right of freedom of movement within the EU. This meant the refugee would not have the right to settle down and work in member states other than the accepting country.