(04/09/06) Migratie Canarische Eilanden: achterliggende oorzaken moeten ook worden aangepakt

• 2006-09-04

De migratie naar de Canarische Eilanden kan niet alleen worden opgelost door de grenzen nog strenger te bewaken. Dit zal de migratiestroom hooguit van richting doen veranderen. De Europese Groene Fractie pleit er dan ook voor om de toestand ter plekke te verbeteren en na te gaan of een aantal van deze mensen niet legaal kan werken binnen de EU.

Immigration - Canary Islands
Bolstering the EU fortress misses the point on migration

In advance of the vote by the European Parliament Civil Liberties Committee on the report on the evolving situation in the Canary Islands, Green MEP and rapporteur Jean Lambert said:
"The sheer scale of those willing to put their lives at risk in attempting to cross to the Canaries highlights the urgency of finding a more comprehensive solution, addressing the root causes of migration. More than 20,000 people have made the perilous crossing to the Canary Islands this year alone, with around 1,500 arriving last weekend alone, while deaths have run into the thousands.

"Our delegation found that the Spanish authorities have taken a positive approach to the continuing crisis in working to prevent deaths. However, the EU response has been disappointingly focused on bolstering the defences. Responding to growing migration by tightening border controls in specific locations merely changes the shape of migration flows. The fundamental problem is why people are leaving their home countries and taking such massive risks.

"Any immigration policy that fails to put development at its core is missing the point. We need to give the poor more legal opportunities to work in the EU, as well as developing the local economy in their country of origin."