The GUE/NGL group believes that the European Union should undertake a complete rethinking of its migration policy. Restoring the dignity of migrants should be the priority of the European Union approach to migration.
Our priorities are:
– A real and humane reception policy for migrants
- Identification procedures should not last longer than a few days. They must not take place in the holding centres.
- Every Member State should implement national asylum legislation in accordance with International Conventions and the highest human rights standards.
– The opening up of new channels for legal migration
The first step should be the establishment of a work-residence permit.
The effects:
Fighting the phenomenon of illegal migration:
- countering the trafficking of migrants and those who profit from it.
- reducing illegal status: it would be in the interest of the migrant to be identified by the authorities in order to obtain a work permit.
To combat black market labour:
Upon arrival in Europe, the only way for many migrants to survive is to get an illegal job. Current migration policies are indirectly supporting black labour markets and fostering a general decrease in the average European salary. European workers would therefore benefit from greater equality in working conditions.
– A change in public perception
European public opinion perceives migrants in the context of repressive migration policies. As long as migrants are seen to be “illegal”, there will be no foundation for real social integration.
– “Civic citizenship”
For a constructive and successful migration policy, a wider and more concrete recognition of social and civic rights is needed. Citizenship should be not based on nationality but on residence.
