The deadly Mediterranean

Stemming the wave of would-be migrants trying to enter Europe is proving an uphill struggle. Judith Crosbie reports.

Migration has become one of the biggest points of tension between the European Union and its Mediterranean partners. Two years ago the number of migrants from Morocco trying to enter Spain through the Spanish enclave of Melilla in north Africa spiralled out of control. Hundreds at a time tried to evade Moroccan border guards by scrambling over razor-wire fence to reach Europe. Some died in the attempt.

Since then attention has turned to other migration routes to the EU from North Africa: the Canary Islands, Italy’s southern islands and Malta. But again there is controversy, with reports of hundreds dying in the attempt.

The flows of people from Europe’s Mediterranean neighbours take different forms: skilled and seasonal labour migration, illegal immigrants and asylum-seekers. The war in Iraq has seen refugees crossing into Syria, Jordan and Turkey and on to such EU states as Greece. Europe’s Mediterranean neighbours are also on the transit routes to Europe from other parts of Africa and even Asia, which is why co-operation between Europe and the Mediterranean countries has increased dramatically in recent years.

The Barcelona Process, which was launched in 1995, did deal broadly with migration, but it was a ministerial meeting of EU and Mediterranean leaders in 2002 that adopted a programme to bring the issue into sharper focus. The bilateral agreements, which have grown out of the Barcelona Process, also often encompass migration, including the fight against illegal migration and border control, and visa issues. The European Commission has set up a number of co-operation instruments to help countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America better to manage migration flows. One such programme is Aeneas which funds the development of legal forms of migration, helps protect migrants against mistreatment and trafficking and promotes standards in the field of asylum.

The large numbers of migrants coming from North Africa have in recent years prompted further co-operation and agreements. Frontex, the EU’s border agency, has agreements with Morocco to help patrol its waters for migrants trying to leave the coast. Joint exercises have also taken place with Libya on its southern borders to help reinforce controls.

Spain, Italy and Malta have also set up their own co-operation agreements and joint exercises with these states to help stem the flow of would-be migrants to Europe.

A drop in the number of migrants reaching Italy and Spain this year could be the result of efforts to close off routes but it might mean other, more dangerous, routes open up. The route through Libya is particularly long and dangerous while the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), a UN body based in Geneva, reports that more than 1,000 migrants have arrived for the first time on Sardinia, with many boats thought to have set out from Algeria. "We have to stop people dying in the Mediterranean. We need to find policies to make this happen and get information out to countries of origin," said Flavio di Giacomo of the IOM’s Rome office.

Human rights groups are also concerned at the EU’s concern to keep migrants out. A Human Rights Watch report in 2006 highlighted the treatment of migrants and asylum-seekers by the Libyan authorities. "Migrants, refugees, and asylum-seekers reported physical abuse by Libyan police and prison guards, sometimes allegedly resulting in deaths. They complained of over-crowding in detention facilities, poor sanitation and food, not knowing the reasons for their detention and not having access to a lawyer or legal review," the report said.

In 2005, there were reports that the Moroccan authorities had abandoned hundreds of Africans in the desert near Algeria after Spain expelled them from Melilla and Ceuta.

In response to the growing problem, leaders from 50 European and African countries gathered in Rabat, Morocco, in July last year for a conference on migration and development. A follow-up ministerial conference was held in Tripoli in November and since then the Commission has begun gingerly to take on a role in helping legal migration to Europe. A reception centre was opened recently in Mali to inform would-be migrants how to enter Europe for work. The Portuguese presidency has made migration one of its priorities and the first Euromed ministerial meeting on migration will be held on 18-19 November to discuss legal migration and managing illegal migration.

But some fear that the focus on skilled labour will not address the ambition held by thousands of Africans to work in Europe. "The Commission’s cosy calculation that we can take the best and leave the rest will not work. Pushed by poverty, hunger, squalor and war, people will keep crossing the Mediterranean whether they fit our criteria or not," Graham Watson, the leader of the Liberal Democrat MEPs in the European Parliament, recently warned.

Promoting co-operation

When Euro-Mediterranean leaders met at a summit in 2005 to mark the tenth anniversary of their partnership, they added a number of new elements to their agreement. Although the general goals of peace and security in the region had always been a feature of the partnership, the summit unveiled a code of conduct on countering terrorism and a five-year programme with elements on justice and security. The code of conduct prioritises co-operation with the United Nations on counter-terrorism initiatives, urges exchange of information on terrorist networks, while ensuring respect for human rights and strengthening co-operation between law enforcement bodies. The five-year programme mentions increasing judicial co-operation and the ratification and implementation of UN conventions on drugs and crime.

The Euromed’s general pledges of greater co-operation in these areas have been outstripped by bilateral agreements made by EU states pursuing joint action with their Mediterranean neighbours to combat terrorism. A judicial investigation following the bombings in Spain on March 2004 pointed the finger at a group of Moroccans, Syrians and Algerians, while citizens from these countries have also been suspected of terrorist activity in other EU states such as Germany, Belgium and France. In one instance of joint action, Spanish and Moroccan judicial bodies held meetings on co-operation on terrorism and organised crime. Judges were appointed to liaise between the two countries for continuing co-operation. In July this year on the margins of a gathering of EU foreign ministers, there was a meeting with Moroccan authorities to look at funding for terrorism and money-laundering. The framework of the European Neighbourhood Policy is being used to promote co-operation with Egypt, Tunisia, Jordan, the Palestinian territories, Israel, Lebanon and Algeria on anti-terrorism measures.

Libya presents the EU and its member states with a quandary. Colonel Muammar Qaddafi financed and supported terrorist groups active in Europe for decades. Since Libya renounced its nuclear arms programme in 2003 it has moved closer to the EU and is co-operating on counter-terrorism. But the case of six medical workers sentenced to death and held in Libya until July this year showed that meaningful police and judicial co-operation remains a long way off.

In contrast Turkey, which is a candidate country for EU membership, has passed laws on judicial and penal reform and co-operates closely with the EU on counter-terrorism and combating organised crime.

Stemming the wave of would-be migrants trying to enter Europe is proving an uphill struggle. Judith Crosbie reports.