| Author (Person) | Dembour, Marie-Bénédicte |
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| Series Title | The Conversation |
| Series Details | 21.05.15 |
| Publication Date | 21/05/2015 |
| Content Type | Journal | Series | Blog |
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As the migrant crisis in the Mediterranean continued, the public outcry against deaths at sea forced the European Union (EU) into response mode. EU officials and member states promised in May 2015 to do something about the situation. Alongside discussions about resettlement agreements, there were proposals to destroy the boats used by migrant smugglers before they can leave Libya. But this highly controversial use of force would be problematic and counterproductive on a number of levels. One of its many problems is that the destruction of boats would not help those who were in need of refuge. So it’s interesting to consider what the European Court of Human Rights – which presents itself as 'the conscience of Europe' – might think about this. As a judicial rather than a political body, the court would not, of course, directly comment. Nonetheless, its 2012 judgement in the case of Hirsi Jamaa v. Italy may shed some light upon its views. The case concerned Somali and Eritrean migrants travelling from Libya in 2009 who had been intercepted at sea by the Italian authorities and sent back to Libya. Returning them to Libya without examining their case exposed them to a risk of ill-treatment and amounted to a collective expulsion. |
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| Source Link | https://theconversation.com/why-the-european-court-of-human-rights-is-no-friend-to-migrants-42129 |
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| Subject Categories | Justice and Home Affairs, Law, Values and Beliefs |
| Countries / Regions | Eastern Europe, Europe |
