Activities of Notis MARIAS related to 2015/2342(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Addressing refugee and migrant movements: the role of EU External Action (debate) EL
Amendments (26)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 1 a (new)
Citation 1 a (new)
– having regard to the Protocol (No 1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) on the role of National Parliaments in the European Union,
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 1 b (new)
Citation 1 b (new)
– having regard to Protocol (No 2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality,
Amendment 4 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Stresses that the financial response to the exceptional influx of refugees has been an ad hoc one and has demonstrated that the Union budget and the multiannual financial framework (MFF) 2014-2020 lack the necessarysufficient resources and flexibility for a rapid and comprehensive approach to a major external crisis;
Amendment 7 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Stresses that the financial response to the exceptional influx of refugees has been an ad hoc one and has demonstrated that the Union budget and the multiannual financial framework (MFF) 2014-2020 lack the necessarysufficient resources and flexibility for a rapid and comprehensive approach to a major external crisis;
Amendment 11 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. whereas the humanitarian crisis affecting more than 65.3 million ‘displaced’ persons1 means that the distinction between people in need of international protection and migrants is becoming increasingly difficult to draw; _________________ 1 http://www.unhcr.org/news/latest/2016/6/ 5763b65a4/global-forced-displacement- hits-record-high.htmlmust be further clarified;
Amendment 12 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Notes that the insufficient size of Heading 4 and the Emergency Aid Reserve in particular has led the Commission to resort to satellite budgetary mechanisms, such as trust funds and the Facility for Refugees in Turkey, to top up the funding available; notes that this aim has not always been met with full success;
Amendment 24 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Expresses its solidarity with people who are forced to leave their countries on account of conflicts, persecution, violations of human rights, extreme poverty and environmental causes; calls on those people to stand firm and not give up the struggle to uphold their rights;
Amendment 29 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Stresses that third countries are facing challenges that pose risks to the rights and the protection of a growing number of people; acknowledges, however, that the EU Member States are unable to accommodate all those facing such problems; expresses the conviction that a very considerable number of migrants illegally entering the territory of EU Member States have not been encountering problems necessitating international protection;
Amendment 31 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital Γ
Recital Γ
C. whereas this challenge requires global solutions; whereas, however, 86 % of the world’s refugees live in developing regions, with least developed countries hosting 26 % of the total; whereas the million people who arrived in the EU in 2015 represented 0.2 % of the EU population, compared with much higher percentages in neighbouring countries;
Amendment 37 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. WelcomNotes the Commission proposal on the revision of the MFF, in particular with regard to endowing the EU budget with larger crisis instruments; expects the proposed revision of the financial rules to reconcile the necessary flexibility and accountability.
Amendment 43 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls on the European Union to open up legal and safe rouensure that the burden is equally distributed between the Member States when it comes to providing sheltesr for migrants and refugerefugees and illegal migrants, based on per capita income, population, growth rates and unemployment rates;
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital Δ
Recital Δ
D. whereas refugees and migrants are legally two distinct categories but in reality often people are part of large-scale mixed movements of people – with political, economic, social, developmental, humanitarian and human rights implications that cut across borders;
Amendment 64 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls for international protection to be provided to people fleeing conflicts, including through resettlement programmes and humanitarian visas, giving priority to their repatriation within their country of origin;
Amendment 84 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas the increase in human mobility, if managed in a safe, orderly, regular and responsible manner, can provide significant benefits, as recognised by the 2030 Agenda, but these are often largely underestimated; whereas the ageing of the European population requires, among other measures, relying on foreign workers in order to guarantee an adequate balance between active and retired people;
Amendment 91 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Calls for all agreements with third countries to guarantee that the rights of migrants, whatever their status,refugees are respected and promotes the adoption of appropriate laws, including in respect of asylum;
Amendment 99 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Underlines that concepts of safe countries and safe countries of origin should not prevent individual assessments of asylum applications; calls accordingly for increased funding for the processing of asylum applications, particularly for Greece and Italy;
Amendment 117 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Underlines the fact that we are witnessing in today’s world an unprecedented level of human mobility, and stresses that one of the most urgent actions the international community must undertake is the strengthening of a common response to address the challenges and opportunities that this phenomenon represents; stresses that this response must be guided by the full protection of the rights and dignity both of everyone forced by any circumstance to flee their homes in search of a better life; underlines that, though their treatment is governed by separate legal frameworks, refugees and migrants have the same universal human rights and fundamental freedoms, which need to be safeguarded regardless of their statu and of those who host them; emphasises that the treatment of migrants and refugees is governed by different legal frameworks; recalls that the EU must abide by its values and principles in all common policies and promote them in its external relations;
Amendment 126 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Calls for the assessment and budgetary control of funds used as part of the Union’s external policies on migration, particularly funds for Turkey and those earmarked for non-governmental organisations;
Amendment 144 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Stresses that well-managed international migration represents an important contribution to socioeconomic development, as it has done historically, and that it is therefore necessary to encourage this by changing the current narrative and developing a positive one, countering xenophobic, populist and nationalistic discoursesbreak away from the dominant ideology of the so-called 'open society' in addressing this phenomenon and to focus on the real problems of people which are not exclusively individual and to place greater emphasis on issues of a cultural nature and on adopting policies focused on the medium and long term and not exclusively guided byaddressing immediate political pressures, while also addresstackling legitimate concerns regarding border management, social protection for vulnerable groups and the attempt to integration ofe refugees and migrants;
Amendment 226 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 2
Subheading 2
Better managed international migration: a global responsibility
Amendment 239 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. WelNotes the outcomes of the UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting to Address Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants of 19 September 2016 and the hosting of the Leaders’ Summit by the USA, as migration flows are a global responsibility which demand a global response and enhanced cooperation between all stakeholders; welcomes the outcome of these summits as the expression of a political commitment of unprecedented force, initiating the path towards a truly international sharing of responsibilities for refugees and large migration movements; regrets however the lack of specific pledges or legally binding commitments in terms of aid or reform, which are needed to close the current gap between rhetoric and reality; calls on all the parties involved to ensure continued political engagement, funding and concrete acts of solidarity in support of host countries; calls for the EU and its Member States to take the lead in international efforts, particularly as regards ensuring that the agreements –including the future compacts on refugees and on safe, orderly and regular migration – are swiftly put into practice, establishing follow-up mechanisms as needed;
Amendment 257 #
8. Underlines that the resettlement of forcibly displaced persons is a responsibility of the international community; cConsiders it crucial to implement as a matter of urgency a coordinated response in third countries to grant asylum for people in need of international protection, instead of leaving the burden on the front-line states or countries neighbouring conflict zones; highlights the fact that financial support is outpaced by the scope and scale of displacement, compounded by the lack of solutions to address the root causes of this forced displacement;
Amendment 271 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Stresses that people who are in need of international protection and are in the EU should be distributed equally among the Member States; calls therefore on Member States to speed up the relocation process as agreed in Council Decision (EU) 2015/1601 of 22 September 2015; stresses that since the refugee flows are expected to continue, it is imperative to extend the relocation programme and, in allocating refugees, to take into account the the population, the per capita GDP and the growth and unemployment rates in each State in order to achieve the best possible integration of the refugee population during their stay;
Amendment 293 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9a. Strongly condemns all military operations by EU Member States and the US which, without UN approval, have led to prolonged political instability, the violent displacement of people and the economic destruction of business sectors; Urges those countries that led these undertakings to assume their responsibilities towards those they have turned into refugees and migrants by their actions and not to pass these responsibilities on to the international community;
Amendment 331 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Stresses that EU external action should be forward-looking instead of mainly reactive with changing objectives in response to new crises; recalls that the migration phenomenon stems from a complex set of causes such as a growing population, poverty, insufficient job creation, political instability, wars and climate change;
Amendment 528 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Welcomes the use of common security and defence policy (CSDP) missions such as EUCAP Sahel Niger and EUNAVFOR MED, cooperation with NATO, and EU initiatives such as Europol’s Joint Operational Team (JOT) Mare to gather intelligence and fight smugglers, while underlining that global mobility should not be considered a threat; recommends the use of CSDP tools for early warning (forecasting), mediation and conflict resolution, while stressing the importance of starting to plan for durable solutions as early as possible in conflict situations;