Activities of Marie-Christine VERGIAT related to 2010/2269(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
EU response to the migration flows in North Africa and the Southern Mediterranean, in particular, in Lampedusa - Migration flows arising from instability: scope and role of EU foreign policy (debate)
Amendments (29)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 7 a (new)
Citation 7 a (new)
- having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 10 December 1948, the International Covenant on economic, social an cultural rights, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1968), the United nations Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (1989), the Convention Against torture and Other Cruel Inhumane or Degrading treatment of Punishment (1989), the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1993) and t the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of all Migrant Workers and Members of their Families (2004) ,
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 7 a (new)
Citation 7 a (new)
-having regard to the UN Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, adopted on 18 December 1990,
Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas migration, as a longstanding worldwide phenomenon, has contributed to the exchange of ideas and therefore also to the cultural and economic enrichment of the European Union,
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 7 b (new)
Citation 7 b (new)
- having regard to the Geneva Convention of 28 July 1951 and the Protocol of 31 January 1967 relating to the status of Refugees,,
Amendment 5 #
Draft opinion
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
Ba. whereas freedom of movement is a fundamental right and whereas migration often arises from a desire on the part of migrants to take their existence in hand, build a better future and live in dignity; whereas therefore not only is it impossible to halt migration but nor should it be halted;
Amendment 6 #
Draft opinion
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas migration has many reasons, such as fleeing from poverty, injustice, war, persecution, lack of prospects and income, changes in the environment, social situations and unrestwhich have evolved and which multiply over time, such as, in particular, poverty, lack of prospects and income, social situations and unrest, injustice, assaults on and deprivation of liberties, conflicts between or within States, persecution on grounds of religious beliefs, ethnic origin or sexual orientation, discrimination and dispossession of cultural groups/minorities (confiscation of land, etc.), changes in the environment, particularly climate, a desire for family unification and hope for a better future, and whereas very often those reasons are intertwined,
Amendment 13 #
Draft opinion
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas the primary goal of EU migration policy should be to address the reasons for migration and find durable and sustainable solutions to the challenges that arise from migration in the countries of origin and transit and in the host Member States,
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 12
Citation 12
– having regard to its resolution of 21 September 2010 on poverty reduction and job creation in developing countries: the way forward*, in particular paragraphs 71, 72 and 73 thereof1,
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 12 a (new)
Citation 12 a (new)
Amendment 21 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the political and economic instability issituation in the migrants’ countries of origin is often the major driving force behind migration, particularly irregular migration, depriving affected communitiessections of the population of viable local prospects and, hence, of the right to choose whether to migrate or not and leaving them with migration, often irregular migration, as their only option; whereas climate change and environmental degradation are becoming an increasingly common cause of migration; whereas most migration takes place between countries in the South, thus further exacerbating the economic and social situation of the countries concerned,
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas migration arising from instability is triggered in particular by waris usually the result of war, warlike situations and armed conflicts or the risk thereof, human rights abuses - including the persecution or the limitation of the rights of minorities, including religious minorities - natural, including in particular failure to respect the right of freedom of expression and the right of access to the most fundamental rights, but also various forms of persecution, expropriation, or limitation of the rights of minorities (on the basis of sexual orientation, religion, belief, membership of a cultural or sectarian minority, etc), social situations and unrest, natural (and, in particular, climate-related) and man-made disasters, and the lack of viable economic prospects and of a sustainable structure for democracy and good governance, respect for and the promotion of civil, political, cultural, economic and social rights,
Amendment 33 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Considers that there is a need for further research on climate-induced migration and asks the Commission to address the problem of migration due to the above causes, environmental factors and climate change forced migration and to consider the possibility of allowing the migrants concerned to qualify for subsidiary protection on a temporary basis until longer-term solutions are found;
Amendment 34 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Calls on the European Union and Member States to take action both internally and at international level to encourage the countries of origin of migrants to adopt and implement measures and policies which enable them to develop socially, economically and democratically and do not compel their citizens/nationals to migrate; calls on the Union and Member States therefore to take the necessary steps to finance their development, particularly to swiftly attain the target of allocating 0.7% of their GDP to development aid;
Amendment 35 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
Ba. whereas migration is a very ancient phenomenon which now exists on a world scale, has fostered the exchange of ideas and has contributed to the cultural and economic enrichment of the European Union, and whereas migration is the result of a number of factors which have changed and reinforced each other over time, which means that global and unilateral responses are unlikely to be feasible or effective;
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B c (new)
Recital B c (new)
Bb. whereas freedom of movement is a fundamental right and whereas migration often arises from a desire on the part of migrants to take charge of their own lives, create a better future and live in dignity; whereas, therefore, migration neither can nor should be halted;
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B d (new)
Recital B d (new)
Bc. whereas no Member State of the European Union has adopted the UN Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families to date; whereas that Convention is the most broadly-based international legal framework for the protection of the rights of migrant workers and their families and gives States guidance as to the approach to be adopted to ensure migrants’ rights are respected when policies relating to the migration of labour are drawn up and implemented,
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas economic instability has a particularly strong impact on younger generations, who are left without employment prospects and may more easily fall victim the lack of economic and social prospects has a particularly strong impact on decisions to opt for migration on the part of the younger generations, who are left without employment or other favourable prospects, have no choice but to leave or flee their country and may even, in the case of some individuals, be drawn into violence, and radicalism; and recruitment by terrorist groups,whereas the possibility of migration is usually open only to people from middle- class families;
Amendment 45 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas the exploitation of irregular migration puts not only puts the lives of migrants, but also those of their families, at high risk, butand moreover is very often associated with the worst human rights abuses, including slave labour, sexual exploitation, child abuse and gender violence, and whereas action by the EU to prevent such abuses and to protect migrants, including irregular migrants, in situations of distress often proves vital,
Amendment 56 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas the exploitation of irregular migration ismay also be combined with varmsious forms of smuggling and drug trafficking - with an alarming strengthening of linkages between drug traffickers in Latin America and in States in West and Central Africa - and coincides with escape routes and enhanced mobility for terrorist groups, which can easily relocate to other regions and countries to pursue their activities, including people trafficking, arms smuggling and drug trafficking; whereas the exploitation of irregular migration is a knownmay be a source of funding for radical and terroristterrorist groups and organised criminal groups,
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital L
Recital L
L. whereas remittances, which can play a potentially play a positive role in fostering the economic development, can, as was the case in Somalia and Eritrea, become a financing tool for forces which s of migrants’ countries of origin, as the sums remitted by migrants to those countries sometimes exceekd to undermine any prospect of stability; whereas maximum transparency should thus be ensured he institutional support provided, but whereas such remittances can also be appropriated for the purpose of destabilising the transmission of such fundscountry, as in the case of Somalia and Eritrea,
Amendment 94 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital N
Recital N
Amendment 95 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital O
Recital O
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Notes that against a background of increasing multilateralism with several international players and major donors, such as the EU, the US, Japan, China and, potentially, in a longer term perspective, other BRIC countries, such as also Brazil and India, stability and security are a shared objective and an essential pre- condition for global economic growth; notes, further, that the stability and security challengeschallenges in this area are such that they require not only relevant resources, at a time of budget constraints, but also economies of scale and coordinated efforts; believes that a reflection should be started on an active dialogue between the EU, the US, Japan and China and international financial institutions on coordinated geographical and thematic security, stability and aid strategies, which would make for collective leverage and a more targeted and efficient allocation of resources; believes, also in the light of the recent White House foreign aid review, which highlighted the value of aid coordination with other major donors, that a first important step towards such a reflection could be an EU-US summit on enhanced cooperation on humanitarian and development aid to identify, from a tr-reorientation of the development thinking and policies of the developed countries towards developing and less advanced countries should be started on coordinated geographical and thematic strategies concerning stability, security, aid and support for developing countries, based on an active dialogue on an equal footing, at international level and in the relevant international organisatlantic perspective, shared areas of interest and the foundations of policy coordinationions, between all the states concerned;
Amendment 118 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Calls on the European Union and Member States to take action both internally and at international level to encourage the countries of origin of migrants to devise and implement measures and policies which enable them to develop socially, economically and democratically and do not compel their nationals to migrate; calls on the EU and Member States therefore to take the necessary steps to finance their development, and particularly to swiftly attain the target of allocating 0.7% of their GDP to development aid;
Amendment 131 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Stresses the value of EU election observation missions as the first important step in any process of democratisation and good governance, and believes that such missions should be part of a broader framework of support for a long-term democratisation process; highlights the importance of mediation and conflict- prevention and resolution strategies and of institution- and capacity-building for regional organisations, such as the African Union (AU), which plays an important role in peace-keeping and peace-building operations; believes that the support for the AU should include the development of an effective border-control capacity and support for its capacity to fight the exploitation of irregular migration and to provide relief for irregular migrants in situations of distress; considers that the effective strengthening of regional organisations as multipliers of regional peace and stability will foster regional integration and the emergence of cross- border economic areas;will help contribute to regional stability.
Amendment 141 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. WelcomDeplores the recent agreement on an EU-Libya cooperation agenda on migration, particularly as regards joint efforts to provide financial support for African countries in order to create viable alternatives to migration and the development in Libya of a more efficient system to manage labour migration, by allowing the maximisation of the skills of the migrants already present in the country; believes that agreements on a cooperation agenda on migration should be reached with other countries in geographic proximity to the EU which can be valuable partners in providing support to fragile States in their neighbourhood and in offering migrants the skills required to access their job- marketopening of negotiations on the EU-Libya framework agreement because of the wholesale human rights violations committed by the Libyan authorities and their failure to sign and ratify international agreements, not least in the field of human rights and asylum;
Amendment 150 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Calls on the Commission to consider as part of its ongoing review of the ENP the provision of specific funding for the development of a renewed, strong economic agenda in ENP countries, including an employment agenda; believes that a roadmap should be discussed with ENP countries on the alignment of their national migration laws with EU standards,and jointly drafted with the ENP countries on their expectations as regards interaction with the EU; stresses that such agreements must be negotiated by both parties on an equal footing, in a manner respecting the sovereignty of the countries concerned and international agreements; emphasises that these agreements must includinge human rights standards, such asclauses on, for example, the right to asylum, a protection system for irregular migrants and equal rights for all migrants; encourages the conclusion of more mobility partnership agreements with ENP countries, in addition to the existing ones with Moldova and Georgia;
Amendment 158 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Calls on the Commission, when preparing the new external action instruments for the period after 2013, to ensure that the proposed architecture allows for synergies and mutual reinforcement between the development pillar and the security and stability pillar and the other EU institutions to award special attention to the issue of human rights as a whole in the partnership agreements concluded with third countries, and in particular emerging, developing and less advanced countries, given the undeniable links between economic, social, civil and political rights and between democratic progress and social progress, and hence calls on the Commission and the other EU institutions to shape a genuine mutual interest partnership for all facets of development, covering cooperation on, inter alia, economic and social development, proper employment, qualifications and training, and to ensure that the proposed architecture allows for synergies that foster genuine development under the control of the countries concerned and provides for the rapid allocation of emergency and recovery funds, a rapid response to provide relief for migrants in a situation of distress, specific programmes to provide active support for religious minorities which may be under threat, and support measures to mitigate the consequences of climate change and preserve the economic and social environment of affected communities;