Politicians and the media alike speak about the “refugee crises”, “the high influx of migrants” as well as the need to stop this “inflow” and to find ways to combat migration by tackling the “root causes”. The current narrative in politics within the Union undeniably has a negative character and the message seems to be clear: migration is a threat. It is a problem that has to be solved.
At this week’s EU-Afghanistan donor conference (3rd to 4th October) over 70 countries and 20 international organisations and agencies came together in Brussels to discuss Afghanistan’s development. Although political cooperation and financial support were the main focus of the conference, the gathering was questioned months ahead of it start due to a leaked file published by the Guardian in March 2016. The document revealed that the EU’s plans to make assistance “migration sensitive” and required a commitment by Afghanistan to readmit an unlimited number of Afghan citizens that were not granted asylum in Europe.
European Churches should urge the European Union and the United Nations to help Eritrean refugees. A new flow of refugees from this country looms. Dutch media outlet ‘Reformatorisch Dagblad’ reports.