30 Amendments of Olivier CHASTEL related to 2019/2206(INI)
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 3
Citation 3
— having regard to Articles 1, 2, 3, 4, 18, 19 and 1847 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union,
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 4
Citation 4
— having regard to Articles 2, 3, 5, 8 and 813 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR),
Amendment 12 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 19 a (new)
Citation 19 a (new)
— having regard to the report of the European Asylum Support Office of June 2020, entitled ‘Annual Report on the Situation of Asylum in the European Union’,
Amendment 16 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -A (new)
Recital -A (new)
-A. whereas the implementation of the Dublin regulation is closely linked to the implementation of other files of the European asylum and migration policy; whereas these pieces of legislations and policies impact the efficiency of the Dublin regulation and therefore need to be considered in its evaluation;
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas 2.5 million people applied for asylum in the European Union in the period 2015-2016, a fourfold increase compared to 2012-20131,393,920 asylum seekers applied for international protection in the EU+ in 2015 and 1,292,740 in 2016, a fourfold increase compared to 2012 (373,375) and 2013 (464,515); whereas the number of applications for international protection in the EU+ is rising again in 2018 (665,920) and 2019 (738,425); whereas about 17,700 unaccompanied minors lodged an application for international protection in 2019; whereas 86% of them were boys and 90% between 14-18 years;
Amendment 23 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas early 2020, about 855,000 asylum applications were still pending in the EU+;
Amendment 26 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas in the recent years a significant new trend was an increase in the number of applications lodged by third-country nationals who travel visa- free or with a short-term visa to enter the Schengen area; whereas in 2019 the number of applications lodged by third- country nationals who travelled visa-free accounted for one-quarter of all applications; whereas the rate of protection of these third-country nationals is often low while the volume of application is high; whereas visa waiver or short-term visa also represent a regular and safe path to enter the EU for third- country nationals eligible to international protection;
Amendment 30 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas one-third of the Member States currently play host toed 90% of asylum seekers between 2008-17;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
Ba. whereas several “first-entry” Member States in the Mediterranean, Greece, Italy, Malta, Cyprus and Spain, received a large part of first time applications, in particular during the 2015-16 crisis; whereas a strong burden is put on first-entry countries to determine the Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection in accordance to the Dublin regulation;
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B b (new)
Recital B b (new)
Bb. whereas in 2018, Germany recorded the largest number of applications (184,180, or 28% of the total), followed by France (120,425 applications, or 19%), Greece (66,695 applications, or 11%), Italy (59,950 applications, or 10%) and Spain(52,700 applications, or 9%);
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B c (new)
Recital B c (new)
Bc. whereas there are significant divergences between Member States in terms of safe-country of origin analysis;
Amendment 67 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Da. whereas the temporary solidarity mechanism for Search and Rescue in the Mediterranean settled by the Malta declaration, and signed on 23rd September 2019 by Germany, France, Italy and Malta, was valid for a period of at least six months; whereas no other Member State joined this ad hoc agreement;
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D b (new)
Recital D b (new)
Db. whereas information gaps do not allow for a comprehensive evaluation of the implementation of Dublin regulation; whereas statistical information is not provided to the same degree or frequency between the Member States; whereas key information gaps cover grounds for requests, duration of procedures, resources, withdrawn applications, failed transfers, appeal, processes and detention;
Amendment 82 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Considers that the Dublin system places a significant burden on a minority of Member States, in particular when influxes of migrants occur; considers that the first- entry criterion in Dublin put an unprecedented and disproportionate burden on frontline countries in 2015-16 in terms of registration and reception of asylum seekers; stresses that the introduction of hotspots and a temporary relocation programme as proposed by the Commission in 2015 was intended to rebalance the management of asylum- seekers when entering the EU territory, as a pragmatic approach compared to the strict application of Dublin regulation principles; takes the view that the EU therefore needs a solidarity mechanism which makes for fair sharing of burdens and responsibility among Member States in accordance with article 80 TFEU, including through relocation on the basis of objective criteria of asylum seekers who are manifestly eligible for asylum;
Amendment 118 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes that the crisis management tool provided for in Article 33 did not provide effective support to the Member States, nor did it offer a response to the consequences of the COVID-19 crisis; notes that Article 33 has actually never been applied, not even during the migration crisis in 2015-16; considers that a solidarity-based crisis management mechanism, endowed with a financial instrument managed by the Commission, should be established to ensure continuity of the right of asylum in the EU under the best possible conditions;
Amendment 157 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Highlights the significant operational backing for Dublin procedures provided by the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) in the hotspots; calls on the Commission and the Member States to facilitate the work of EASO staff by allowing interviews in a language other than that of the country in which they are conductedapplicant understands; calls for the establishment of a European Asylum Agency, with sufficient financial and human resources;
Amendment 165 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Points out that the protection of fundamental rights must be at the heart of the measures taken to implement the Dublin III Regulation, including the protection of children, victims of trafficking and the most vulnerable, such as LGBTI persons;
Amendment 173 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7b. Notes with concern that LGBTI persons can be subjected to discrimination and violence in countries deemed ‘safe’, thus rendering their claims for asylum entirely legitimate in such circumstances; further notes that fast-track procedures and list of 'safe countries' should not unduly affect asylum claims of vulnerable groups, such as LGBTI persons; recalls that the application of fast-track procedures and lists of safe countries should be consistent with the principle of non-refoulement and fundamental rights of the most vulnerable;
Amendment 186 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Calls on Member States to adequately train asylum officers regarding the needs of the most vulnerable, such as LGBTI persons, and to ensure interviews are conducted in settings favourable to the full disclosure of crucial information to prove the validity of the claim; notes with concern that some LGBTI asylum-seekers may not feel initially comfortable with disclosing their sexual orientation or gender identity because of previous negative interactions with authorities in the country of origin;
Amendment 190 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 b (new)
Paragraph 8 b (new)
8b. Detention shall be as short as possible and shall be for no longer than the time reasonably necessary to fulfil the required administrative procedures with due diligence until the transfer under this Regulation is carried out; stresses that in the absence of harmonised criteria for determining the risk of absconding, Member States have adopted divergent and sometime controversial criteria; calls on the Member States and the Commission to clarify the criteria for keeping asylum seekers in detention;
Amendment 197 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Stresses that the number of transfer procedures has increased significantly, in 2016-17, generating considerable human, material and financial costs; deplores, however, the fact that in only 11% of cases are transfers actually carried out, a further factor in the permanent overloading of asylum systems; stresses the lack of cooperation and information-sharing between Member States; regards efforts to combat secondary movements as essential in order to reduce the number of transfer requests; proposes that the conditions which trigger transfer procedures be clarified and harmonisedunderlines that between 2016 and 2019, Germany and France issued by far the most requests (68% of the total for the two countries alone), while Spain, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Poland and Czech Republic issued few Dublin requests; stresses that Spain issued almost no Dublin requests, despite a large and growing number of asylum applications; deplores, however, the fact that in only 11% of cases are transfers actually carried out, a further factor in the permanent overloading of asylum systems; underlines that there are significant differences between countries, with 54.6% of transfers carried out from Greece, 42.2% from Sweden, 11.2% from Germany, 6.7% from France, and 1.6% from Italy between 2016 and 2019, while noting significant information gap for a number of countries;
Amendment 207 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9a. Highlight the important body of ECtHR and CJEU case law in the recent years that clarified the admissible grounds for denying Dublin transfers, in particular any source of risk to the individual; notes in particular an increasing amount of decisions from European and nationals courts to suspend transfers to Member States where an asylum seeker would be unfairly denied international protection (indirect refoulement) or would be denied their rights in the Dublin procedure; deplores that asylum seekers are victims of inhumane or degrading treatment in certain Member States;
Amendment 210 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 b (new)
Paragraph 9 b (new)
9b. Notes that shortages in terms of structural organisation, resources and functioning of national asylum authority contributed to delay Dublin procedures and hindered the application of the Regulation; notes that while most countries entrusted one specialised authority for asylum, some Member States have chosen to separate the responsibility between different authorities, creating in certain cases practical complexities for asylum seekers and divergences in the implementation of the regulation;
Amendment 212 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 c (new)
Paragraph 9 c (new)
9c. Stresses that the efficiency of Dublin procedures also depends on the quality and size of staff in each national asylum authority; notes important gaps between asylum authorities in terms of number of staff per asylum applicants; stresses that national Dublin Units are understaffed while facing significant increase in their workload;
Amendment 213 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 d (new)
Paragraph 9 d (new)
9d. Stresses the lack of cooperation and information-sharing between Member States; notes that “take back” requests have been the dominant form of Dublin procedures in recent years, meaning that most persons placed in a Dublin procedure had already applied for asylum in another Member State; regards efforts to combat secondary movements as essential in order to reduce the number of transfer requests; stresses that the strict application of the “irregular entry” criterion puts a disproportionate burden on first-entry countries, who often lack resources and capacities to host and register asylum seekers; recalls that the time limits at each stages of the Dublin procedure are meant to keep the procedure short and enable fast access to the asylum procedure; notes that there are still a lack of clarity and variations between the Member States for the calculation of time limits and the point at which the clock starts for each procedure; proposes that the conditions which trigger transfer procedures be clarified and harmonised;
Amendment 225 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Considers that providing asylum seekers with legal assistance in connection with Dublin procedures, in particular in the hotspots, would simplify the process of obtaining asylum and improve decision- making; calls on the Member States to improve the information made available to asylum seekers on the complex Dublin procedures, to ensure that it is clear and accessible to everyone;
Amendment 229 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11 a (new)
Paragraph 11 a (new)
11a. Stresses that the quality and amount of information provided to the applicants along the Dublin procedures is far from being satisfactory, varies significantly between countries, and in some cases within countries; notes that different factors affect the compliance the right of information, such as the quality and clarity of information, the access to an interpreter, the availability of translated documents, the access to information in due time; recalls that the right to information according to article 4 of the regulation is essential regarding the complex nature of Dublin procedures and to guarantee the access to a fair examination of an asylum application in the EU; underlines that gaps in this field can be related to a lack of resources but also results from deliberate policy choices in certain countries; calls on the Member States to improve the information made available to asylum seekers, to ensure that it is clear and accessible to everyone;
Amendment 278 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Amendment 281 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. UNotes that bilateral agreements have been concluded between Member States to improve the efficiency of Dublin procedures or ensure the transfer of asylum seekers; urges the Commission and the Council to work towards convergence in the bilateral agreements concluded between Member States and with third countries, in order to optimise implementation of the Dublin III Regulation;
Amendment 284 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Paragraph 17 a (new)
17a. Considers that the implementation of the Dublin regulation is not effective as the primary objectives are not met, i.e. a swift and fair determination of the Member States responsible for an application to international protection; recalls that significant gaps of implementation are identified for a number of Dublin provisions; stresses that the regulation is highly inefficient with regard to the cost of implementation compared to the efficiency of the regulation;