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THE EU’S TOP diplomat, High Representative Josep Borrell, described it at a European Parliament committee meeting as simply a “catastrophe”.
The images shown around the world this week captured the terrifyingly swift collapse of the Afghan government, the panic of the crowds storming Kabul airport and the general sense of helplessness as innocent men, women and children lost their lives.
Nevertheless, much of the coverage, especially that coming from some of our fellow EU member states, has focused on a potential migration crisis, which could buffet Europe in the coming weeks.
Framing this crisis as a security issue would be a fatal mistake. I firmly believe that the international community must come together to protect those fleeing persecution and the European Union should provide global leadership in this regard.
According to international law, the definition of a refugee is having a well-founded fear of persecution. There is no greater demonstration of this than people clinging to the wheel of a moving aeroplane.
The crisis that we have witnessed explode over the last number of days and weeks is a tragedy that will affect the lives of hundreds of thousands of innocent Afghans.
The EU and its member states must renew efforts to reach an agreement around a solidarity mechanism, in line with current proposals on the Pact on Migration and Asylum, in order to ensure a united European response to any potential upcoming refugee crisis.
Fortunately, if the EU and its member states fail to achieve this, there is already the 2001 Temporary Protection Directive in place.
We have the ability
The Directive was the EU’s concrete response to the need for special procedures to deal with mass influxes of displaced persons. The 1990s saw a wave of migration from the Western Balkans as successive conflicts in the former Yugoslavia, in Kosovo and elsewhere forced millions to leave their homes.
Temporary protection is an exceptional measure to provide immediate and temporary shelter to displaced persons from non-EU countries and those unable to return to their country of origin. It applies when there is a risk that the standard asylum system is struggling to cope with demand stemming from a mass influx. However, 20 years on, the Directive has still never been triggered.
It has faced two main problems. The first is that the existence of a ‘mass influx’ of displaced persons is something that has to be agreed on by a qualified majority of member states and the European Commission, something easier said than done when it comes to sensitive topics like migration.
Second, the provisions contained in this Directive require solidarity between EU states. Borrell has promised that he will highlight the potential of the Temporary Protection Directive at the next European Council, welcome news for all those who see this as a humanitarian tragedy.
The military spend argument
Some of my colleagues in the European Parliament have sought to cast this tragedy in terms of a military defeat, which merits the development of a European army or increased European defence spending. I do not believe this is the correct response.
If the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have shown anything, increased military spending does not lead to peace or greater stability. One Belgian MEP described it as the “powerlessness of power”. Instead, the well-being of the Afghan people must be our priority.
As well as a moral obligation towards refugees, there is a need to minimise stress on European democracies and EU countries must work to share the burden with fellow EU border states who should not be left isolated in dealing with this challenge.
Solidarity and agreement in the face of this crisis are urgently required from the EU in order to protect Afghan lives. As such, strong consideration should be given to an inaugural use of the Temporary Protection Directive.
Barry Andrews is a Fianna Fáil MEP representing the Dublin Constituency. He is a member Renew Europe Group in the European Parliament and is a member of the Development Committee (DEVE) in the European Parliament.
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The EU shouldn’t to expected to take massive amounts of refugees everytime theres a crisis around the world. Why aren’t middle east countries taking refugees?
@Munster1: I guess there should have been restrictions placed on Irish emigration every time the Irish economy sputtered. I’m not saying its always cut and dried, but no one deserves to live under the Taliban.
@Munster1: they are, the largest number of refugees are located in Turkey (3.7 million), Pakistan have taken in 1.4 million refugees. Internationally the EU isn’t the main destination, Colombia have taken in 1.7 million and Uganda 1.4 million. An EU country only appears 5th in the global list of refugees recipient countries, Germany at 1.2 million.
So out of the top 5 countries the EU has taken in only 13%.
https://www.unhcr.org/refugee-statistics/
@Munster1: doyou have the vaguest idea of how many refugees Middle Eastern countries have and continue to take???
@Munster1:
Surely the countries responsible for this crisis have the major responsibility for it?
These are the NATO countries which showered Afghanistan with bombs for 20 years, destroying its economy, and killing and maiming hundreds of thousands of Aghani civilians.
Ireland did not participate in the war on Afghanistan: why should it take responsibility for the collaborators of NATO countries? Instead it should take some (unfortunately it can’t take all) of the victims of the NATO bombings.
@Munster1: or the Americans who created the crisis in the first place?
@Shedonny: because we have a heart and are a compassionate people. Although obviously not all of us thought judging by some of the comments on here
@Shedonny: we are part of the 1951 United Nations convention and are obliged to tale refugees.
We are also complicit in the war by amassing in on the US to refuel and move troops and weapons through our airports which was a contradiction of our neutrality according to the Hague convention.
We don’t get to play football with the big boys and then say we’re taking our ball and going home.
Regardless of that I’d like to think the cead mile failte still exists in Ireland.
@David A. Open the borders to their women. That would sort the men out in no time.
@Terry McSweeney:
Because I have a heart and and compassionate, my heart goes out to the Afghani people who have been a war zone for 20 years through no fault of their own.
@Munster1: Because most of the middle East is a war zone. Remember the Arab Spring that was hailed by the West as a fight for democracy, well we know how that turned out.
@Munster1: no, they should want to.
China has a border with Afghanistan but you dont hear of the exodus to there. While I agree the people need help it always seems to be Europe that is the destination. How many refugees are the rich Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia going to take? Turkey is getting billions from the EU to hold the floodgates. We need to talk about the countries that fund the Taliban and give them a safe haven they should be cleaning this mess up.
@Shane De Paor: So your advice to people fleeing a tyrannical regime, is for them to seek safe have under…other tyrannical regimes, LOL.
@Rebecca BarrettNp: My point is about a fair intake system around the world and not to put all the pressure and costs on certain countries while others don’t do their part and some have even funded this terror group along with its ideology but yet they take in zero refugees!
@Shane De Paor: if a country finds and supports the ideology of the Taliban. A. Why would they take refugees. B. Why would a refugee to there, they would still not be safe and therefore would have to keep moving to the first safe place they found.
Bit of a flaw in your plan to turn your back on desperate people. How about we just do what we can to help. By the way we pledged to take 300. By 2023 The UK pledge to take 20k over 4 years.
Barry says …..
1. We should do something
2. We can do something
3. Recognises that the only way we can do something is by using EU militaries
4. Ignores the fact that Irelands military doesn’t have any airlift capability as successive govt’s have historically and continue to refuse to buy any capable transport aircraft.
5. Then says that all EU nations are complaining about not having enough lift capability either, (they don’t, fact)
6. Finished up by saying that we shouldn’t invest in the military?
Well done Barry, sound plan there.
Barry’s superficial posturing with no plan
What about OUR HOMELESS don’t give a toss about them do they ,& now we are importing terrorize in too IRELAND & Europe
@Charles Shelly: our homeless are entitled to social welfare, free healthcare and HAP payments, oftentimes over €1,000 towards rent, paid for by those of us who do pay tax. You are comparing our homeless who have tonnes of support to people fleeing from a warzone, from being murdered and r*ped. Do you know how many asylum seekers Ireland takes every year, as an absolute number and as a % of population? Do you know how that compares to other countries? Do you understand our international obligations to take in asylum seekers?
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