Emergency measures for Latvia, Lithuania and Poland

Feedback from I Want to help Refugees (Gribu palīdzēt bēgļiem) on: Migrants at EU’s external borders - emergency measures for Latvia, Lithuania and Poland I Want to Help Refugees (NGO, Latvia) wish to share our concerns: We urge European Comission to put emphasis on the existing EU asylum rules and ask the EU member states to provide access to systematic asylum procedures to all people stranded at the EU-Belarus…

The Red Cross EU Office (RCEU) represents the 27 National Red Cross Societies in the European Union, the Norwegian Red Cross, the Icelandic Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). We hereby wish to share our serious humanitarian concerns on the impact of this proposal on the dignity and rights of migrants in the countries concerned.

The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) finds that the European Commission’s proposal for a European Council decision on provisional emergency measures for the benefit of Latvia, Lithuania and Poland should be cancelled as it is an inappropriate and disproportional response to the situation at the EU-Belarus border.

PICUM is extremely concerned by the impact on the rule of law in the EU as well as on migrants’ fundamental rights of the Commission’s proposal for a Council Decision establishing provisional measures for the benefit of Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. We are alarmed by the procedure through which this file has been proposed, as well as the contents of the proposal.

Throughout autumn 2021, in the border area between Poland and Belarus, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) witnessed alarming levels of humanitarian and protection needs, as refugees and other migrants who arrived in search of safety and support were left without access to food, medical aid, legal services, or asylum procedures by EU member states.

The European Disability Forum (EDF) considers that Proposal for a Council Decision does not sufficiently take into account the rights and needs of persons with disabilities and do not fully comply with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) ratified by the EU and all its Member States, including Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.

Dear Sir or Madam, the feedback from Jusos-Ludwigsburg is attached. We hope you can answer our questions and take into account our suggestions. With greeting greetings [name removed] Chairman Ludwigsburg

Filed in German · English published by the European Commission

Missing Children Europe is the European federation for missing and sexually exploited children, representing 31 organisations from 27 European countries. We provide the link between research, policies and organisations on the ground to protect children from any kind of violence, abuse or neglect that is caused by or results from them going missing.

Save the Children does not support the adoption of a Council Decision on provisional emergency measures for the benefit of Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. In our view, the emergency measures proposed by the European Commission will endanger access to asylum, will prevent reception conditions standards and safeguards for children to be applied for an extended time and will most likely expose children to systematic…

Amnesty International is strongly critical of the European Commission for the decision to appease the violations committed by the Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, instead of following up with a prompt and robust infringement process to uphold EU law, as mandated under the Treaties.

ECRE does not support the measures proposed, which will have an adverse effect on the right to asylum without adequately responding to the situation at the EU’s borders with Belarus. The main fundamental rights affected by the proposal are the right to human dignity (Article 1 EU Charter of Fundamental Rights (CFREU)), the right to asylum (Article 18 CFREU), the prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading…

Firstly, the PorCausa Foundation considers it questionable whether it is necessary to implement emergency measures to address the situation at the external borders with Belarus, when recourse can be had to the existing legal framework. The Commission’s proposal does not justify these exceptional measures, nor do they prevent the instrumentalisation and suffering of migrants by Belarus.

Filed in Spanish · English published by the European Commission

Belarus cannot be considered the first safe country The mechanism of providing international protection in Belarus does not always guarantee respect for human rights. In some cases, there is no real possibility of using the right to asylum due to the failure to receive information about such a procedure during detention, the lack of the possibility of using the services of an interpreter or a lawyer.

ASGI considers that the situation at the border with Belarus can be addressed in full compliance with international law and Union law, as currently regulated by the Asylum Directives. The current legal framework, if properly implemented, already provides adequate tools to react to an increase in asylum applications in full respect of the rights of applicants for protection.

Filed in Italian · English published by the European Commission

Dear UE team, the proposed decisions are interesting but ARE NOT AT THE LEVEL OF THE THREAT we are facing. YOU must go further and here are some suggestions for you : 1- the countries at the border of the UE must be allowed to build physical fences to streamline clandestines flows and limit the need for police & troops engagment.