Luxembourg – ESI argues that Europe can humanely control migration

Gerald with the Europa Union in Luxembourg. Photo: Europa Union Luxemburg

ESI’s Gerald Knaus gave a presentation to the Europa-Union Luxemburg on migration and the future of democracy in Europe. The event held as part of the Union’s speaker series “Let's talk about Europe!” focused on the upcoming EU reforms to create a common asylum service.

In his presentation, Gerald talked about the danger posed by the rise of the AfD in Germany. He noted that we need more from our decision-makers than only speeches – decision makers must now take concrete political decisions that address the publics’ concerns in order to arrest the far-right’s momentum. He explained how this required real solutions in the debate on migration management, with fears regarding migration being at the core of the AfD’s surge.

Gerald noted that there is a moral and legal alternative to the brutal, illegal policies promoted by the far-right. Such a solution, he suggested, would have its roots in the 2016 EU-Turkey deal, which reduced crossings and deaths in the Mediterranean by ninety percent. A good place to start, Gerald argued, would be a deal between EU member states and the UK, where the EU would agree to accept any migrants who attempted the illegal journey across the Channel in return for increased legal resettlement of migrants from the EU to the UK directly.

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