Berlin – ESI at “Europe 2022” – Europe’s responsibility for refugees

ESI’s Gerald Knaus was invited to speak at a panel on refugee policy at the “Europe 2022” conference organised by the German quality newspapers Tagesspiegel, DIE ZEIT, Handelsblatt, and WirtschaftsWoche. He discussed with Johanna Roth, journalist at DIE ZEIT.

Gerald called on Europeans to act on refugee policy. Migration policy has the potential to “shake the EU to its core”, he said. The European Union is systematically violating its fundamental values in dealing with refugees. The EU has failed to bring together the principles of humanity and control. Instead, there is violence, brutality, and chaos at Europe’s external borders. Most European states rely on control through violence. Accepting refugees without any control, on the other hand, is not a concept and, moreover, does not have a majority within the EU.

He said that it is the task of the new German government to find a solution in consultation with other states. But this does not mean to prevent deaths in the Mediterranean by further violating human rights through pushbacks to Libya. “The answer would have to be: We rescue, we don't bring anyone back to Libya. But we make offers to other states that those who are safe elsewhere will be taken to a country in North Africa after a cut-off date.” There they could apply for admission to an EU country. At the same time, Gerald spoke out in favour of Germany agreeing to take in a fixed quota of people by direct resettlement, as Canada has been doing since the 1980s.

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