• Increase safe and legal channels into the EU to reduce demand for smuggling and dangerous journeys , specifically through : o Increased refugee resettlement ; o Expanded family reunification ; o Reform of the EU Visa Code with a view to creating a Schengen humanitarian visa ”
Amnesty International Recommendations include : “ Amnesty International is calling on the EU and its member states to :
• open up safe and legal routes , including through increasing resettlement , family reunification , and humanitarian admissions and visas ;
• ensure that refugees have access to territory and asylum at the EU ’ s external land borders ;
• end push-backs and other human rights violations at the borders , particularly through effective investigations into allegations of abuse at the national level , and the initiation of infringement proceedings by the EU Commission , where EU law is breached ;
• significantly increase reception capacity and short-term humanitarian assistance in Europe ’ s front-line countries ; and
• accelerate and extend the implementation of its relocation scheme for asylum seekers ”
Implications .
If there are no additional European search and rescue operations , refugees will continue to die at sea . Refugees will continue to cross the Mediterranean Sea whether or not there are rescue operations , because the push factors are strong from their countries of origin . If Europe does not find a way to help them reach land safely and apply for asylum , it is more likely that refugees would have additional grievances . Prioritizing human rights for refugees , in part through sustained search and rescue operations , will , on the other hand , enhance human security in Europe .
According to Human Rights Watch , “ The provision of more safe and legal channels into the EU – ways for migrants , asylum seekers , and refugees to reach EU territory without having to risk their lives or resort to criminal networks – could reduce the use of dangerous migration avenues . The development of such channels need not amount to an open door policy : those arriving can be screened , have their protection needs assessed , and their entitlement to remain
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