Mass arrival of irregular migrants on Europe’s Southern shores

Recommendation 1767 (2006)

Author(s):

Parliamentary Assembly

Origin

Assembly debate on 5 October 2006 (29th Sitting) (see Doc. 11053, report of the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population, rapporteur: Mr Chope). Text adopted by the Assembly on 5 October 2006 (29th Sitting).

Thesaurus

1. The Parliamentary Assembly refers to its Resolution 1521 (2006) on the mass arrival of irregular migrants on Europe’s southern shores.

2. The Assembly considers that the Council of Europe has an important contribution to make in terms of ensuring that the rights and humanitarian needs of all persons arriving on Europe’s southern shores are met. At the same time it considers it important that the Council of Europe respond to the need for a managed European migration policy taking full account, as noted in the Action Plan adopted at the 3rd Summit of Heads of State and Government, of the fact that “management of this migration is a major challenge to 21st-century Europe”.

3. Therefore, the Assembly recommends that the Committee of Ministers:

3.1 instruct the European Committee on Migration (CDMG) and the Steering Committee for Human Rights (CDDH) to hold an exchange of views on a possible European response to the mass arrival of irregular migrants on Europe’s southern shores with a view to proposing further bilateral and multilateral co-operation in this area, both from a human rights and migration management viewpoint;

3.2 invite the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) to give priority to the issue of mass arrivals and the conditions in which persons arriving are detained in its future visits and work programmes;

3.3 take the necessary steps to tackle the illegal criminal networks responsible for the trafficking and smuggling of irregular migrants.