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The theme of migration and asylum in the election campaign and the consequences on the welcoming and rights of migrants

Motion for a resolution | Doc. 15415 | 02 December 2021

Signatories:
Ms Yolaine de COURSON, France, ALDE ; Ms Gökay AKBULUT, Germany, UEL ; Mr Boriss CILEVIČS, Latvia, SOC ; Ms Sabrina DE CARLO, Italy, NR ; Ms Jennifer DE TEMMERMAN, France, ALDE ; Mr Fabien GOUTTEFARDE, France, ALDE ; Mr Dimitri HOUBRON, France, ALDE ; Mr Andrej HUNKO, Germany, UEL ; Ms Marietta KARAMANLI, France, SOC ; Ms Yevheniia KRAVCHUK, Ukraine, ALDE ; Mr Jérôme LAMBERT, France, SOC ; Ms Martine LEGUILLE BALLOY, France, ALDE ; Sir Tony LLOYD, United Kingdom, SOC ; Mr Jacques MAIRE, France, ALDE ; Mr Didier MARIE, France, SOC ; Ms Cornelia MÖHRING, Germany, UEL ; Mr Pierre MOREL-À-L’HUISSIER, France, ALDE ; Mr Stefan SCHENNACH, Austria, SOC ; Ms Liliana TANGUY, France, ALDE ; Ms Nicole TRISSE, France, ALDE ; Mr André VALLINI, France, SOC ; Ms Martine WONNER, France, ALDE

In 2006, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted Recommendation 1768 (2006) on the image of asylum seekers, migrants and refugees in the media. Ten years later, the migration crisis affecting European countries has brought the migration issue back to the forefront of the political debate. Today, migration is a crucial social issue for host countries.

Democratic processes are affected by the migration issue, which is becoming a divisive social issue and widely used as an electoral argument. In some situations, the focus on migration in the democratic process has led to the emergence of violence against people, the increase of administrative decisions leading to the restriction of population movements and the discrimination of categories of people in the political discourse.

The impact of this phenomenon can also be observed in the aftermath of election campaigns, in the administrative management of asylum and the reception of migrants, and in the perception of a "crisis" that would have no end but would rather get worse.

The Assembly should look at migration statistics of the member States of the Council of Europe, and at the phenomena encountered during election periods, from a comparative perspective. The aim should be to:

  • protect human rights;
  • to frame electoral processes in a way that respects and guarantees the European Convention on Human Rights;
  • show the impact on the standards applied to asylum and migration;
  • call for the fight against the hardening of the reception of migrants and asylum seekers.