EU justice and home affairs ministers agreed on greater co-operation on the return of asylum-seekers to their countries of origin yesterday, but agreement on procedures for dealing with asylum applications was still a long way off, writes Carol Coulter, Legal Affairs Correspondent
The EU is committing €30 million immediately to practical measures to assist in the return of illegal immigrants. The money will go towards a series of pilot programmes, including joint flights back to the refugees' country of origin and reintegration measures aimed at increasing the number of returns of illegal immigrants living in the EU.
Meanwhile, Irish legislation for dealing with immigrants and aliens was found unconstitutional yesterday, when the High Court ruled against Section 2 of the 1999 Immigration Act. In a decision with major implications for police control of the movements of non-nationals, the court declared unconstitutional a new law which was enacted by the Government with a view to making lawful provisions of the Aliens Order, 1946.
Responding to the High Court judgment, the Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, said he would be discussing it with the Attorney General, and they would then decide whether to accept the decision and amend the legislation, or appeal the judgment. "There may be a legislative response, but I will take the advice of the lawyers involved," he said.
Speaking after the meeting of justice ministers, he said much progress had been made on an EU return policy for refugees, which the Irish presidency considered fundamental. Referring to the planned directive on minimum standards of procedures for granting refugee status, he said: "The discussion identified differences of approach. But there was room to see how a common position could emerge. The Irish presidency will prepare a new text to reflect the outcome of the discussions."
The directive on minimum standards of refugee procedures is one of two directives on asylum which faces a deadline of May 1st.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Mr Ruud Lubbers, urged the ministers to agree on a harmonised system of asylum for the EU. This should be based on the 1951 Geneva Convention and on the recognition of asylum-seekers' human rights, he told journalists after the meeting.
He pointed out that the number of people seeking asylum in the industrialised world had declined by 16 per cent last year, and said this was due to the work of the UNHCR in refugee-producing countries. This included measures to relocate threatened people, and to repatriate people from countries where the circumstances had changed, like Afghanistan and Iraq.
Mr Lubbers also pointed out that, with the accession of 10 new member-states later this year, the border of the EU would be extended farther east, and these new member-states would experience pressure from refugees. They would need help in coping with the increased volume, he said.
The EU Commissioner for Justice and Home Affairs, Mr Antonio Vitorino, said after the meeting that already there had been years of co-operation between the EU and these countries. "All have adopted legislation. All have reinforced their borders," he said. "Sixty per cent of the money invested in the justice and home affairs area [by the EU] was for border control.
"They have made significant efforts to implement the legislation, and from January 1st, 2005, they will be equally able to access the fund for refugees being brought forward by the EU."