A Common European Asylum System towards Conference on Migration in Europe – control versus rights Oslo, 11 February 2011 Liv Feijen Senior Regional Legal Officer UNHCR Stockholm

2 EU Asylum Trends UNHCR stats. (1999 from Eurostat)

3 EU Member States with largest asylum- seeker numbers: Source: UNHCR annual stats

4 Top 10 countries of origin of asylum seekers in the EU (2004-9) Source: UNHCR annual stats Afghanistan 6,8526,3237,6127,65313,51419,393 Somalia 6,8925,4825,9969,32717,11218,653 Russia 28,01519,46513,27116,69818,18217,887 Iraq 8,20410,61119,37538,28627,60317,554 Serbia (pre 2006 – figs = Serbia & Montenegro) 19,283 19,574 13,66212,66812,63316,971 Nigeria 10,2536,7455,1535,17411,2809,971 Pakistan 9,0526,3736,28413,19312,0079,562 Iran 8,8827,7227,0655,8126,7347,588 Turkey 13,98310,3107,4275,8176,2985,868 China 11,4397,5165,4505,6214,2815,410

Where we stand now

Treaty on Functioning of the EU, Article 78, Dec 2009  Explicit goal of establishing a ‘common policy on asylum’ – with a ‘common procedure’ & ‘uniform status’  Asylum policy must be in accordance with 1951 Convention and other relevant treaties  Extended scope for national courts to refer asylum questions to the Court of Justice  EU accession to ECHR

7 Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU entered force 2009  ‘ The right to asylum shall be guaranteed with due respect for the rules of the Geneva Convention…’ article 18, ‘Right to asylum’  ‘No one may be removed, expelled or extradited to a State where there is a serious risk that s/he would be subjected to the death penalty, torture or other inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment’ - art 19

Stockholm Programme,  Aims for a ‘common [asylum] procedure’ and ‘uniform status’ by 2012  European Commission asked to:  Evaluate existing/propose new instruments  Evaluate and review tasks of European Asylum Support Office (EASO) after 5 years  Create mechanism for monitoring quality

Stockholm Programme (2)  Commitment to responsibility-sharing in EU – but Dublin as a ‘cornerstone’ of the Common European Asylum System  External dimension: support for UNHCR; ‘new means of access’ to protection in third countries  Subject to an EC report (2014) - foresees EU accession to 1951 Convention

Completion of CEAS  Legislative standards  Development of jurisprudence  Practical co-operation  Responsibility-sharing mechanisms  Information gathering, evaluation

Gaps identified by UNHCR  Distribution of applications for asylum  Outcome of applications -quality of decisions  Gaps in the procedures  Reception conditions

Legislative standards

Proposal Recast Qualification Directive  PURPOSE: simplify decision-making, streamline procedures for granting rights, coherence with ECtHR), higher protection standards, harmonizaion of protection standards;  Art 7 Actors of protection: In practice; clans tribes, NGOs ec. Proposal: effective, durable, willingness, significant, not-temporary protection;  Art 8 Internal protection: ECtHR judgment Salah Sheikh, no IFA if practical obstacles, able to travel, gain admittance and settle in alternative location;  Art 9(3) Casual link: both when connection between acts of persecution and reasons for persecution and the absence of protection against such acts;  Recital 29, Art 10(d) Particular social group: gender given due consideration.

Proposal Recast Qualification Directive  Cessation: inserting 1(C)(5) and (6) of the 1951 Convention;  Recognition of qualification  Integration, accommodation, benefits etc  Family members

Proposal Recast Reception Conditions Directive  Scope of the Directive;  Access to labour market;  Access to material reception conditions;  Detention;  Persons with special needs;  Implementation

Proposal Recast Asylum Procedures Directive  Access to procedures;  Procedural guarantees first instance;  Accelerated procedures;  Safe country of origin;  Access to effective remedies.

Propsal Recast Asylum Procedures Directive (cont)  Requires written reasons for decisions, even in grants of status;  Reduce grounds for omitting personal interviews;  Medico-legal reports/evidence must be permitted for people who have suffered torture/serious harm;

Jurisprudence

Case-law CEJU  Petrosian DUBLIN  B and V v Germany EXCLUSION  Abdallah - CESSATION  Bolbol – 1D  Elgafaji – SUBSIDIARY PROTECTION  NS v UK – DUBLIN II/Charter of Fundamental Rights

Practical co-operation  EASO: EAC, common EU coi portal  FRONTEX

Responsibility sharing  Greece!!!!  Dublin II  EU resettlement scheme

UNHCR’s positions on the recast directives  bin/texis/vtx/search/?page=&comid= &cid=49aea9390&keywords=unhcrob servations