In the context of the Arab Spring and the migratory fluxes in the Southern Mediterranean, the European Commission established in 2011 a “Dialogue on migration, mobility and security.” This cooperation, which falls within the wider scope of the European Union’s (EU) Neighbourhood Policy, heralded the launch of the so-called Mobility Partnerships between it and its Southern neighbours. On 7 June 2013, Morocco became the first Mediterranean country to sign a joint declaration with the European Union establishing a Mobility Partnership.
This long-term cooperation framework is based on the same objectives as the EU’s “global approach to migration and mobility”, which are as follows: encouraging legal migration; effective combating of irregular migration; maximising the positive effect of migration on development; and the promotion of, and respect for, refugee rights. In this document, the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EMHRN) examines the priorities defined and activities put forward by the signatory parties in light of relevant asylum and migration-related legislation and the current situation of migrants and refugees in Morocco.
The Joint Declaration which establishes the Partnership does not impose binding legal obligations on the parties; implementation of the Partnership is therefore dependent on the good will of and effort made by the EU, its Member States and Morocco.
However, the Network notes that strategies to reinforce and implement instruments to combat irregular migration dominate the spirit of the proposal. The parties, by signing the Partnership, commit to signing a readmission agreement, by which Morocco would accept readmitting not only its citizens but also those of third party states who have transited through its territory (in majority sub-Saharan Africans) and who are caught irregularly entering or residing in the EU. The parties also commit to establishing a working agreement between Morocco and the European border agency Frontex.
In view of the current situation in Morocco, a readmission agreement would entail serious risks in terms of respect for the rights of migrants and refugees, and would expose them to the risk of inhuman and degrading treatment. In fact, both civil society organisations in Morocco as well as the Moroccan National Council for Human Rights have denounced the fate of sub-Saharans “blocked” in Morocco. The criminalisation of irregular immigration, as contained in the Moroccan Law 02-03, the absence of an effective asylum system and the xenophobic climate hostile to migrants, which has gone so far as to cause the death of several migrants in recent years, are all real issues that the signatory parties cannot ignore.
The objective of the EU’s border surveillance systems is to prevent migrants and refugees from crossing the borders into Europe. Far from ensuring that protection needs are met, particularly for the most vulnerable, these measures in themselves entail a risk that states may breach their international obligations and violate fundamental rights: the principle of non-refoulement, the right to seek asylum and the right of every person to leave a country, including their own, as recently noted by the Council of Europe. Furthermore, they exacerbate violent practices which have been used by Moroccan authorities in their so-called “hunt for foreigners.”
While the European Union and Morocco have committed to encouraging the mobility of Moroccan citizens, it should be noted that the proposals above all reflect the interests of the EU to facilitate entrance and residence only for highly skilled persons.
Further, the parties’ general commitment to improving conditions for migrants and refugees is not strong enough in view of current events in Morocco. Despite the launch of a regularisation campaign for certain categories of irregular migrants and the announcement of a “new migration policy”, Morocco still faces many challenges before being able to guarantee the dignity and the human rights of migrants and refugees on its territory. The Network fears that actions to combat irregular migration immigration will be prioritised and implemented at the expense of other themes included in the Partnership and, more worryingly, at the expense of the rights of migrants and refugees.
Finally, the EMHRN disapproves of the donor/beneficiary logic governing the Partnership and the EU’s use of a “bargaining chip”, by which European economic aid and visa facilitation are conditioned on Morocco’s ability to effectively control migration flows.
In this context, the EMHRN invites the European Union, its Member States and Morocco to translate their commitment to promoting and protecting human rights into tangible actions, and to encourage true mobility for all Moroccan and third country nationals residing in Morocco. Only the Mobility Partnership’s activities that unconditionally respect the rights of migrants and refugees should be implemented.
Recommendations:
- With regards to the implementation of the Mobility Partnership: guarantee the involvement of civil society organisations in Morocco, in particular those who defend and assist migrants, as well as of international non-governmental organisations, in negotiations concerning the implementation of the Mobility Partnership; refrain from implementing actions which do not fully respect the rights of migrants and refugees, in particular the readmission agreement;
- To the European Union: make deep-rooted changes to its migration policies, currently based on an approach of securing borders and externalising migration control; implement policies which reinforce and protect human rights within its territory and in third party countries;
- To the Moroccan authorities: implement the recommendations of the UN Committee on Rights of Migrant Workers and of the Moroccan National Human Rights Council in the framework of the on-going reforms for a new asylum and immigration policy in accordance with international law; guarantee the rights of migrants and refugees, in particular by ending impunity for perpetrators of police violence against migrants, as well as putting an end to practices of refoulement and expulsions at borders.