“ICE style”: 70 NGOs are outraged against a European migration reform project

Nearly 70 NGOs warned this Monday against a migration reform project examined in the European Parliament, comparing it to the policy pursued by the American immigration police.

“The threat is real and immediate,” write these associations in a joint declaration, calling on European officials to abandon this text. This declaration is also signed by Médecins du Monde and Sea-Watch.

In their sights: a migration reform pushed by the European Commission, which notably provides for the creation of centers outside the borders of the EU for rejected asylum seekers, the famous “return hubs”.

The text also intends to punish more harshly those who refuse to leave European territory, via longer periods of detention and the confiscation of identity documents.

Brussels brushes aside criticism

These measures have already been approved by the vast majority of EU member states, but are strongly criticized by the left in the European Parliament and migrant protection associations.

In their missive, these NGOs are concerned about “police raids” and “racial profiling” measures, “in the style of ICE” which could result from this reform. We cannot be outraged by what ICE is doing in the United States while supporting these practices in Europe,” denounced Michele LeVoy of PICUM, an NGO protecting undocumented immigrants.

Brussels regularly refutes criticism from NGOs, stressing that these measures must all respect the fundamental rights of migrants. And ensures that these measures are supported by a majority of citizens in Europe, where the political center of gravity has shifted to the right.