Author
Parlak, Türkan Melis
Publication Date
2022-10-13T12:48:00Z
Subject
European Union, Illegal immigrants, Right to asylum, The European Council of Seville, European Union, Irregular immigrant, Right to asylum, Non-refoulement
Type
Document
Language
Turkish
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Library
Özyeğin University
Record ID
29472e06-983f-4d56-830f-6700a91baef6
Library Location
Department of Private Law
Date
2022-10-13T12:48:00Z
Sample Text
The history of migration is as old as human history. From Homo sapiens to today's modern man, human beings, whose main goal is to survive, have tried to meet their endless needs in a world with scarce resources. As a result, for various reasons - economic, social, natural or political - people leave the lands they live in, either compulsorily or voluntarily, and migrate to other countries. This wave of migration, which started with civil wars in ancient times, has become international and political over the years. For this reason, immigration and refugee law has become one of the most fundamental issues of international law today. European countries are a center of attraction for immigrants due to their developed economies and high welfare levels. European countries, which saw immigrants as a part of the development process and adopted an "open door" policy after the Second World War, closed their borders to immigrants and entered the "closed door" period due to the impact of the economic crises experienced in the 1970s. The removal of internal borders with the Schengen Agreement appears in the form of strengthened external border controls. After the September 11 attacks, the perception of "foreign" and "security" throughout the world, especially in the European Union countries, changed. The most effective solution found by the EU to the situation of being "undesirable", which is compounded by the psychological impact of enemy criminal law after the attacks and reinforced by the changing perception of "foreign" and "security", is readmission agreements. The problem of irregular migration has been tried to be solved through readmission agreements, through cooperation with source and transit countries, before it becomes an internal problem of the EU. However, due to this increasing security approach and challenging border policies, people seeking international protection try to cross the borders irregularly. During these dangerous journeys, the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas have become a sea of the dead. This situation makes the principle of non-refoulement controversial. Regardless of their status, people have certain rights that arise simply from being human. All states are obliged to provide these rights, which are regulated in human rights law and immigration law texts, to everyone under their jurisdiction. In the context of the right to asylum, all states must ensure that irregular migrants have access to international protection procedures and must not penalize migrants for irregular entry. However, EU countries are reluctant to provide asylum to people for various reasons and do not show due respect to the human rights of irregular immigrants in order to protect their borders. At the expense of protecting its borders and "European" identity, the Union acts contrary to its fundamental values such as non-discrimination, equality and respect for fundamental human rights and gives priority to security. In the study titled "Status of Irregular Migrants in the European Union Refugee Law Reform", it was tried to explain how the changing migration policies of the European Union affect the rights of irregular migrants. In this context, in the first part of the study, the concept of migration and the basic concepts related to migration, which have some nuances despite having very similar characteristics because many branches of science are interested in the phenomenon of migration and all of them approach the subject from different perspectives, are explained. In addition, the reasons that push immigrants to migrate, migration theories, the historical development of immigration law and the crime of immigrant smuggling that feeds irregular immigration are also included in this section. In the second part of the study, the principles and development of immigration law in the European Union are examined, based on the basic concepts, causes and historical development of migration discussed in the first part. In this section, migration and its approach towards immigrants has been examined through international agreements, from the "open door" policy period adopted in the restructuring process of Europe to the "closed door" period, which saw immigrants as a problem. In addition, in this section, the common migration efforts of the European Union and institutions established to prevent irregular immigrants such as EURODAC, FRONTEX, EUROSUR are also mentioned. The process of finding a solution to the problem of irregular migration, which has increased with the policy adopted by the European Union in the 2000s, by including source and transit countries, is examined in the chapter. In this context, readmission agreements were discussed. In the last part of the thesis, the right to asylum, the legal sources that guarantee the right to asylum and the rights of irregular immigrants until their international protection application is finalized and sent back are discussed in the light of international judicial decisions., Migration dates back to the beginning of the history of humanity. Merely to survive, early, the Homo Sapiens and presently, modern human, have been seeking to fulfill their endless needs against the limited offerings of the Earth, which has been leading them to migrate to other places, either voluntarily or forcibly, and impelled by various factors such as economic, social, natural or political ones. Mostly internal and prompted by the basic motivations throughout the ancient times, it is now of an international and political challenge, which asserts immigration and refugee law as one of the fundamental components of international law. European countries with their massive and developed economies, and high levels of welfare, have been a center of attraction for immigrants. Following the World War II, European countries considered immigrants as a part of their developmental movement and adopted an "open-door policy", however, retreated to "the closed-door policy" due to the economic depression arising in the 1970s, which, later, constituted a policy on strict border controls while the mutual borders were abolished, with the Schengen Agreement. September 11 attacks drastically and severely changed global, and particularly European countries' perception of foreigners and security. Alerted by the attacks and driven by the impulse of Feindstrafrecht, in the European Council of Seville in 2002, for the first time in the history of the European Councils, illegal immigration an agenda item, and the presidential conclusion addressed the combat against illegal immigration specifically, under the Chapter, "Asylum and Immigration". For those considered "unwelcomed", an image having become more solid with the change in the perceptions of security and foreigners, readmission agreements were considered as the most effective solution by the Union. Through such agreements with countries of origin and transit, Union intended to proactively prevent illegal immigration from being an intra-Union matter. This strict security and border protection policy, on the other hand, forced the asylum-seekers into illegal immigration. During such dangerous attempts, Mediterranean and Aegean Sea has become graveyards, and the non-refoulement principle is disputed. Humans have fundamental rights regardless of their status, and all states are to act in exercise of such rights, regulated under international human rights and immigration laws, for those within their jurisdiction. As to the right to asylum, all states must ensure illegal immigrants can seek protection, and such immigrants must not be punished. However, Member States of the EU are reluctant to offer asylum and ignore and disrespect the fundamental rights of illegal immigrants, which they ground on the principles of "protecting the borders of the Union" as well as "conserving the European Identity" and give the precedence to security. This research on "Status Of Irregular Migrants In EU Asylum Law Reform" intends to study the impacts of the changing refugee policies of the European Union on the rights of illegal immigrants. In this respect, Chapter One attempts to define immigration and fundamental concepts thereof, which have similarities to those of other fields studying the phenomenon but are slightly different due to different perspectives. This Chapter also addresses motivations of the immigrants, and theories and an evolution of migration law. Grounded on the fundamentals, motivations and evolution discussed in Chapter One, Chapter Two addresses the foundations and evolutions of immigration law in the context of European Union. The Chapter analyzes the evolution of Europe, from the times of desperate measures, "the open-door policy" for immigrants during its consolidation, to "the closed-door policy", where immigrants are considered a problem and building a "European Fortress" is considered a must to protect the borders and compares this shift in Europe's approach in review of the scripts of conventions and protocols during that period. The Chapter further addresses the organizations such as EURODAC, FRONTEX and EUROSUR, formed to prevent illegal immigration. discusses the course of action determined by the Union's updates to its policies towards finding a cooperative solution to illegal immigration by involving the countries of origin and transit. In this respect, readmission agreements are addressed as well. This chapter also addresses the motivations behind migration, the theories of migration, the historical course of migration law, as well as the migrant smuggling, a crime that facilitates irregular migration The Conclusion Chapter, which discusses the right to asylum as human right, addresses the right to asylum, the legal basis for seeking and right to asylum, and the right of illegal immigrants during the procedures for concluding their application for international protection and their return, in the light of international rulings.
