In terms of whether European countries should be taking in more or less refugees, I would say that overall it makes more sense for countries to be taking in more refugees. When factoring in which states in particular should be giving asylum, it certainly changes the situation. There are two main concerns, one is making sure that as a state, it does not face more consequences than it can handle. Examples of this are an overflow of migrants, no proper resources to take care of all of them, not all of them are legally able to travel into the state, etc. The other main concern is whether a state is not taking in any or nearly as many refugees as it should be taking. An argument can be made that it is a threat to global security, as the migration is causing conflicts to other states as well. This is seen as a humanitarian issue as well as these people are no longer able to provide for themselves. The European states that are should take in more are ones like Portugal which has only taken in about 1,000 so far(BBC). Another is the republic of Ireland which has only taken in about a couple thousand but has pledged to take in 4,000(thejournal.ie.).The Czech republic has also only taken in about a 1,000(BBC). These three states are some of the many European countries that have not done their fair share in figuring out this issue. Collectively it will allow the conflict to stop earlier and to make it so that there is not a burden on those that are accepting the most like Germany or Sweden.
At the very least these countries should focus on making sure that there is temporary asylum. Planning to have temporary asylum allows refugees to survive and have the resources to do so for a long period of time. It may be difficult to know whether they would want to completely simulate to another country, as it means learning another culture and language. They could also very well face discrimination as Europeans may see them as a threat. People could simply see them as no more those that are only staying here for a while but will eventually go back to Syria. This is difficult as Syria is a failed state that needs a lot of development which needs to stop its dictator regime and armed conflict within its border. These refugees can only hope that these conflicts will be resolved soon allowing the option for them to go back is one that the European countries should keep in mind.
In terms of whether the European Union should be taking responsibility for the conflict or individual states. I would say that every state has a role in it but the EU should do its best by making this migration conflict its top priority. Whether the states that are not apart of the EU may not be able to use the European Unions resources, every state has a responsibility as it is a conflict that doesn't affect a couple states but all, whether politically or economically or both. For the EU states, they need to focus on making sure that they all work together on appropriate policies and enforcing those policies. An example of how the EU can work together is making sure that refugee that is in the Schengen zone will have applied for asylum by then or have gotten accepted. A responsibility that both the EU and individual states have is not only taking in the appropriate amount of refugees but also giving the appropriate amount of aid to countries in need such as Turkey.
News, BBC. "Migrant Crisis: Migration to Europe Explained in Seven Charts."BBC News. N.p., 4 Mar. 2016. Web. 23 Oct. 2016.
Http://www.thejournal.ie/author/rónán-duffy/. "Ireland Is Nowhere near Close to Settling Its Share of Syrian Refugees." TheJournalie. N.p., 2 Apr. 2016. Web. 23 Oct. 2016.
I agree with you and think that all the European countries should be taking in more refugees. There is a moral responsibility that is left unsaid, but that every country knows they should do, and that is to help individuals when they are no longer able to help themselves. You mention two concerns above as to why states might be afraid to let more refugees in. What do you think are ways that can help these states in combating the two concerns, which would allow them to let more refugees in?
ReplyDeleteDo you think it is only the responsibility of the EU, and if yes, why only the EU? I would argue that eventually, it will become harmful to both the EU and immigrants to overpopulate Europe. When this fear becomes more prominent as the EU lets more immigrants in, I think we will end up seeing even more discrimination and violence against immigrants, which should be avoided at all costs. I think that in order to give immigrants the best living scenario possible that is sustainable for all parties involved, other options should be explored, including nations outside the EU that are stable and willing to take in refugees.
ReplyDeleteHow would you address the concerns that once refugees are in asylum, they won't return even when it's safe? And, what would you say to concerns that the nation's economy cannot afford to house, feed, educate, and naturalize hundreds of thousands of people?
ReplyDeleteShould the United States also be allowing refugees? Why just Europe? That creates a huge burden on the countries who accept refugees. And the countries forced to accept them often have a lot of anger and frustration towards the refugees allowed in the country.
ReplyDeleteAlso, do you think that it is beneficial to keep all of the people in asylum separate from the people of the country? Will that create more ontological securities for the refugees? Or will it make it easier to remove them once they no longer need asylum?