Committee on Human Rights (DROI II

CommitteeonHumanRights(DROIII)

Mynewhome:RussiaʼsinvasionofUkraineinFebruary2022hasresultedinthe largestrefugeemigrationinEuropesinceWorldWarII,estimatedbyUNHCRat6,3million persons.WhatmeasuresshouldtheEUtaketohandlethegrowingwaveofrefugeeswhilst reducinggapsinacceptanceandtreatmentofallasylumseekers?

SubmittedbyNikolaKralev(BG)

Figure1:CommitteePicture

1. Topicataglance

Migration is a natural process seen in all living organisms, especially humans. It is driven by so-called push and pull factors, which include cultural, social, and political issues and lack of opportunities. Wars are oen a main reason for the migration of largemassesofpeople,suchas during World War II and recently during the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, where more than 12 million people le their homes to seek asylum. The astonishing number of asylum-seekers (reaching 26.7 million refugees in this past year) has le Europeinaconstantstateofuncertainty which has solidified the mixed opinions on migration in recent years. It has also beennotedthat while Ukrainian refugees have generally faced Europeʼs hospitality and open embrace,thesame cannot be said about Middle Eastern migrants escaping ongoing civil wars in their homeland. Even though both groups of people have had their human rights violated and are searching for better lives, they are not being treated equally by host countries. This only raises the question: how can Member States be as supportive and welcoming as possible for refugees without discriminatingagainstdisplacedpeoplebasedontheirbackgrounds?

2. Casestudy

A young Ukrainian refugee, Anastasiia, who has been seekingasyluminPolandduetotheRussian Invasion of Ukraine, has started slowly but surely rebuilding her life since the invasion.

Anastasiia shares that she le Lviv alongside her mother and brother and easily crossed into Poland and describes howquicklyshemanagedtofindanapartmentandanonlinejobwithintwo weeks. The open embrace and readiness of the Polish people to help have made many peopleʼs journies like that of Anastasiia to start a new life more easy. However, many haveraisedthepoint that the swi protection European governments provided was not present whenMiddleEastern refugees sought asylum. Is there a clear double standard within Member States regarding refugees?

3. Stakeholders

Figure2:StakeholdersMaponMiro

4. Keychallengesandmeasuresinplace

Challenge1:ShelterMarketManagement

Due to the constant increase of asylum-seekers, therehasbeenaneedforbettercommunication and cooperation between Member States to ensure the steady and safe flow of refugees to the continent. However, research has declared some Member States to be better hosts than others, making them a hub for refuge seeking. A new term has been created to accurately describe this situation: “asylum shopping” , referringtotheselectivechoosingofa countrytoseekasyluminas

they differ in the opportunities and rights they grant refugees. Such selectiveness results in overcrowded shelters in wealthier countries and creates a certain kind of pressure that those countries must be more responsible in the midst of a refugee crisis because of their larger resources.

MeasurestoCombatChallenge1

The European Union has been actively trying to eliminate asylum shopping by evaluating the benefits, opportunities, and disadvantages Member States offer to asylum seekers. For instance, Germany has been classified as a Group A host, offering as many benefitstomigrantsaspossible, while the Czech Republic is classified as a Group D host, as refugees have no right to work in the first year aer applying for residence and receive minimal financial support. To ensure this difference is minimised, the Common European Asylum System (CEAS) hasbeenactivelytryingto create harmonised and uniform standards and conditions for all asylum seekers within the European Union. This has helped Member States become more cooperative and willing to support refugees by introducing common goals in terms of shelters, resources and financial support,thuspromotingexperienceandstrategyexchange.

Challenge2:MulticulturalismStigma

As refugees and migration are oen large displacements of people from different areas, a phenomenon called multiculturalism arisesandprovokesdiverseopinions.Itisthereforeevident that change is feared but also inevitable;however,someMemberStateshavebeenmoreproneto declining refugees if they are from specific cultural, social, or ethnic backgrounds. The most prominent example of this is the treatment Ukrainian refugees have been receiving this year compared to the treatment Middle Eastern refugees have faced for the last decade. It is yet to be collectively decided, however, what makes the Ukrainian refugee crisis different from the Middle Easternrefugeecrisis(andothercrisesingeneral).

MeasurestoCombatChallenge2

Emphasis on cultural diversity, inclusivity,andacceptancehasbeenanEUpriority,especiallyin recent years. The stigma around change and social diversity has especially been a problem in Eastern Europe due to its complex historical and ideological background. However, these countries have been extremely welcoming towards Ukrainian refugees thisyear.Sincetheyareon the border with Asia, they have also welcomed Middle Eastern refugees, but mainly because of their geographical closeness to the refugeesʼ homeland. An example of long-lasting measures to battle the cultural stigma within Member States is the 2018 European Agenda for Culture which has supported cultural creativity and arts development, sustainability of cultural heritage, and open-mindednesswithinmulticulturalsocialenvironments.

Challenge3:InfrastructureandResourceDevelopment

Whilst the EU has numerously stated that all Member States are ready to welcome refugees, the degree of success in welcomingandsupportingasylumseekersbetweenallcountriesisfarfrom equal. The Member States that possess more resources oentimes also have more physical shelters and can offer better economic support to refugees. On the other hand, most refugee campsarestillinterribleconditionsduetoinfectiousbacteria,lackofproperbedding,etc..

MeasurestoCombatChallenge3

Eastern and Central European countries, hosting a vast majority of Ukrainian and Middle Eastern refugees, have been aided by Western European countries and the European Union in strengthening and developing their shelters and asylumcamps.Anotherinitiativeresultingfroma Vision Europe Summit Conference has helped countries with large numbers of refugees improve the quality of camps and provide additional financial stimulus to volunteers. Moreover, the Cohesionʼs Action for Refugees in Europe (CARE) also aims to provide first-hand emergency financialassistanceandsupporttorefugees.

5. Whatnow?

The refugee crises caused by both the Russian Invasion of Ukraine and the civil wars in the Middle East continue to displace hundreds, if notthousands,ofpeopleeveryday.Thesepeople are forced to give up their homes, families, and dreams. Not only isthevastnumberofmigrantsa bigchallengeforEuropetowithstand,butrefugeediscriminationalsodoesnothelpthesituation.

● How can the European Union reduce the stigma surrounding multiculturalism and thus helpsavemoreasylumseekers? ● How can Western European Member States further support Eastern and CentralEuropean

MemberStatesintheireffortstohostlargeamountsofrefugees? ● What should the European Union implement in terms of resources and infrastructure to ensureitcansustainpotentiallargerefugeecrisesinthefuture? ● Why do some Member States offer better conditions for asylum seekers than otherswhen theEuropeanUnionhasbeenactivelytryingtoeliminateasylumshopping? ● Can the European Union do something toincreasethepopularityofsmallercountriesthat arereadytohostrefugeesbutarenotapopularchoiceforrefugees?

6. Linksforfurtherresearch

● “Hypocritical Media Coverage of Ukraine vs. The Middle East” - Youtube/NowThis

News/2022 ● “Ukraine War Is Exposing Racial Disparities in Refugee Treatment” - Youtube/The Daily

ShowWithTrevorNoah/2022 ● “EuropeandtheRefugeeCrisis:AChallengetoOurCivilization” -un.org/2022 ● “TheRealReasonWhyEasternEuropeWantsNoRefugees” -theglobalist.com/2017 ● “Humanizingtherefugeecrisis” -Youtube/TEDxTalks/2017