All 46 Council of Europe nations adopt migration declaration

Council of Europe Adopts Migration Declaration in Move That Could Reshape Deportation Cases

All 46 Council of Europe member states adopted a political declaration on migration on Friday at a meeting in Chișinău, Moldova, setting out a new interpretation of the European Convention on Human Rights that could make it easier to deport certain migrants — including to third-country “return hubs.”internazionale

The non-binding declaration, the first of its kind on migration from the Council of Europe, was adopted by foreign ministers at the 135th session of the Committee of Ministers. It reaffirms that states have what it calls an “undeniable sovereign right to control the entry and residence of foreign nationals” and that nations facing mass arrivals may pursue new approaches to deter irregular migration.wtop

Reinterpreting Core Protections

At the heart of the declaration are new qualifications to Articles 3 and 8 of the convention, which cover protection from torture and inhuman treatment, and the right to private and family life. While the declaration states that the prohibition on torture remains absolute, it adds that “the assessment of the minimum level of severity of the ill-treatment that constitutes inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment is relative and depends on all the circumstances of the case.”usnews

On Article 8, the declaration says states can expel foreign nationals despite their right to a private and family life, so long as the action is balanced with a legitimate aim such as national security. It further says the European Court of Human Rights would require “strong reasons” to override a state’s decision.internazionale

The declaration emerged from an open letter sent last year by the leaders of nine EU countries — including Italy, Denmark, Belgium, Austria, and Poland — who argued the court’s interpretation of the convention had protected the “wrong people” and placed excessive limits on deportation.wtop

Rights Groups Sound the Alarm

Human rights organizations were swift to condemn the declaration. “Governments are effectively seeking to pressure an independent Court into weakening long-established human rights protections in order to facilitate deportations,” said Chiara Catelli, a spokesperson for the rights group PICUM.wtop

Amnesty International’s Eve Geddie called the declaration “an affront to the basic principle that human rights are universal,” warning against the emergence of “a two-tier human rights system based on migration status.” In the weeks before the vote, Amnesty International, the International Federation for Human Rights, and the International Commission of Jurists had jointly urged member states to safeguard the independence of the European Court of Human Rights.icj

What Comes Next

EU migration commissioner Magnus Brunner called the declaration “an important step” toward a unified migration policy. Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset said the Chișinău Declaration “will help to guide our own work as well as that of national authorities and domestic courts.”wtop

The declaration’s timing is widely seen as deliberate. Legal analysts have noted it arrives just weeks before the entry into force on June 12 of new rules under the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, and could provide political and legal cover for those provisions.echrblog