The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, stated this Wednesday at the Forum Europa in Brussels that, regarding migration, "behind every figure and every statistic there is a human being fighting desperately for a better life”.
This was emphasised by Roberta Metsola at a briefing organised by New Economy Forum in the EU capital, in response to a question about the approved reform of the EU's asylum and migration rules.
Metsola first recalled words spoken by the recently deceased Pope Francis when he addressed the European Parliament in 2013, weeks after the Lampedusa tragedy. She recalled that the pontiff had said at the time that "the Mediterranean had become the largest cemetery in the world”.
The President of the European Parliament stated that this phrase has stuck with her, since “when we talk about migration and the challenges it poses, it's very easy to stop talking about people and forget that, after all, behind every number and every statistic is a human being desperately fighting for a better life”.
Along the same lines, she considered that “we must realise that we are in a particularly privileged part of the world,” something Europe has worked hard to achieve, to be “a beacon of hope for millions of people”.
That, she maintained, “is what we must keep in mind when talking about what we understand by a fair asylum policy for those who have the right to come, to stay, to save their lives”.
However, she admitted that this must be balanced with the doubts raised among citizens by the migration phenomenon, the challenge of integration, and the need to coexist.
For this reason, she stated that “the vote on the Pact on Migration and Asylum last April was crucial, incredibly important”, since in his opinion, “if we had had the vote today in this Parliament, it probably would not have been approved”.
Regarding this asylum policy, she emphasised the need to take into account “solidarity, which is fundamental in any migration policy, which is a humane policy, because it is easy to become insensitive and distance ourselves”.
To balance these elements with security, she cited yesterday's Commission proposal on the concept of a safe third country, “and a credible return policy”. “So, I think this will complete the picture; it will not be easy because, as I told you, with the current majorities, perhaps the Asylum and Migration Pact would not have been approved”.
Finally, Metsola said that “we must be brave in addressing our external borders and we must also make very strict and swift decisions on returns”.
