Civil Society Forum relevant in Eastern Partnership Migration and Asylum Panel discussion
The voice of civil society was heard at a recent meeting of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) Panel on Migration and Asylum, which focused on the issues of readmission, return and reintegration. Two representatives of the EaP Civil Society Forum (CSF) took part in the Panel meeting on 20-21 March in Tbilisi, according to a CSF press release issued today.
The issues discussed at the meeting included circular migration, return and readmission of foreigners, the EU return directive ensuring effective readmission, and the role of civil society in reintegration.
The press release said the involvement of the CSF in the panel meeting (represented by Iryna Sushko from Europe without Barriers, Kiev, and Tamara Pataraia from the Caucasus Institute for Peace, Democracy and Development in Georgia), was seen as positive, increasing transparency in the dialogue between the EU, national governments and experts from the civil society.
The CSF representatives voiced their concern over a law in Ukraine introducing electronic passports for travelling abroad. They underlined that the law in its current form violates a wide range of international and European standards on personal data protection and should be amended.
The CSF holds the view that the EaP multilateral track, with its Panel on Migration and Asylum, “provides an important complementary element of bilateral relations in the sphere of migration and visa liberalisation by creating a regional platform for countries with similar interests and problems and should continue to serve as a platform for discussion including civil society representatives of the partner countries.”
Source: ENPI-Info
