Page 129 - Rassegna 2020-1

EXTERNALIZING MIGRATION MANAGEMENT

if refused], prioritizing the inclusion of the most common countries-of-origin
of migrants arriving in Italy»(24): in other words, the Commission reversed the
logic behind safe countries lists that should only include those non-EU States
whose human rights record has been thoroughly and carefully assessed in terms
of their being really “safe”. Summing up, it seems «as if States and the
Commission are nowadays ready to trade some political idealism and legal fun-
ctionalism in the field of migration and human rights for more political prag-
matism and legal formalism in the field of security», at least to some extent(25).
Yet, as anticipated, the highest standards on human rights protection developed
for decades by the European supranational courts are imperative for EU
Member States and Institutions and apply outside the EU territory. All of this
might therefore set the process of securitization on a collision course with
supranational Courts’ case-law.

9. A major implication of this state of affairs is that the present gap in
terms of legal protection between the EU long-term global strategy for a future
international order made of stable, prosperous and democratic third countries
and the full and prompt protection of the human rights of migrants and asy-
lum-seekers in third countries partnering with the regional disembarkation stra-
tegy cannot be bridged in a few weeks, months or - perhaps - years. The pro-
gressive implementation of the regional disembarkation platforms would not
circumvent the obstacle as well. For a long time, every day in between the
launch of the regional strategy and its future operation in full compliance with
all applicable international and EU rules would be marked by human rights vio-
lations. If the policy goal of the EU States and Institution is the full respect of
human rights whatever and wherever, the way ahead is clearly marked out: the
EU should temporarily shelve the regional disembarkation platforms’ strategy,
then it should stabilize the neighbouring countries in every way and only at the
end of this process it could relaunch that strategy.
In the light of the hints previously set out, however, we argue that the EU
States and the Commission might not support this three-step process as the
way forward because, right or wrong, irregular flows have become a security
issue for European policy and need a quick fix. Should they find a common
political approach on regional disembarkation platforms, the strategy would be
probably launched as soon as practicable and even if full protection of human
rights could not be always and however safeguarded. If our reasoning is cor-
rect, then the answer to the question asked at the end of §§ 1 and 3 would pro-
bably be in favour of isolating ourselves from the wider world rather than
hosting the “others” and integrating them in our society.

127