Immigration Splits Europe And Strengthens EU Skeptics

First there was the threat of veto from Downing Street to the new President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker. After, came the petition, inadmissible for some, for quotas to prevent the unlimited entry of European immigrants to the UK, which critics say, undermines the principle of free movement. The opposite would, however, undermine British sovereignty.

On Friday, Prime Minister David Cameron went to ‘blows’ with Brussels while trying to turn into a political dispute what was seen as a marginal technical change, which requires Britain to pay an extra 2,100 million euros to European coffers.

The string of confrontations culminated Tuesday with the announcement that the UK will not participate in the search and rescue operations to prevent migrants and refugees from North Africa to die in the Mediterranean Sea, said the British Foreign Office. These operations, ministry sources pointed, encourage people to undertake dangerous journeys in the hope of being rescued. They are similar to the United States policy of welcoming undocumented immigrants who cross the southern border in the journey from Mexico and Central America.

The announcement by Britain comes as Italy is about to finish his own operation, known as Mare Nostrum, which has contributed for over a year to the rescue of nearly 150,000 people. The initiative began after the tragedies of Lampedusa, which killed three hundred emigrants back in October 2013.

Despite the efforts, nearly 3,000 people have died this year due to drowning. Italy has said it can no longer afford to spend nine million per month on the operation, in which a significant portion of its military naval units are involved.

This will be replaced by a much more modest European initiative, “border protection” patrols in the first 30 miles of the coast of Italy, which generally do not include rescue and will feature only one third of the current budget. Meanwhile, the UK has announced that it will not take part in the new mission labeled -Tritón-, and that is will only send a single immigration officer for intelligence work.

Brussels reacted angrily to the announcement made by Cameron. Diplomatic sources said that London continues moving away from the Union, after a few years in which it has acted to ‘torpedo’ any agreement rather than trying to influence, as before, in decision-making.

“Ultimately we must support economic measures in the countries of origin of immigrants. But in the short term, in addition to fighting gangs, we must scrupulously respect human rights: it is obligatory to rescue immigrants, that’s not an option, even if some countries argue that long intensifies the effect “, explained diplomatic sources.

That is why Downing Street refuses to join the plan. British Secretary of State, Joyce Anelay, said the government believes that the rescues are causing “a call effect, encouraging migrants to embark on these dangerous journeys, and leading to more tragic and unnecessary deaths.” The position of London, Anelay said, had been already announced in response to a question in the House of Lords on 15 October.

“The Government believes that the most effective way to prevent migrants and refugees trying to come,” according to the Secretary of State, “is to focus on the countries of origin and transit, and to combat the traffickers that endanger the lives of migrants to put them in insecure overcrowded boats.”

Various human rights organizations have criticized the British refusal, lamenting that this position will help increase the stories of tragic deaths at the gates of Europe. The director of Amnesty International UK, Kate Allen, denies that the rescues will cause an increase in the number of migrants coming from Africa.

“This is a dark moral position for the UK,” she complained. “When the time for action arrives, the country turns its back on desperate people and let them drown.” Maurice Wren, director of the Refugee Council, a leading British NGO working with refugees, lamented that the British government “seems to ignore the fact that the world is facing the largest refugee crisis since World War II.”

There is another effect called the UKIP, which explains much of the drift of the Conservative Party led by David Cameron, who faced a critical loss of confidence on the last elections because of what many people call the radicalization of its message against the European Union.

Interestingly, support for the Union rises slightly in the polls, almost parallel to the fact that Cameron’s government has placed a brake on immigration at the center of its agenda of negotiations with Brussels.

Despite all criticisms, from all the wrongs committed by Cameron and the British government, immigration is one area in which he is completely right.

Luis R. Miranda is the Founder and Editor of The Real Agenda. His 16 years of experience in Journalism include television, radio, print and Internet news. Luis obtained his Journalism degree from Universidad Latina de Costa Rica, where he graduated in Mass Media Communication in 1998. He also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcasting from Montclair State University in New Jersey. Among his most distinguished interviews are: Costa Rican President Jose Maria Figueres and James Hansen from NASA Space Goddard Institute. Read more about Luis.