Skip to main content

EU migrant crisis won’t significantly hurt OFWs—expert

The European migrant crisis will not have large, adverse effects on the Philippines, according to a Malta-based economist in a presentation at a seminar hosted by state think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) last April 11. 

While the distance between Europe and the Philippines makes it difficult to imagine how the crisis can affect the country, the breakdown of trust among European nations and the tightening of borders put free movement in the continent at risk, while hostilities against migrants intensify. 

But according to Prof. Lino Briguglio of the University of Malta, Filipinos who work in the European Union (EU) need not worry about the crisis. 

"The Filipino people have a very good reputation in Europe," remarked Mr. Briguglio. 

"They often occupy jobs that are in demand. The migrant crisis will impact your overseas workforce as far as the tightening of visa rules and requirements is concerned. If the EU collapses, the issue of stricter border rules will be a problem that the whole Europe and other foreigners will face and not just your Filipino expats," he explained further. 

Meanwhile, PIDS President Gilberto Llanto said the European migrant crisis has been pegged as one of the big global shocks of this year. Because shocks do not occur in silos, they directly affect other potential and ongoing risks given the interconnected nature of threats to global, regional, and national stability. 

"This puts the onus on policymakers to evaluate in-depth how something as critical as the European migrant crisis could possibly affect a far-off country like the Philippines," Mr. Llanto added.

Mr. Llanto also noted that Mr. Briguglio's presentation about the EU migrant crisis is in line with PIDS' agenda of enriching the national discourse on building resilience against an array of risks. 

Mr. Briguglio pointed out three dimensions of the migrant crisis. According to Mr. Briguglio, the EU migration crisis has three dimensions and these are associated with border control, granting of asylum, and humanitarian considerations.

"Geography has dictated the disproportionate distribution of responsibility among European countries in dealing with the crisis. Europe’s legislative guide to dealing with migrants is embodied in the Dublin Regulation, which places responsibility of temporarily keeping and legitimizing asylum seekers on the first country migrants arrive in. Because most migrants originate from the Maghreb, South Asia, and the Middle East, nations like Greece, Italy, Malta, and Eastern European countries like Hungary bear majority of that responsibility," he explained.

In addition, Mr. Briguglio pointed out a conundrum in identifying legitimate asylum seekers from migrants seeking economic opportunity. 

"Part of what makes the European migrant crisis unprecedented is the sheer volume of people. Leaving it up to the border countries is unsustainable. Currently, only a very small proportion of migrants have actually been resettled outside of the entry-point countries," he said. 

Mr. Briguglio also criticized the EU's lack of an effective strategy in dealing with the crisis, calling it a "crisis of solidarity". 

"The humanitarian aspect of the crisis is forgotten in the scramble to flee from the responsibility of responding to and helping manage the influx of people. Instead of highlighting the issue from a humanitarian angle, whereby the fact that the vast majority of migrants are normal people running away from war, the crisis has given rightist groups an opportunity to wage an anti-immigrant political agenda across European states. The issue has become extremely polarized on the issue of religion and cultural compatibility, with little room for finding both pragmatic and humane solutions," he explained. 

Overall, the refugee crisis, according to Mr. Briguglio, is a multifaceted issue. He added that peace in the Middle East is the most ideal solution to stop the influx of migrants to the EU. However, he admitted that it is also the hardest and farthest from being accomplished in the near future. 

According to Mr. Briguglio, the EU strategists need to focus on strengthening Europe's capacity to receive asylum seekers and expedite the processing procedure. He suggested that Europe has to create a common European asylum system to harmonize the treatment of asylum seekers and refugees, and more importantly, to share the burden of responsibility equally among EU countries. The researcher also recommended making targeted policies that would integrate migrants into the labor market. 

"Employment would reduce cultural tensions and the cost of hosting irregular migrants. Policymakers will have to sort out and reduce skill mismatches, address and minimize language barriers, and protect the migrants from further exploitation," he stated. 

Interestingly, during the seminar's open forum, an audience member revealed that Europe could learn a thing or two about managing migrants and refugees from the Philippines. 


The Philippines is one of only a handful of signatories to the 1952 Refugee Convention with a clear procedure on managing refugees. A Refugee and Stateless People Protection Unit under the Department of Justice regularly deals with refugees from countries like Syria and Pakistan, more often than the public is aware of. In 2012, the United Nations lauded the Philippines for establishing an emergency transit mechanism to help process refugee application papers and assist irregular migrants. (PIDS)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Free dormitories eyed for Nueva Era students in LC, Batac

 Nueva Era mayor Aldrin Garvida By Dominic B. dela Cruz ( Staff Reporter) Nueva Era , Ilocos Norte—The municipal government here, headed by Nueva Era mayor Aldrin Garvida is planning to establish dormitories in the cities of Laoag and Batac that will exclusively cater to college students from the said cities. “Sapay la kuma ta maituloyen iti mabiit tay ar-arapaapen tayo ken iti munisipyo a maipatakderan kuma dagiti annak tayo a college students nga agbasbasa idiay siyudad iti Batac ken Laoag iti libre a dormitoryo a bukod da ngem inggana nga awan pay ket an-anusan mi paylaeng nga ibaklay kenni apo bise mayor iti pagbayad da iti kasera aggapu iti bukod mi a suweldo malaksid dagitay it-ited iti munisipyo ken iti barangay nga stipend da kada semester, ” Garvida said.    Garvida added that the proposed establishment of dormitories would be a big help to the students’ parents as this would shoulder the expenses of their children for rent and likewise they would feel more secured

Empanada festival: A celebration of good taste and good life

By Dominic B. dela Cruz & Leilanie G. Adriano Staff reporters BATAC CITY—If there is one thing Batac is truly proud of, it would be its famous empanada-making business that has nurtured its people over the years. Embracing a century-old culture and culinary tradition, Batac’s empanada claims to be the best and tastiest in the country with its distinctive Ilokano taste courtesy of its local ingredients: fresh grated papaya, mongo, chopped longganisa, and egg. The crispy orange wrapper and is made of rice flour that is deep-fried. The celebration of this city’s famous traditional fast food attracting locals and tourists elsewhere comes with the City Charter Day of Batac every 23 rd  of June. Every year, the City Government of Batac led by Mayor Jeffrey Jubal Nalupta commemorate the city’s charter day celebration to further promote its famous One-Town, One Product, the Batac empanada. Empanada City The Batac empanada festival has already become an annua

P29 per kilo rice sold to vulnerable groups in Ilocos region

BBM RICE. Residents buy rice for only PHP29 per kilo at the NIA compound in San Nicolas town, Ilocos Norte province on Sept. 13, 2024. The activity was under a nationwide pilot program of the government to sell quality and affordable rice initially to the vulnerable sectors. (Lei Adriano) San Nicolas , Ilocos Norte —Senior citizens, persons with disability, and solo parents availed of cheap rice sold at PHP29 per kilogram during the grand launching of the Bagong Bayaning Magsasaka (BBM) Rice held at the National Irrigation Administration compound in San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte province on Sept. 13, 2024. “ Maraming salamat Pangulong Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. sa inyong pagmamahal sa Region 1 lalong-lalo na sa bayan namin sa San Nicolas,” said Violeta Pasion, a resident Brgy.   18 Bingao in this town. The low-priced grains were sourced from the National Irrigation Administration’s (NIA) contract farming with irrigators' association members in the province. Along with Pasion, Epi