Newsletter - Julio 2010 - Número 17 (en inglés)

EU COUNCIL

 

Belgian Presidency's priorities

In the area of Migration and Asylum Policy, the Belgian State Secretary for Migration and Asylum Policy Melchior Wathelet highlighted three areas: the continuation of the development of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS), the development of a common policy on legal migration and the fight against trafficking in human beings and illegal migration.

 

As regards the CEAS, the Presidency hopes to make progress on four of the six proposals currently in the Council: the Eurodac regulation, the long-term residence directive, the qualification directive and the Dublin regulation. The two other proposals - on asylum procedures and the reception directives - "haven't gone so far as the others (...) and we feel that we are not going to finalise these two texts" during the Belgian Presidency, he added.

 

On social cohesion, priorities are the fight against poverty and in particular the minimum income, child poverty and homelessness. The Belgian presidency organises a conference, which will be held on 2 and 3 September 2010, to raise awareness of Member States about the problems facing the children living in poverty and to provide the bricks to achieve a real European Recommendation on child poverty.

 

Sources:

- Belgian Presidency, 'Programme in the field of Immigration and Asylum'

- European Parliament, 'Belgian ministers outline Council Presidency priorities'

- ECRE Weekly Bulletin 16 July 2010

EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS

 

Interim measures granted suspending the transfer of asylum seekers to Greece

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) granted interim measures under Rule 39 suspending the transfer of three asylum seekers in Denmark to Greece under the Dublin II Regulation. Recently Denmark revised its policy concerning returns to Greece and resumed transfers there. This was the first time where the Court applied interim measures in a Danish asylum case involving a transfer to Greece under the Dublin Regulation. In 2009 and the first quarter of 2010 alone, the ECHR has stopped over 500 returns to Greece from other EU States under Rule 39.

Chair of ECRE's board Andreas Kamm welcomed this decision, and called on Denmark to "immediately stop all returns to Greece, where most of the 20,000 asylum seekers per year end up in the streets without any access to the asylum procedure or social assistance."

 

Source: ECRE Weekly Bulletin 16 July 2010

NATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS

 

FRANCE

 

Non expulsion for medical reasons and residence permit for medical reasons

Since 1998, the French law provides for a renewable one-year residence permit for foreigners residing de facto in France whose medical condition requires treatment or care the lack of which can have exceptionally serious consequences, provided that they cannot benefit from an appropriate treatment in their country of origin.

The Council of State, the highest administrative court in France, recently stated that effective access to health care is not only about the simple existence of appropriate medical care in the country of origin but also depends on the current and future availability of the care or treatment needed, the financial and geographical accessibility, discriminations when accessing the care or treatment needed and, more generally, all exceptional circumstances specific to the individual case.

As for HIV positive persons, it has to be stressed that the ministry of health recommends, for some years now, an interpretation of the conditions to the residence permit for medical reasons that is in line with the spirit of the law.

Sources:

- ODSE, « Droit au séjour pour raison médicale : Le Conseil d'État réaffirme la protection contre l'éloignement et le droit au séjour des étrangers malades résidant en France n'ayant pas un accès effectif aux soins dans leur pays d'origine »

- Circulaire DGS/SD6A n^o 2005-443 du 30 septembre 2005 relative aux avis médicaux concernant les étrangers atteints par le VIH, émis dans le cadre de l'application de l'article L. 313-11, 11^o, du code de l'entrée et du séjour des étrangers et du droit d'asile

 

NETHERLANDS

A pregnant asylum seeker dies in worrying circumstances in reception centre

A pregnant asylum seeker, mother of three, died in a reception centre in worrying circumstances. One asylum seeker of the centre: "She had been sick for two weeks. With her husband, she had been trying to get an appointment with the doctor. The doctor holds a daily consultation in the centre for half an hour. Some do the queue for 1 ½ hour to see the doctor. She was suffering so much that she could not stay there and wait that long. The doctor was asked to go and see her. But that was not possible, she had to wait for an appointment. She could not eat or drink but the doctor did not have time for her."

 

The Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (Centraal Orgaan Opvang Asielzoekers (COA) said that all procedures had been followed and that an investigation will take place to find out how this could happen. Some MPs asked for a study on access to health care for asylum seekers in reception centres, to find out what the structural shortcomings in the procedures are.

Sources:

- Nieuwsblad De Kaap, Zwangere vrouw sterft in gang AZC

- Trouw, GroenLinks: opheldering dood zwangere asielzoekster

PUBLICATIONS

A rights-based approach to HIV in the European Union

 

Ahead of the World Aids Conference 2010, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) issued a factsheet A rights-based approach to HIV in the European Union.

 

"Over 2 million people live with HIV in the European Union and its neighbouring countries. The number of diagnosed infections has been increasing. The rights of people living with HIV and those at risk of infection must be central to the response to the epidemic", stressed the Fundamental Rights Agency today.

 

"People living with HIV are confronted with discrimination in employment, healthcare, education and housing. People living with HIV must be legally protected from discrimination (...) In particular, access to healthcare must be guaranteed for everyone, if we want to stop the spread of the epidemic. The Fundamental Rights Agency recommends that HIV testing should be anonymous and free for all", emphasised Morten Kjaerum, Director of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA).

 

A FRA paper on "A rights-based approach to HIV in the European Union" will be published later this year.