BEYOND HIRSI - The protection of human rights of migrants in the context of EU Member States engaging in maritime operations in the Mediterranean (FWOTM814)

Europe is in the throes of a refugee crisis. To many it will conjure up the image of Alan Kurdî, the Syrian three-year -old whose little body washed to shore in Turkey on 2 September 2015. It is only one of the many human tragedies that take place amidst large flows of migrants trying to reach Europe over sea. It is a trend as ‘old’ as the early 2000’s that has gained momentum in the wake of the Arab Spring and the Syrian civil war. These diaspora expose the travelling migrants to human rights violations, a predicament in which the maritime context adds to the complexity. In 2011, the European Court of Human Rights rendered an important decision in Hirsi v. Italy by deciding that human rights obligations towards migrants and refugees not only apply on the territory of a Member State but also when engaging them on the high seas. This jurisprudence, however, left other important aspects of human rights protection at sea open or unaddressed. Moreover, since 2011 the migration flow has soared in numbers and has triggered new policy initiatives, rules, and challenges on the ground. It is the aim of my research to inquire how policy makers and practitioners should factor in human rights of migrants when operating at sea. It does so by focusing on four pertinent human rights (prohibition of refoulement; right to asylum; prohibition of degrading or inhumane treatment; right to life) within the framework of different types of maritime operations in which EU Member States participate.

Keywords:human rights, migrants

Disciplines:Human rights and justice issues