Category Archives: News

by | 17 Feb 2010 · 03:46

Le Temps d’Algérie: Les maffias de l’immigration clandestine en Afrique de l’ouest se tournent vers le narcotrafic

“Les ministres de l’Intérieur des pays d’Afrique occidentale se réunissent aujourd’hui [14 février] à Dakar avec leurs homologues de France et d’Espagne pour examiner la délicate question de l’ouverture, dans cette région située dans le prolongement direct du Sahel, d’une «nouvelle route» spécialisée dans le narcotrafic. … Cette région était jusque-là considérée, exclusivement, comme la «route» de l’immigration clandestine vers l’Europe. … Près de 40 000 Subsahariens ont pu atteindre les côtes espagnoles. Mais le dispositif mis en place par l’Espagne dès 2007, avec le concours les unités du Frontex …a sensiblement découragé ce phénomène. Cette «route» a progressivement cessé d’être rentable pour ces maffias de l’immigration clandestine en Afrique de l’Ouest. … Les maffias de l’immigration clandestine auraient alors choisi de se tourner vers une activité plus risquée mais beaucoup plus rentable, le narcotrafic.”

Cliquez ici pour l’article complet.

Cliquez ici pour un autre article: “Lutte contre la drogue en Afrique de l’ouest : La France met sa marine à la disposition de la sous-région.”

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by | 16 Feb 2010 · 04:48

Besson veut créer des zones d’attente ad hoc pour les clandestins

“Une nouvelle fois, la cinquième en six ans, le code de l’entrée et du séjour des étrangers (Ceseda) va être modifié. … Eric Besson s’apprête à faire voter une nouvelle loi. … Suite à l’arrivée sur les plages corses, le mois dernier, d’un groupe de 123 Kurdes, le ministre … avait annoncé une loi pour faire face à des «situations d’urgence» et des «afflux massifs» comme à Bonifacio…. ”

“L’article 1 prévoit que, «lorsqu’il est manifeste qu’un ou plusieurs étrangers viennent d’arriver à la frontière en dehors d’un point de passage frontalier», une zone d’attente sera créée qui s’étendra «du lieu de découverte des intéressés jusqu’au point de passage frontalier le plus proche où sont effectués les contrôles».”

“Pour Pierre Henry, directeur général de France terre d’asile (FTDA), «Eric Besson a vraiment un art de la mathématique assez incertain. Il trouve justification à un nouveau projet de loi dans l’arrivée de 123 Kurdes sur le territoire – qu’il qualifie de brutale et de massive – alors que la présence de milliers d’Afghans [à Paris et sur le littoral du Calaisis, ndlr] pour qui nous réclamons protection est jugée de peu d’ampleur». «On crée une fiction selon laquelle ces étrangers ne sont pas encore sur le territoire national»”

Cliquez ici et ici pour les articles complets.

Cliquez ici pour le position de France Terre d’Asile.

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by | 16 Feb 2010 · 04:35

Yemen: We have a moral obligation to accept refugees

The Los Angeles Times has a new article on the refugee situation in Yemen.

“… The poorest country in the Arab world, Yemen can barely accommodate its own, much less the dispossessed from other lands. ‘Right now, we are torn,’ said Ali Muthana Hassan, Yemen’s deputy foreign minister. ‘We have many problems of our own in Yemen — we have war, Al Qaeda, our own citizens do not have jobs. But we have a moral obligation to accept them. And right now, we don’t have a choice. Next year, more will come. Many more will come.’”

Click here for Los Angeles Times article.

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Filed under Ethiopia, Gulf of Aden, News, Somalia, Yemen

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by | 15 Feb 2010 · 05:07

Libya Opposes Blocking Peoples’ Freedom of Movement

Speaking at the 10 February ceremony in Gaeta, Italy marking the transfer of three patrol boats from Italy to Libya, The Libyan Ambassador to Italy reportedly said that  “Libya is against human trafficking and it is at the same time against the exploitation that stems from imposing any blockade on peoples’ freedom of movement around the world as it is a natural phenomenon throughout history.”

Click here for article and click here for link to earlier post with Italian Interior Minister Maroni’s comments made at the same ceremony.

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by | 11 Feb 2010 · 15:34

L’exode vers le Yémen : un entretien avec le HCR, le PAM et l’OIM

Grotius.fr : “Au Yémen, l’année 2009 a été marquée par un record des flux migratoires en  provenance de la corne africaine : plus de 77.000 entrées sur le territoire, des Somaliens, mais un nombre d’Ethiopiens en forte augmentation. [***]

Et les migrants non somaliens devraient avoir beaucoup de difficultés à légaliser leur situation.  Les trois principales agences en charge de la question des migrants au Yémen, le PAM, le HCR et l’OIM, ont accepté d’aborder pour Grotius.fr ce dossier «brûlant».  Entretien réalisé à Sanaa par François-Xavier Trégan avec Gian Carlo Cirri, Directeur du Programme Alimentaire Mondial au Yémen, Samer Haddadin, Senior Protection Officer, Haut Commissariat pour les  Réfugiés au Yémen et Stefano Tamagnini, Directeur de l’Organisation Internationale pour les Migrations au Yémen.”

Cliquez ici pour l’article complet.

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by | 11 Feb 2010 · 04:22

Somalis Were Largest Group of Irregular Migrant Arrivals in Malta

According to an article appearing in DI-VE, over 35% of the 9,554 migrants who arrived in Malta over the past 5 years were Somali.  “The second largest group [was] from Eritrea (1,259), followed by Egypt (755), Nigeria (652) and Sudan (596).”

Total Irregular Migrant Arrivals in Malta:

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Total
1,822 1,780 1,702 2,775 1,475 9,554

Click here for article.

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by | 11 Feb 2010 · 04:10

New Patrol Boats for Libya and Malta

Italy has delivered to Libya three patrol boats pursuant to the terms of Italy’s bi-lateral agreement with Libya to control irregular immigration.  The three boats that were turned over to Libya in a ceremony attended by Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni supplement three patrol boats which were delivered by Italy earlier.

Maroni spoke at the ceremony and said “Italy and Libya alone cannot carry the burden of a migration problem that touches the whole of Europe.  … [The European Commission] has not done much to date [on the migration issue].  In recent days I travelled to Ghana and Niger to sign bilateral accords and it is the first time these countries sign such agreements [on immigration] with a European state. This shows Italy is taking a leading role.”

And unrelated to the new Libyan boats, four new Armed Forces of Malta patrol boats were scheduled to arrive on Wednesday in Malta from Australia.  The new patrol boats cost €9.3m and were funded in part by the EU.

Click here and here for articles.

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by | 10 Feb 2010 · 17:05

Cecilia Malmström: New EC Commissioner for Justice & Home Affairs

After an 8 month delay, the European Parliament has approved a new term for European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso and his 26 commissioners.

The new Commissioner with responsibility for Justice and Home Affairs is Cecilia Malmström.

Click here for link to the Commissioner’s new web site.

Click here for article about the Commissioner’s hearing before the EP.

Click here for article about the EP vote.

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by | 09 Feb 2010 · 19:40

Italy’s “Africa Campaign”: Stop Migrants in Countries of Origin

Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni has completed a visit to Ghana and is now in Niger.  A trip to Senegal will occur soon.  In Ghana he signed an agreement to increase cooperation on combating illegal immigration, human trafficking, and other forms of organized crime.

Maroni is quoted as saying ”We have excellent bilateral agreements with the African countries of the Mediterranean region, from Morocco to Egypt. However, these are often transit countries for illegal immigrants who in reality originate in sub-Saharan African states. This is why now, while awaiting action from Europe, we want to extend security measures to that area not only regarding immigration, but also regarding the issues of drug trafficking and terrorism.”

ANSAmed reported that Maroni said Italy’s agreement with Libya has reduced the numbers of illegal migrants arriving in Italy and that “[n]ow the focus is to completely eliminate their arrival by blocking the departure of these ‘journeys of hope’.”

Click here and here for articles.

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by | 08 Feb 2010 · 05:17

Haitians Prepare for Boat Journey to US

The Los Angeles Times reports on the construction of a boat in Cap Haitien, Haiti and preparations being made by some earthquake survivors to flee the country for the US.

“When builders finish the boat in a few days, it will set sail with … at least 40 others for the United States. If they survive the 600-mile crossing, and aren’t intercepted by the U.S. Coast Guard, they’ll soon be walking the streets of opportunity.  …  The boat is being built on a narrow, secluded waterway that feeds into the bay, out of sight of Haitian coast guard patrols and U.S. ships that [the ship’s builder] said he’s spotted on the shimmering blue sea just outside the bay.”

Click here for article and here for photos and audio.

Click here for Christian Science Monitor article regarding recent US preparations for possible surge of Haitian boat people.

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by | 08 Feb 2010 · 05:08

First “Frontex Operational Office” to be Based in Greece

The Frontex Management Board has taken the decision to establish Frontex’s first Operational Office (“FOO”) in Piraeus, Greece.  According to the Frontex press release, the purpose of the office is to provide regionally-based support for Frontex coordinated activities such as joint operations and enhanced situational awareness.  If this pilot project is successful, it is expected that future FOOs would be established elsewhere such as the Western Mediterranean, the Western Balkans and Black Sea, and Eastern land borders.

According to the Frontex press release, Frontex Executive Director Laitinen said the establishment of this FOO “supports the possible enhancement of [the] Frontex mandate highlighted in the Stockholm Programme … I can even say this decision anticipates potential enlargement of the EU and Schengen zone. It gives Frontex a possibility to offer more support for the operational involvement of third countries, something that is essential for effective border management.”

Click here for Frontex statement.

Click here for the Final Report on the “Study on the feasibility of establishing specialised branches of Frontex.”  The specific functions of the new FOO are based in part on this feasibility study which was prepared in 2009.

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by | 04 Feb 2010 · 04:53

Sarkozy: On ne laissera pas de nouvelles filières d’immigration se développer en France

Le président Sarkozy, en déplacement en Corse, a dit “[L]a France ne peut donner une prime aux organisations mafieuses. Les côtes de la Corse sont une des frontières de l’Europe … ceux qui ont fait ça seront retrouvés et seront punis. … Mais surtout que les mafias sachent que nous laisserons pas faire cela.”

Click here and here for articles.

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by | 04 Feb 2010 · 04:39

Spanish EU Presidency: Frontex Needs More Resources and Clearer Rules

Spanish Interior Minister Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba speaking at the 26th Frontex Management Board Meeting in Madrid called for providing Frontex with “more resources, clearer rules and specialist offices. … We are planning to promote FRONTEX, to equip it with more resources, its own resources, because when FRONTEX becomes more independent it will become more efficient; to provide it with mechanisms for jointly managing maritime operations, mechanisms that respect the laws and rights and clearly establish each country’s obligations. … FRONTEX has shown that it is probably the best tool we have for ensuring shared and jointly responsible border control.”

Click here for summary from Spanish EU Presidency web site.

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by | 03 Feb 2010 · 16:31

Proposed Changes to Interdiction Patrol Rules Jeopardise Malta and Italian Cooperation with Frontex

The Malta Times reports that “a Frontex official said [yesterday] the new [maritime interdiction] guidelines were specifically aimed at avoiding disputes such as the ones that broke out between Malta and Italy. In the past, immigrants were stuck on the high seas as the two countries were locked in a diplomatic wrangle on who was responsible for the people rescued. ‘Everyone recalls these incidents and the Commission’s intervention. Brussels ended up as a referee in these disputes and we don’t think that’s our role. This is specifically why we needed to have a specific code of conduct to guide future Frontex missions. This will put participating member states’ minds at rest,’ the official said.”

The proposed changes would require migrants to be taken to the country hosting the Frontex mission if it was not possible to return the migrants to their country of departure and could go into effect as early as April when Frontex interdiction patrols are scheduled to resume in the central Mediterranean under the new mission name of Operation Chronos.

“Both Malta and Italy objected strongly [to the proposed changes] on the basis of the fact that the guidelines go beyond international legal obligations, which say that migrants should be taken to the nearest safe port [which in Malta’s case] often meant the Italian island of Lampedusa.”

Click here for article.

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by | 03 Feb 2010 · 05:24

“Un échec total’’ – Trois tentatives de traverser la Méditerrané

“Oumar Baldé, [un sénégalais] de 36 ans, fait partie des candidats à à l’émigration revenus dans son Fouladou natal après avoir, comme il le dit, ‘’essuyé un échec total’’ dans sa tentative de rejoindre l’Espagne.  Parti du Sénégal par voie terrestre en 2000, en passant par le Mali, le Burkina Faso, le Niger, traversant le Sahara pour se retrouver en Libye…. “Ce fut un échec total’’, souligne Baldé, précisant avoir travaillé pendant 18 mois en Lybie avant de se retrouver en Algérie, puis au Maroc où il est resté pendant six ans, avec trois tentatives de traverser la Méditerranée, sans succès.”

“’On payait 8000 dirhams (500 000 francs CFA) [ €750 ] par traversée, poursuit-il, à des Arabes pour nous faire traverser la rive, ils nous amenaient jusqu’en pleine mer et on se perdait, il ne nous rester qu’à retourner et d’être pris par les gardes côtes marocaines qui nous jeter à la frontière algérienne’.  De guère lasse et ne disposant plus de moyens … Oumar Baldé s’est résigné à rentrer [en Sénégal]…”

“D’après le président du Conseil de la jeunesse de Dioulacolon, Abdoulaye Baldé, l’exemple de Oumar Baldé, n’est qu’une goutte d’eau dans l’océan. … ‘Il arrive qu’une famille dépêche deux à trois enfants pour tenter l’aventure. Et deux ou trois mois après, elles sont informées qu’ils sont tous morts en mer, entre la Mauritanie et l’Espagne’, se désole Abdoulaye Baldé.”

Click here for full article.

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