Human rights organisations have slammed a plan announced by the European Commission to send back asylum seekers from seven countries  in order to stem the flow of refugees to the 27-member European bloc.  The list includes India, Bangladesh, Egypt, Kosovo, Colombia, Morocco and Tunisia.

The plan must now be endorsed by the EU’s 27 member states and the European Parliament before it can come into force.

The EU’s executive body  last Wednesday (16 April) declared seven countries as “safe third countries” meaning that asylum seekers from  these countries  would be  safe to be returned to their home countries  and will not face any human rights abuses by local authorities .

 For the countries deemed “safe”,  means that their nationals  do not automatically qualify as refugees. The plan is to speed up the processing of asylum applications from nationals of the seven countries and hasten their repatriation.

Applications by their citizens for asylum in the EU would be decided within three months, rather than the current six months period.

“Many member states are facing a significant backlog of asylum applications, so anything we can do now to support faster asylum  decisions is essential,”  Magnus Brunner, the EU’s migration commissioner, said.

Growing asylum seekers from Bangladesh

According to EU figures, 8,975 Indians filed for asylum applications across the EU  in 2023. This figure fell to 8,676 in 2024. A total of 40,385 citizens from Bangladesh applied for asylum in the year 2023, which increased to 42,236 in 2024. The EU figures did not mention the grounds for those seeking asylum from India or Bangladesh.

From all over Asia 363,100 asylum applicants were received in the EU in 2024.

In all 912 000 first-time asylum applicants from  third countries applied for asylum in EU countries in 2024, down by 13% compared with 2023.

According to a foreign policy specialist at Amnesty International in Brussels, Hussein Baoumi, the concept of safe countries in asylum procedures “may lead to discrimination among refugees based on their country of nationality and detract from an individualized assessment.”

"The EU must ensure that groups at specific risk in each country, for example political opponents, LGBTI individuals, journalists and human rights defenders are clarified, while also  enhancing engagement with listed countries to address human rights concerns," he added.

Civil society protests

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) expressed concern over the EU’s new “safe country” plan. Meron Ameha Knikman, the IRC’s Senior EU Advocacy Advisor in Brussels, said “The EU’s new proposals around which countries are considered to

be “safe” throughout the asylum process and for  returns are extremely concerning. They are part of a broader trend towards deterrence and hollowing out refugee rights, rather than welcoming people with dignity and respect,” she said in a statement.  “It is extremely complex to assess a country’s overall safety,” she said, and called on the EU and its member states to adopt a transparent approach, and consult with international and civil society actors originating from or operating in the countries in question.

“Anyone who applies for protection in the EU should have their individual claim assessed fully and on its own merits - regardless of where they are fleeing from. It’s simply not possible to claim that countries from which 20% or fewer applicants are granted international protection in the EU are ‘safe’ for everyone - particularly those with specific vulnerabilities or from marginalised groups,” said IRC.

“We know that recognition rates often vary immensely between different EU states. For example, while 98% of people from Afghanistan were recognised as refugees in Greece in 2024, this figure was as low as 41% in Germany and 39% in Belgium, highlighting the difficulties of identifying the risks people face in different countries,” it noted.

The European Commission clarified that the new list would complement EU  member countries' national lists of safe countries and "support a more uniform application of the concept,  which allows Member States to process asylum claims of nationals from countries on the list in an accelerated procedure, on the basis that their claims are unlikely to be successful".

Upsurge in illegal immigrants

The move comes after an upsurge of illegal migrants has put the European Union under pressure to move  quickly to deport them.

Far right-wing parties are exploiting the migrant issue to gain more votes at the ballot as witnessed in Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and Belgium .

Another NGO  EuroMed Rights said  “This practice significantly undermines the prospects for persons in need of  international protection to actually receive it in the EU. It places a greater burden of proof on applicants and subjects them to expedited procedures that may violate their rights as outlined in the Refugee Convention.  This includes their entitlement to a fair and efficient asylum process.”

 EuroMed, which represents 68 organisations active in 30 countries, expressed alarm over inclusion of  countries like Egypt , Tunisia and Morocco in the list.

 It called on the EU to reconsider the decision and remove Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia from their lists of “safe countries of origin” and “safe third countries” accusing them of being human rights violators.

On its part, the European Commission said - citing analysis from the EU Agency for Asylum and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees - that the population of  Egypt "does not, in general, face persecution or real risk of serious harm".

(The author is an Indian journalist who is a long time resident in Brussels. Views expressed are personal. He can be reached nawabbk98@gmail.com )