There is no end in sight to Europe’s migrant refugee crisis. Thousands arrive on the eastern borders of the European Union (EU) every day — and there are many thousands more to come as millions flee mostly Arab nations wracked by violence and political uncertainty after a series of Arab Spring uprisings from Libya to Syria.
Indeed, the discovery of 71 dead migrants in a truck close to the Austria-Hungary border, along with the multiple drowning incidents in the Mediterranean, underline that the crisis — considered to be the worst migrant-refugee upheaval since the end of the Second World War — is a matter of life and death for those on the unsure road to a better life somewhere in Europe.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been taking a leading role in opening up her nation to new arrivals, striking a compassionate and humanitarian chord as Germany’s refugee arrivals centres cater to ten of thousands who want to settle in the country. The EU will hold an emergency summit on the issue on September 14.
But Merkel will be facing stiff opposition from governments in the 28-nation bloc who fear that the influx of migrants will mean fewer jobs for Europeans who need them most — and that the arrivals will exacerbate racial and sectarian tensions that lie under the surface. Macedonia tried razor wires, tear gas and stun grenades to turn back the tide of migrants on its border with Greece. Serbia has been less than welcoming. Britain is reluctant to take in more and the Dutch too fear that the arrival of large numbers of Muslim migrants will increase social tensions.
The EU as a whole has a responsibility to ensure that those who enter its borders are treated humanely, with dignity — and given an opportunity of beginning a new life in the bloc. Yes, EU nations will express security fears over the influx of large numbers of undocumented people from the Middle East, but a basic registration system would at least be a start. However, they need much more than that — humanitarian help, temporary housing and some semblance of order for having made it to the EU proper.
