Refugees and Migration in Asia and Europe

158 Pages·2016·4.49 MB·English

01/2016 PANORAMA
INSIGHTS INTO ASIAN
AND EUROPEAN AFFAIRS
REFUGEES AND
MIGRATION IN
ASIA AND EUROPE
Konrad
Adenauer
Stiftung

Panorama: Insights into Asian and European Affairs is a series of occasional papers published by the Konrad-
Adenauer-Stiftung’s “Regional Programme Political Dialogue Asia and the Pacific/Singapore”.
The papers in this issue of Panorama: Insights into Asian and European Affairs were submitted for publication in
May 2016.
© 2016 Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, Singapore
Editor: Dr. Beatrice Gorawantschy
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PAnoRAMA
InsIghts Into AsIAn
And EuRoPEAn AffAIRs
Refugees and
Migration in
Asia and Europe

Contents
PREFACE 7
Refugee Movements in South and Southeast Asia 9
Alistair Boulton
Managing Movements of People in Southeast Asia:
The ASEAN Response 17
Moe Thuzar
Internal Displacement in the Philippines 33
Jose Jowel Canuday
Migratory Flows in Bangladesh in the Age of Climate Change:
Sensitivity, Patterns and Challenges 49
Mohammad Towheedul Islam and Tasneem Siddiqui
Turkey’s Role in the Syrian Refugee Crisis 67
O. Can Ünver
The EU Answers to the Refugee Crisis: A Challenge to EU Solidarity 81
Joanna Pétin
The European Refugee Crisis and the Southeastern Route in 2015-16 93
Angelos M. Syrigos
Migrants and Refugees En Route Across the Mediterranean 103
Gian Carlo Blangiardo and Roberto Cortinovis
The Refugee Crisis in Germany: How to Cope with
Large Irregular Migration Movements of Asylum
Applicants into the European Union and Germany? 115
Kay Hailbronner
Refugees, Minorities and International Law 129
Geoff Gilbert
Climate Change and Migration—Dimensions, Concepts and Policy
Responses from a Human Rights Perspective 141
Monika Mayrhofer
Preface
The world is facing the biggest humanitarian crisis of recent times. With more than
60 million refugees in the world now, the highest since 1945, the numbers of forcibly
displaced people around the world have increased enormously. People across the globe
are fleeing violence, persecution and poverty in large numbers. More than half the
world’s refugees come from just three conflict-ravaged countries—Syria, Afghanistan
and Somalia. In Syria a most devastating civil war is responsible for the highest number
of refugees worldwide.
However, the topic of migration is probably one of the most contentious issues cur-
rently. Unless managed more effectively, it can have a grave impact on regions globally
and imposes severe political, economic and social challenges on individual countries
and regions. Europe, in particular is facing an unprecedented crisis, which developed
an entirely new dynamic. The arrival of a rising number of people in 2015 and the
imagery of sinking boats have captured the world’s attention with scenes of desperate
and heartbreaking tragedies. In 2015, more than one million asylum seekers—mostly
from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq—entered EU countries; this was more than double
the number that entered in 2014. Travelling thousands of miles over land and water
from across Asia, the Middle East and Africa, people are risking everything in search
of safety and a better life. The European Union has taken numerous steps to grapple
with the crisis, including announcing schemes for the relocation of a certain number of
refugees from Italy and Greece to other Schengen states (non-binding quota regulation),
forging an agreement with Turkey to manage the flow of refugees into Europe, and
strengthening the competence of the European border management agency Frontex, the
European asylum support office as well as their cooperation with Europol. But theory
and practical implementation are still divergent and the crisis, nevertheless, is far from
over. It has therefore become even more imperative for the European Union to achieve
solidarity and a common coherent European policy to tackle the issue. With the link-
ages of various regions like Africa, Asia and the Middle East in this crisis as either
recipients or senders of migrants, the refugee crisis has become a global problem and
therefore needs a global solution.
The year 2015 also saw Asia face its own migration and refugee crisis. Long-
running conflicts and crises, the escalation of violence, such as in Afghanistan
and Pakistan, natural disasters like those in the Philippines, and ethnic conflicts in
Myanmar have increased the number of refugees in Asia significantly. Boatloads of mi-
e
nority Rohingya Muslims fleeing from the Burmese state of Rakhine and Bangladesh c
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were stranded across the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal, off the coasts of Thailand, Pr
Indonesia and Malaysia, triggering a humanitarian crisis. Like Europe, the countries
in Southeast Asia were unprepared to handle the sudden influx of people hoping to
7
seek shelter on their shores. The crisis compelled leaders in Southeast Asia to gather
together to discuss this long-standing issue within the region, including aspects such
as irregular migration, human trafficking and the continued persecution of Rohingyas
in Myanmar. The region has taken steps to overcome the crisis, including the new
consultation mechanism on Declaration on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons
and Related Transnational Crime adopted in March 2016, the creation of an ASEAN
Regional Trust Fund to support victims of human trafficking, and the adoption of the
ASEAN Convention Against Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children
in November 2015.
However, there is still need for a more robust institutional architecture to be imple-
mented on forced migration and a comprehensive and systematic approach to manage
irregular movements of people and international protection for those in need.
In this issue of Panorama: Insights into Asian and European Affairs, we have
asked authors from various countries across Asia and Europe to analyse recent refugee-
related developments in the two regions and the implications of refugee movements on
societies in Asia and Europe. With the policies and recommendations presented in this
publication as well as the inputs from issue-oriented seminar platforms organized in
parallel, the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung hopes to contribute to fostering more dialogue,
exchange and collaboration between Asia and Europe in addressing the migration and
refugee crisis.
Dr. Beatrice Gorawantschy
Director
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8
Refugee Movements in South and Southeast Asia
Alistair Boulton1
Refugee movements in South and Southeast Asia take place against the backdrop of
forced displaced worldwide unseen since the Second World War. An estimated 60 mil-
lion people are forcibly displaced on the planet today. If they were gathered together in
one country it would be the 24th most populous in the world, just after Italy and, almost
appropriately, before Myanmar. The high numbers have translated into a high profile
for refugee and migrant issues, these regularly being the lead item on television news
and the front pages of newspapers. The UN General Assembly and the President of the
United States will both host events focused on refugees in the fall.
Compared to other regions, notably the Middle East, North Africa, Sub-Saharan
Africa, Southwest Asia and Europe, the movements in South and Southeast Asia are
small. Indeed there is only one significant movement indigenous to the region, that
being the Rohingya from Rakhine State in Myanmar, who represent simultaneously the
region’s—and the world’s—largest stateless population. With a bit of political will from
all the states concerned, the situation could easily be managed. As the boat “crisis” in
the Bay of Bengal and Anadaman Sea in May and June 2015 made clear, however, that
bit of political will remains elusive.
This paper elaborates the six-slide PowerPoint presentation made by UNHCR at a
the Refugees and Migration in Europe and Asia Policy Conference in Manila on 4-5 ast Asi
April 2016. It describes the three major maritime movements involving refugees in the he
ut
world followed by a focus on the refugee movements—maritime and otherwise—in So
d
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South and Southeast Asia. It is primarily descriptive but does, where appropriate, pro- a
h
vide suggestions on the responsibility-sharing measures and regional approach which out
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if taken would improve the situation of existing refugees in South and South East Asia nts in
and help the region be better prepared for new or resumed movements. me
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1 Every effort has been made for the paper to accurately reflect UNHCR’s views on the matters discussed. Any
errors in this regard or in the paper, however, are solely the responsibility of the author.