Aid groups say new EU measures for asylum seekers add to humanitarian disaster

The European Union has agreed on a new plan for hosting asylum seekers, following years of debate and infighting.  

The new proposal calls for more involvement from nations that are not on Europe’s southern coast, where asylum seekers first reach the continent.  Those countries could either host more incoming migrants or contribute to a joint fund managed by Brussels.  The reform also sets tougher rules for processing migrants, including expediting the expulsion of people deemed unlikely to win asylum claims.

Oxfam blasted the arrangement, saying: “EU countries plan to buy themselves out of their responsibility to welcome refugees.  These proposals will not fix the chronic deficiencies in the EU asylum system. Instead, they signal the EU’s desire to barricade Europe from asylum-seekers.”

In related news, at least five people drowned and dozens are missing after three migrant boats capsized in the Mediterranean off the Tunisian coast in recent days.  More than 2,000 people died at sea while trying to reach Europe last year.