"Documents released today by civil liberties organization Statewatch reveal the European Union is expanding its migration control cooperation with Côte d’Ivoire through deportation arrangements and counter-smuggling initiatives that critics describe as outsourcing border management to African nations."
Full story: EU Expands Migration Control Partnership with Ivory Coast
And see: Outsourcing Borders, bulletin 10
"When it comes to the external funding the EU provides to third countries such as Tunisia and Libya for migration control, which henceforth will be disbursed via the Global Europe Instrument, Chris Jones with the rights NGO Statewatch at a briefing said, "it's quite hard to see how any human rights values or safeguards can really be upheld.""
Follow our work on EU border externalisation in Outsourcing Borders: Monitoring EU externalisation policy.
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"The Met commissioner should scrap plans to deploy live facial recognition (LFR) at next weekend’s Notting Hill carnival because the technology is riven with “racial bias” and subject to a legal challenge, 11 civil liberty and anti-racist groups have demanded.
A letter sent to Mark Rowley warns that use of instant face-matching cameras at an event that celebrates the African-Caribbean community “will only exacerbate concerns about abuses of state power and racial discrimination within your force”."
Full story: Facial recognition cameras too racially biased to use at Notting Hill carnival, say campaigners
"An internal document from the Polish EU presidency, leaked by London-based civil rights defenders Statewatch, said senior EU member state officials had discussed the need for "new sources of funding to finance strategic and comprehensive partnerships".
The document also calls for more human-rights oversight for the funds.
"[But] I would say if you're intent on cooperating with militias and dictators, it's quite hard to see how any human rights values or safeguards can really be upheld," said Chris Jones, director of Statewatch.
Instead, Jones says he expects the next MFF will basically "fund more death at Europe's borders", more state surveillance, and more support for militia and security companies.
"We're going to see more funding and support dedicated to authoritarian regimes. The same kind of policies that have continued to fail and will keep failing," he said."
Full story: Next EU budget seen as funding migration crackdown
Read the document referred to: EU states demand more migration control cash in next long-term budget
"EU bruger allerede 14 procent af det nuværende budget på 80 milliarder EURO på at begrænse folk fra tredjelande i at komme til Europa, men medlemslandene er tilsyneladende villige til at øge beløbet betragteligt. Det sker selvom der er flere eksempler på, at EU’s nuværende politik fører til grov behandling af migranter og overtrædelse af menneskerettigheder. Det sker, når dele af migrationskontrollen bliver eksternaliseret og overladt for eksempel til autoritære regimer i Nordafrika, skriver onlinemediet Statewatch."
Full story: EU vil stramme krav til økonomisk støtte, citing our article: EU states demand more migration control cash in next long-term budget
