4
Jul
2022
Watch
Loss of life, violence and inhumane treatment against people seeking international protection at the Spanish-Moroccan border (debate)
Madam President, I'm sorry. The events at the Spanish-Moroccan border are further evidence of what is happening at the external borders of the Union. Walls are being built and human rights are being violated. Every Union document on migration refers to respect for fundamental rights. However, violence and many other violations of rights occur repeatedly at the external borders of the Union. The EU spends at least €10 billion a year on protection against migrants. The construction of walls and the protection of borders will not lead to the disappearance of migration. On the contrary, they force them to look for other, more dangerous routes and push them into the arms of smugglers. The EU is actually creating a market for the smugglers it says it wants to fight. European arms companies exporting arms to countries around the world, including countries at war, with repression and human rights violations, simultaneously provide all the technology related to the arming of walls and fences, as well as protection, surveillance and patrols. It's a border business that benefits politicians. Do we want to build a fortress of Europe by saying that migrants are a security threat to Europe? Is a Europe built on the values of solidarity and the inalienable rights of every human being?