In this week’s news highlights, we would like to update you on the latest events concerning recent developments related to the Horn of Africa, outcomes of the debate on migration with the new Maltese presidency in the European parliament and EU’s migration strategy.
Yesterday, on the 7 November 2016, the Open Society Foundation held a meeting on the topic “Migration and asylum: 1.000 testimonies of torture en route”. The Foundation presented new findings concerning trafficking routes and gave a thorough insight on the traumatising experiences of migrants subjected to torture during their journey.
Politicians and the media alike speak about the “refugee crises”, “the high influx of migrants” as well as the need to stop this “inflow” and to find ways to combat migration by tackling the “root causes”. The current narrative in politics within the Union undeniably has a negative character and the message seems to be clear: migration is a threat. It is a problem that has to be solved.