MSF to reject European funding over EU migration deals

Humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has said it will no longer accept funds from the European Union and member states because of Europe's attempts to "push people and their suffering away from European shores".

The MSF announcement means the medical charity will no longer accept funding from the Irish Government through the State’s overseas development aid (ODA) allocation. The decision will take effect immediately and applies to all MSF projects worldwide.

MSF received €1.7 million from the Government in aid support over 2015 and 2016 as part of the State's ODA spending. These funds have been spent on humanitarian assistance projects in South Sudan, Central African Republic and for Burundian refugees in Tanzania.

Ireland’s overseas development assistance spending reached €647 million in 2015, representing an increase of almost €33 million on the previous year.

The State’s budget allocation for 2016 so far is just over €641million, although the final amount is expected to exceed that number.

MSF has argued the controversial EU-Turkey migration deal, which came into effect in April as means of curbing the flow of migrants to Europe, has put thousands of refugees and hundreds of unaccompanied minors in great danger.

It warned that the deal was setting a “dangerous precedent” for other countries hosting refugees and sending a message that caring for people forced from their homes was optional while nations could buy their way out of providing asylum.

Director of MSF Ireland, Jane-Ann McKenna, called on European governments to "dramatically shift their policies" and focus on maximising the number of people they welcome and providing assistance rather than pushing people back from European borders.

Ms McKenna warned that migration cooperation deals between the EU, its member states and third countries were resulting in “unacceptable humanitarian consequences”.

“By sealing European borders to people who flee conflict, EU member states have taken themselves out of the equation for protecting refugees - undermining international refugee law designed to protect those forced to flee,” said Ms McKenna.

"These policies of deterrence are having a dangerous domino effect - all you need to do is look over the Turkish border into Azaz, northern Syria, where more than 100,000 people are trapped between active frontlines and a closed Turkish border."

She said: “We have taken this decision to distance ourselves from governments and institutions whose policies put our patients in danger or are in direct contradiction with humanitarian principles.”

While most of MSF’s activities are privately funded, the organization received €19 million in funding from EU institutions in 2015, with an additional €37 million from EU member states.