EU: Former attorney general and EU commissioner Peter Sutherland appealed to EU justice ministers yesterday to support a UN initiative to boost international co-operation on migration.
Mr Sutherland, who is chairman of BP and Goldman Sachs International, made a presentation to ministers urging them to take a lead role in the initiative, which is seeking to create a new forum on migration under the aegis of the UN.
The proposed forum would explore aspects of migration in an informed, systematic way to contribute to an expanded debate on the issue. It is just one concrete proposal that is likely to be explored at a major UN conference planned for September in New York.
Mr Sutherland asked those present to participate at ministerial level in the conference and bring their best ideas on how to deal with migration issues. He also warned that if the UN proved impotent in addressing migration it jeopardised its credibility on the world stage.
Both the US and Japan recently abstained on a vote on whether to establish the UN migration forum, and this signalled a need for EU support for the proposal.
UN secretary general Kofi Annan has placed migration at the top of his agenda following the passing of a UN resolution on international migration and development in December 2004. This called for the protection of the human rights of migrants and their families and referred to the "uneven impact" of the benefits of globalisation and liberalisation on different parts of the world.
According to UN statistics, the number of migrants living in developed countries more than doubled between 1980 and 2000, from 48 million to 110 million, while the number of migrants in developing countries grew from 52 to 65 million.
Speaking to The Irish Times at the EU justice council, Mr Sutherland said there was a clear need at EU level, due to demographic factors and in particular the ageing population, to address the migration issue in a positive manner.
"In recent years EU countries with very low birth rates had benefited enormously from migration. It had generated very high growth rates in states such as Spain," he said.
Meanwhile, EU justice ministers agreed to better co-ordinate their migration and asylum policies, including more joint charter flights to ease the cost of expelling illegal immigrants. The European Commission also announced it would support 20 projects in the area of "migration", worth €14.8 million. The projects chosen include a grant worth €455,353 to help fund the return of Nigerians living illegally in Ireland and The Netherlands.