Council of Europe adopts 'political declaration on migration' following letter Belgian PM
The Council of Europe is adopting a political declaration on migration at a meeting of the Committee of Ministers on Friday. The declaration follows an open letter written last year by Belgian prime minister Bart De Wever, together with eight other EU leaders, regarding the legal interpretation of the European Convention on Human Rights, which they claimed was hindering the handling of criminal foreign nationals.
A year ago, prime minister Bart De Wever, together with the heads of government of Denmark, Italy, Austria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, sent a critical open letter. De Wever and his colleagues took aim at the interpretation of the European Convention on Human Rights. They claimed that the judges of the European Court of Human Rights were interpreting the convention in such a way as to hinder the deportation of undocumented criminals.
Alain Berset, the secretary general of the Council of Europe, accused the nine EU heads of government of politicising the Court of Human Rights. “It is not our task to weaken the European Convention on Human Rights, but to keep it relevant,” he said at the time.
A year later, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, meeting in Chișinău on Friday, is adopting a “political declaration on migration” after all. According to Foreign minister Maxime Prévot, who is representing Belgium in the Moldovan capital, the declaration acknowledges that European countries face challenges, including the return of people without residence rights who have been convicted of serious offences.
“The aim of the declaration is not for governments to interfere in the work of the judges of the European Court of Human Rights,” emphasised Prévot. "It does, however, seek to offer a new political perspective on the migration challenge, which the Court will undoubtedly take into account. The European Convention on Human Rights was intended from the outset to be a living instrument that evolves with the times. This ensures that it remains relevant.”
Belgium's prime minister Bart De Wever speaks to press before a EU Summit © PHOTO JOHN THYS / AFP
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