Recommended Citation
Sarah Katz,
A More Acceptable Solution: The Proposed European Union Agency of Asylum and Refugees,
49 Case W. Res. J. Int'l L.
303
(2017)
Available at:
https://scholarlycommons.law.case.edu/jil/vol49/iss1/19
Abstract
This Note details the improvements that should be made to a recent proposal submitted by a group of scholars to the European Parliament. The scholars have suggested that the European Union create an independent organization to process asylum applications and to deal with refugee issues in the European Union. This Note agrees with this central proposal, but fleshes out more details that are missing from this initial proposition. The five aspects of refugee processing are detailed in turn: (1) defining a refugee; (2) assigning responsibility for dealing with asylum claims; (3) reception conditions; (4) temporary protection; and (5) long-term residence conditions. The new agency should clarify the scope of the definition of a refugee in order to create a more uniform asylum application process. The Dublin Convention should be abandoned as the determining doctrine for which State will process asylum applications. Reception sites should be given financial assistance and European Union representatives should be placed at the sites. Once a refugee is granted temporary protection, he or she should have the opportunity to move freely for employment. Each State should be encouraged to submit a survey detailing its needs to the new agency so that the agency can determine the best fit for the relocation of individual refugees. This Note also suggests that, the proposed agency create programs that would promote tolerance and acceptance of refugees, and further emphasizes the need to find a solution that will be accepted by all Member States of the European Union. This Note aims to advance this acceptance by highlighting the needs of the Member States as an important factor in refugee relocation determination.