News
Launched in 1999 and updated regularly, Statewatch News includes our own reporting and writing as well as articles, announcements, documents and analyses from elsewhere on civil liberties, EU policies and state practices. You can receive updates in your inbox by signing up to our mailing list, or use our RSS feed to get instant alerts.
EU-UK: Brexit means... the UK staying in the G6
"Brexit means Brexit" was a remarkably meaningless slogan coined by former UK prime minister Theresa May. In practice, it appears that one thing Brexit does mean is the UK staying part of the G6, an informal annual meeting that was originally set up to facilitate discussion and coordination between the interior ministers of the six largest EU member states, alongside representatives of the European Commission and the USA.
EU: New report highlights impact of pandemic on reception facilities for asylum seekers
COVID-19 lockdown measures across Europe increased homelessness and destitution among asylum seekers due to evictions and the temporary closure of relevant administrations, says a new report by the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS).
New platform provides transparency on EU security spending
A new platform that tracks spending by the EU on security-related projects and policies aims to serve as “a tool for journalists, researchers, civil society organizations and others to better understand the growing investments of the European Union in security.”
EU: Despite acquiring training on how to recruit informants, Frontex insists that it does not recruit informants
As previously reported by Statewatch, EU border agency Frontex acquired training from a private security company on the topic of “human intelligence”. Despite seeking lessons on “how to recruit an informant”, the agency has insisted that it does not recruit informants – rather, it “conducts interviews with migrants on a voluntary basis where the interviewed person's identity remains anonymous.”
Declaration of the Assembly of Social Movements of the European Social Forum on Migration
The Declaration, which is the outcome of a process involving "300 social movements, civil society organisations, migrants' associations, unions, migrant and refugee people activists and academics," calls for renewed action to protect the rights of migrants, refugees and people on the move across the globe.
UK: Protect human rights and judicial review
Statewatch has signed an open statement, alongside more than 150 other organisations, calling for the UK government to halt its attacks on human rights and judicial review.
EU: To protect fundamental rights, a ban on biometric mass surveillance is needed
Along with 51 other organisations, Statewatch has signed an open letter calling on the European Commission to introduce measures to ban biometric mass surveillance as part of the upcoming legislative proposal on artificial intelligence (AI).
UK: Housing asylum seekers in disused barracks: "The Home Secretary must provide an explanation" for contradictory evidence
Home Secretary Priti Patel "must provide an explanation" for the contradiction between evidence she gave to the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee and the findings of an independent inspection on disused military barracks being used to house asylum-seekers, says the chair of parliament's Home Affairs Committee.
Germany: Protest against European asylum and migration policies at Christian Democratic Union headquarters
Press release from a demonstration organised at the headquarters of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in Berlin. The CDU currently heads Germany's federal government. European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, is also a member of the party. According to the press release, the demonstration was against the "catastrophic and inhumane situation in camps at the European external borders," and the EU's asylum and migration policies more generally.
Transparency and accountability of Frontex: re-launch of Statewatch Observatory and new policy briefing
Statewatch is today launching an updated and improved Observatory on the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, providing a focal point for documentation and analysis on the role and activities of the agency. The re-launch of the Observatory is accompanied by a policy brief that provides an overview of all the ongoing investigations and inquiries into the activities of Frontex.
Denmark: Reject discriminatory "Security for all Danes” Act and respect freedom of assembly
Open letter signed by 36 organisations including Statewatch, coordinated by the European Civic Forum.
Spain: More than 1,700 people lost their lives trying to reach Spain in 2020, the highest figure ever recorded
The Andalusian Association for Human Rights criticises the “vast resources” given to preventing migration, in contrast with the “absolute lack of investment in reception.” There was a 756% increase in arrivals in the Canary Islands in 2020.
EU: Parliament urged to reject online content rules that pose "serious threats to freedom of expression and opinion"
More than 60 human rights and journalism organisations (including Statewatch) have signed an open letter to MEPs calling on them to vote against the proposed Regulation on addressing the dissemination of terrorist content online, which includes measures that would seriously undermine freedom of expression and opinion, freedom to access information, right to privacy and the rule of law.
EU: Pushbacks scandal: Internal letters shed light on Frontex’s fundamental rights recruitment failures
As the work of the European Parliament’s working group scrutinising Frontex continues, we are publishing correspondence shared with the group by Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson. The documents shed new light on the dispute between the Commission and Frontex over the agency’s controversial attempts to recruit new staff for its Fundamental Rights Office.
EU: Tracking the Pact: Tunisia and other North African states targeted for new action on migration, asylum and more
Two papers circulated by the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the EU give an insight into ongoing discussions and activities geared towards implementing the Pact on Migration and Asylum in North Africa, covering issues such as cooperation on asylum, border control and law enforcement.
Immigration and asylum round-up: 2-24 March 2021
Our latest summary of developments and new material on immigration and asylum in Europe.
EU-USA: Action against encrypted communications to be discussed at senior officials' meeting in April
The next high-level justice and home affairs meeting between the EU and USA will include a discussion point on "challenges related to encryption and lawful interception," with both sides keen to find a way to grant law enforcement agencies access to encrypted communications technologies - something that experts have warned time and again is impossible without fundamentally compromising those technologies for all users.
UK: New charter demands police chiefs commit to protecting freedom of assembly
Last Friday hundreds of people joined an online day of action organised by the Network for Police Monitoring (Netpol), calling on the National Police Chiefs Council to commit to protecting freedom of assembly by adopting an eleven-point charter.
UK: Protect the right to protest during lockdown, says Joint Committee on Human Rights
The government should ensure that the right to protest is protected by the emergency measures brought in to restrict the spread of coronavirus, says a report published last week by the Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR), made up of MPs and members of the House of Lords.
EU: One step closer to the establishment of the 'permission-to-travel' scheme
The Council and Parliament have reached provisional agreement on rules governing how the forthcoming European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) will 'talk' to other migration and policing databases, with the purpose of conducting automated searches on would-be travellers to the EU.
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