Resolution 1437 (2005)1
Migration and integration: a challenge and an opportunity
for Europe
1. Strong, steady growth can be noted
in human mobility. Europe, which is viewed as an area of stability and
prosperity, will continue in coming years to be immensely attractive to
migrants from less-favoured countries and to asylum seekers fleeing wars,
persecution and human rights violations.
2. In a multicultural, multi-ethnic Europe,
which is increasingly a refuge for asylum seekers and a destination for
immigrants, governments are faced with a pressing challenge to guarantee
that the fundamental values of our societies,
as codified by the European Convention
on Human Rights, including the respect of human rights, democracy and
the rule of law, are shared by everyone living in Europe.
3. It is necessary to take
up this challenge in order to be able to benefit fully from the
opportunities that immigration offers Europe in terms of the supply of
labour, intellectual input and cultural diversity.
4. The concept of integration aims at ensuring
social cohesion through accommodation of diversity understood as a two-way
process. Immigrants have to accept the laws and basic values of European
societies and, on the other hand, host societies have to respect immigrants’
dignity and distinct identity and to take them into account when elaborating
domestic policies.
5. In accordance with its previous
recommendations and resolutions, the Parliamentary Assembly reiterates the
importance of implementing effective policies to ensure the full integration
of foreigners residing lawfully in Council of Europe member states as part
of an overall strategy covering all aspects of migration, including labour
migration and illegal migration, and the efforts to combat trafficking in
human beings and to combat terrorism.
6. In this connection, the Assembly refers to
its Recommendation 1625 (2003) on policies for the integration of immigrants
in Council of Europe member states and in particular reasserts the principle
that immigrants should be able to participate fully in the life of the host
country, on the basis of equality of rights and opportunities in return for
equality of obligations. The Assembly has
emphasised the importance, within the context of national integration
strategies, of extending voting rights to legal immigrants, in compliance
with the 1992 Convention on the Participation of Foreigners in Public Life
at Local Level. The above obligations include showing respect for
human rights and fundamental freedoms, as laid down in the European
Convention on Human Rights, for the principle of equality between women and
men and, in general, for the constitution and laws of the host state.
7. Council of Europe member states must, for
their part, ensure that, within their jurisdiction, immigrants are not
discriminated against in terms of access to and protection of their rights,
with particular attention to certain sectors, such as education and
employment.
8. The Assembly draws attention to the many
activities pursued by the Council of Europe’s intergovernmental committees,
in particular the European Committee on Migration (CDMG), to devise and
promote integration policies capable of meeting the current challenges.
9. In this connection, the Assembly calls on
Council of Europe member states to:
i. make it one of their political priorities
to agree a migration strategy, entailing an overall approach encompassing
all aspects of migration, including its causes and consequences and the
challenges it raises. In this context, it would be appropriate to:
a. emphasise the importance of
co-development policies, with the aim of reducing poverty in the countries
of origin, while giving them responsibility for managing development
instruments and resources;
b. take steps to avoid migratory
movements generated by the need for protection, through activities and
means of pressure aimed at preventing conflicts and promoting respect for
human rights in the countries of origin;
c.
recognise immigrants as persons with fundamental human rights, the respect
of which must be ensured in full conformity with international and
regional human rights instruments including the provisions of the United
Nations International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All
Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, which member states are
urged to ratify and implement;
ii. ensure, in all their activities that may
have implications for migration, including fighting terrorism, strict
respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, as laid down in the
European Convention on Human Rights and the protocols thereto;
iii. offer opportunities for lawful
immigration, with a view to employment, to a number of would-be emigrants
taking into account labour market needs in the host country and its social
system’s capacity to guarantee a reasonable standard of living for these
workers and their families;
iv. make a subsequent effort to foster
knowledge of the fundamental values of the Council of Europe at all levels
of society, in particular among immigrants, by:
a. holding courses on basic rights
and responsibilities for newly arrived immigrants, free of charge;
b. including this type of instruction
in optional or mandatory integration schemes for immigrants in those
countries where such schemes exist;
c. organising this type of
instruction, where possible, in the countries of origin for would-be
emigrants whose applications have been accepted;
v. promote campaigns for the distribution of
reliable, clear information, not liable to be interpreted in a racist or
xenophobic manner, on migration and on the culture and traditions of
immigrants living within their borders;
vi. sign
and ratify the 1992 Council of Europe Convention on the Participation of
Foreigners in Public Life at Local Level;
vii. develop reliable instruments for
measuring migratory movements at national level and co-operate in ensuring
data comparability at an international level.
10. In addition, the Assembly invites the
European Union to:
i. pursue its efforts to establish a common
asylum and migration policy;
ii. support the new member states’ efforts to
cope with illegal immigration and to endow them with legal and practical
means of enhancing immigrants’ integration;
iii. help raise European public awareness of
the consequences of the accession of the new member states and of their
citizens’ rights with regard to freedom of movement.
1. Assembly debate
on 27 April 2005 (13th Sitting) (see Doc.
10453, report of the Committee on Migration, Refugees and
Population, rapporteur: Mr Branger).
Text adopted by the Assembly on 27 April 2005 (13th Sitting).
