TO THE MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE ON MIGRATION, REFUGEES AND DEMOGRAPHY

SECRETARIAT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY

 

Synopsis No. 2000/154

23 October 2000

 

The Committee on Migration, Refugees and Demography, meeting in Paris on 20 0ctober 2000 with Mrs Vermot-Mangold (Switzerland, SOC) in the Chair:

–          held an exchange of views on the Committee's priorities and work programme for 2000-2001;

–          was informed on the state of preparation of the Colloquy on policies for the integration of immigrants, The Hague, 16-18 November 2000;

–          held an exchange of views on Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement with Mr Bagshaw, Office of the Representative of the United Nations Secretary General on Internally Displaced Persons, and Mr Kozhemyakov, Head of the Public Law Department, Directorate General I – Legal Affairs – Council of Europe;

–          heard a statement by the Chair on the 50^th Anniversary of the Geneva Convention relating to the status of refugees and appointed Mrs Aguiar (Portugal, EPP/CD) as Rapporteur on the subject in the framework of the report on the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR);

–          held an exchange of views on the non-expulsion of long-term immigrants (Rapporteur: Mrs Aguiar, Portugal, EPP/CD) with Mr de Croon, Assistant Deputy Director for Foreigners, Ministry of the Interior, France;

–          was informed on the humanitarian situation in the North Caucasus by Mrs Moreau, Representative of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and on the state of preparation of the Committee delegation's visit on the spot, from 20 to 24 November 2000;

–          considered an outline for a report on the situation of refugees and displaced persons in Armenia and Azerbaijan (Rapporteur: Mrs Vermot-Mangold, Switzerland, SOC) and authorised the Rapporteur's visit on the spot, subject to the authorisation by the Bureau;

–          considered and modified an outline for a report on the colonisation by Turkish settlers of the occupied part of Cyprus (Rapporteur: Mr Laakso, Finland, UEL) and authorised the Rapporteur's information visit to Cyprus (including the Northern part of the country) and to Turkey;

–          considered a preliminary draft report on rendering more humane the procedures for expelling illegal immigrants and rejected asylum seekers (Rapporteur: Mrs Vermot-Mangold, Switzerland, SOC);

–          appointed the following rapporteurs:

·                 Mr Connor (Ireland, EPP/CD) on the humanitarian situation of returnees to Kosovo (Doc. 8789);

·                 Mr Cilevics (Latvia, SOC), replacing Mr Mateju (Czech Republic, EPP/CD) who will soon leave the Committee, on the "propiska" system applied to migrants and refugees in the CIS countries: effects and remedies (Doc. 8566);

·                 Mrs Vermot-Mangold (Switzerland, SOC) for the presentation of the report on the health conditions of migrants and refugees in Europe (Doc. 8650);

–          invited its Chair to ask the Bureau that the Committee be seized for opinion during the debate on Yugoslavia foreseen during the January 2001 part-session with a view to covering the humanitarian situation of refugees and displaced persons in Yugoslavia;

–          confirmed the holding of its next meetings as follows:

·               The Hague, 16-18 November 2000: full Committee (Colloquy on policies for the integration of immigrants);

·                Paris, 8 December 2000;

·                 Strasbourg, during the 1^st part-session 2001 (22-26 January 2001);

·                 Paris, 23 February 2001.

 

Agnieszka NACHILO, Markus ADELSBACH