World

EU migration reform won't lead to Rwanda-style plans, says Johansson

Published

10 months ago

March 12, 2024

EU migration reform won't lead to Rwanda-style plans, says Johansson

The reform of the European Union’s migration policy will not encourage the outsourcing of asylum requests, Ylva Johansson has said.

“Do we need to work with third countries to manage migration? My answer is definitely yes. We are already doing that and it’s necessary to do it even more. Nobody can manage migration alone,” the European Commissioner for Home Affairs said on Tuesday afternoon. “So we need to work with partner countries and we need to work along the routes and we need to fight the smugglers together.”

“Should we send away people that are on the EU territory applying for asylum to a third country? My answer is no. (We’re) not open for that in the Pact.”

Johansson was referring to the New Pact on Migration and Asylum, the bloc’s comprehensive reform that foresees common rules to manage the arrival of asylum seekers, fast-track the applications of those with low chances of success, and ensure a fair distribution of those granted international protection.

The New Pact was provisionally agreed upon in December and is set to receive the final greenlight from the European Parliament and member states next month, capping off almost four years of intense negotiations.

In parallel to the reform, the EU has stepped up efforts to reinforce the so-called “external dimension” of migration by designing bespoke agreements with neighbouring countries, including Tunisia, Mauritania and, soon, Egypt. In exchange for receiving a wide range of EU funds, the countries are expected to improve their border management and reduce departures of migrant vessels.

But in a move that took Brussels by surprise, Italy took the “external dimension” a step further and signed last year a protocol with Albania to process up to 36,000 asylum applications per year in the Balkan country.

The special procedure will apply to migrants who are rescued at sea by Italian authorities and then disembarked in the Albanian coastal town of Shëngjin, where two centres will be built at Rome’s expense and exclusively governed under Italian jurisdiction. Those granted international protection will be sent to Italian territory.

The Italy-Albania deal was harshly criticised by humanitarian organisations, who saw it as an unlawful case of extraterritoriality that could lead to human rights violations.

The Commission did not object to the deal but stressed its implementation had to be in line with EU law, including the provisions of the New Pact once adopted. President Ursula von der Leyen later described it as an “example of out-of-the-box thinking, based on fair sharing of responsibilities with third countries.”

The question of outsourcing resurfaced last week after von der Leyen’s party, the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), adopted a manifesto for the EU elections calling for agreements to ensure “anyone applying for asylum in the EU could also be transferred to a safe third country and undergo the asylum process there.”

“In case of a positive outcome, the safe third country will grant protection to the applicant on-site. A comprehensive contractual agreement will be established with the safe third country,” the manifesto reads.

The project immediately evoked comparisons with the Rwanda plan, which Britain tried to pursue to fly asylum seekers to the African country. The plan was subject to a lengthy legal battle and eventually deemed unlawful by the country’s Supreme Court.

Speaking on Tuesday, Johansson stressed the New Pact would not pave the way for a Rwanda-style type of deal to send applicants away.

However, the Commissioner stressed the Italy-Albania protocol was “totally different” because it would apply to migrants who are rescued in international waters, not to those who have already entered Italian territory (and therefore EU territory).

“If they (receive) asylum, they will be transferred to Italy,” Johansson said. “So it’s not about externalising the asylum process.”

Last year, the EU received 1.14 million applications for international protection, marking a seven-year high. About a third of these were filed by migrants who arrived in the bloc through irregular means, Johansson said.

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World

Italian state railways plans 1.3 bln euro investment in solar plant

Published

3 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Italian state railways plans 1.3 bln euro investment in solar plant

Italian state railways Ferrovie dello Stato plans to invest 1.3 billion euros ($1.36 billion) in a photovoltaic plant with an initial 1 gigawatt (GW) capacity that would cover 19% of its energy needs by 2029, the CEO said in a newspaper interview.

World

Christmas in Puerto Rico is a 45-day celebration with caroling, festive decorations, family feasts and more

Published

3 hours ago

December 22, 2024

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Christmas in Puerto Rico is a 45-day celebration with caroling, festive decorations, family feasts and more

Christmas, Navidad in Puerto Rico, extends far beyond Dec. 25.

The island proudly proclaims itself as having the “longest holiday season in the world,” according to the website Discover Puerto Rico.

On average, the holiday festivities in Puerto Rico last about 45 days, per the source, commencing right after Thanksgiving, and stretching all the way through mid-January.

The Christmas season in Puerto Rico typically lasts around 45 days. (iStock)

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The holiday season in Puerto Rico is full of rich traditions beloved by families.

One tradition those who visit Puerto Rico will immediately notice during the holiday season is decorations.

In Puerto Rico, decorations are typically put up by Thanksgiving, and kept up until the season concludes in mid-January, with opportune picture moments at every corner.

Parrandas, Christmas caroling, is a holiday staple.

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Carolers choose houses of family and friends to visit, typically starting around 10 p.m., performing aguinaldos (traditional Christmas songs), with not only their voices, but often with instruments as well, according to Discover Puerto Rico.

The group you begin caroling with is likely not the same group you end with.

In Puerto Rico, when carolers visit a house, they’ll often stop inside for conversation, food and drink before moving to the next residence.

Coquito is a popular beverage enjoyed during the holiday season in Puerto Rico. Coconut, vanilla and rum are among the ingredients. (Mayra Beltran/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)

Usually, the residences of the house visited will join the group for the next house, according to Discover Puerto Rico.

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A night of serenading loved ones can last quite a while, often stretching into the early morning hours of the following day, according to the source.

The biggest day of the holiday season in Puerto Rico actually isn’t Christmas, but instead, the night before.

In Puerto Rico, Dec. 24 is Nochebuena. On that day, loved ones gather for the exchange of gifts, caroling and a large feast.

Many families will also attend a midnight Mass on the day, known as Misa de Gallo.

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After Christmas passes, the festivities go on in Puerto Rico.

Another big event in the holiday lineup is Three Kings Day on Jan. 6, a holiday that “commemorates the visit that the Three Wise Men paid to Jesus after his birth,” according to Discover Puerto Rico.

On the eve of the day, children fill up a shoebox with grass to be left for camels to munch on while the Three Kings leave behind gifts for them, according to PuertoRico.com.

For a particularly festive Three Kings Day, Juana Díaz is the place to go, as it hosts the largest celebration in Puerto Rico for the holiday. In Juana Díaz, there is an annual festival and parade in honor of Three Kings Day that brings together over 25,000 people every year, according to Discover Puerto Rico.

Gifts are primarily exchanged between loved ones on Christmas Eve in Puerto Rico. (iStock)

Then, eight days later is Octavitas, a post-holiday celebration where families get together and celebrate one last time for the season.

The end of the holiday season is marked with the San Sebastián Street Festival.

This festival, spanning over multiple days, takes place in Old San Juan, and is filled with live music, dancing, shopping and parades.

Ashlyn Messier is a writer for Fox News Digital.

World

Small plane crashes into Brazil town popular with tourists, killing 10

Published

4 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Small plane crashes into Brazil town popular with tourists, killing 10

Twin-engine plane crashed in largely residential neighborhood of Gramado shortly after takeoff, authorities say.

A small plane has crashed into a tourist hotspot in southern Brazil, killing all 10 people on board and injuring more than a dozen people on the ground, officials have said.

The twin-engine Piper PA-42-1000 hit the chimney of a home and the second floor of a different house before crashing into a shop in a largely residential neighbourhood of Gramado shortly after takeoff from Canela, Brazil’s Civil Defense agency said on Sunday.

Rio Grande do Sul Governor Eduardo Leite told a news conference that the aircraft’s owner and pilot, Luiz Claudio Galeazzi, was killed along with nine members of his family.

Leite said that 17 people on the ground were injured, 12 of whom were still receiving treatment in hospital.

Galeazzi’s company, Galeazzi & Associados, confirmed that its CEO and Galeazzi’s wife and three daughters had died in the crash.

“Luiz Galeazzi will be forever remembered for his dedication to his family and for his remarkable career as a leader of Galeazzi & Associados,” the company said in a post on LinkedIn.

“In this moment of immense pain, Galeazzi & Associados is deeply grateful for the expressions of solidarity and affection received from friends, colleagues and the community. We also sympathize with all those affected by the accident in the region.”

Gramado, located in the Serra Gaucha mountains, is a popular destination for vacationers, especially during the Christmas season.

The crash comes a little more than a year after Brazil suffered its worst air disaster in nearly two decades when a twin-engine plane crashed in the southeastern city of Vinhedo, killing all 62 people on board.