| Q |
A |
| What is the agreement? |
- A controversial agreement was signed between the EU and Turkey last week, with the intention to seal illegal migration.
- An illegal immigrant now arriving in Greece through the Aegean Sea route can be expected to be sent back to Turkey if the person does not apply for asylum or his claim is rejected.
- The EU will in turn take in thousands of Syrian refugees directly from Turkey.
- For Turkey, the EU has promised to fast track its membership talks and has upped its financial aid significantly. Turkey today hosts three million Syrian refugees, more than any other country.
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| Why it is being criticized? |
- This controversial agreement has been criticised by aid agencies as inhumane and violative of EU law.
- The UN’s refugee agency, UNHCR, has criticised the EU-Turkey deal as illegal and a violation of human rights.
- According to Vincent Cochetel, the organisation’s Europe regional director, the “collective expulsion of foreigners is prohibited under the European Convention of Human Rights”, while Amnesty International called it a “historic blow to human rights”.
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| Has the agreement made any impact yet? |
- The deal has not had the intended effect.
- There are currently over 49,000 migrants in Greece in overcrowded and squalid camps waiting for asylum in Europe, and the numbers have grown since the EU-Turkey deal.
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