Strasbourg, 26 March 2022

Fifth Plenary of Conference on the Future of Europe

The 5th Plenary Session of the Conference on the Future of Europe took place in Strasbourg, on March 24-26, with the in-person participation of the Working Group on Migration Co-Chair Dimitris Karidis, while the Hellenic Parliament MPs Ioannis Bournous, George Papandreou and Ioannis Kefalogiannis participated via teleconference.

Proposals emerging from citizens’ recommendations were discussed on Friday, in the framework of the Working Groups meetings. Mr Kairidis presented the new report of the Conference multilingual digital platform regarding the issue of migration. In his introductory remarks, he referred to the war raging in Ukraine, stressing the great numbers of displaced persons (10,000,000) inside Ukraine and refugees (3,500,000) crossing international borders, a fact that demonstrates the need for more concrete responses but also raising the feeling of solidarity. He commented that in contrast to the 2015 refugee crisis, during which countries of the European South, such as Greece, Italy, Spain, had to deal with refugee flows on their own, today countries that did not exhibit solidarity then, such as Poland, under the current pressing circumstances, express the solidarity we strive for.

Mr Kairidis then presented the report’s main ideas regarding the three pillars of the migration reform, namely, legal migration, irregular migration and asylum, also briefly outlining the outcome of the relevant event held by the Greek Parliament, with the participation of European Commission Vice-President Margaritis Schinas.

During today's plenary, and specifically during the presentation of the proposal of the panel on European democracy, values and rights, the rule of law and security, Mr Kairidis took the floor in his capacity as a national parliament representative, expressing his solidarity to the Ukrainian people and emphasising the very threat facing our democracies, which, as he stated are not as strong as we thought, among other things due to internet misinformation. Many Member States experience a setback in democracy and weakening of the rule of law. Democracy and the rule of law are intertwined, as there is no democracy without freedoms. He also stressed that we must stop violating our core values, while at the same time we must enhance member states’ post-accession control, as the only way to remain resilient and exit the current crisis is to be faithful to our values​​. He concluded by noting that the Conference on the Future of Europe is a bottom-up, citizen-centred process.

Asked on the fundamental rights compatibility with refugee "refoulement", Mr Kairidis stressed the need for strengthening the EU's competence in the field of refugees/migration. He reminded certain member states’ lack of solidarity during the 2015 refugee crisis, which left countries of the South, such as Greece, to deal with refugee flows with no support. However, he added that today’s crisis in Ukraine has brought member states closer and fostered solidarity, a fact that is encouraging .

During the presentation of the final proposals of the Panel on Migration in Plenary, the Working Group co-chairs, Messrs. Kairidis and Alfieri, received positive comments from the participants over their excellent work and cooperation, as well as over the final proposals presented, fully reflecting European citizens’ proposals, which is the Conference’s main objective .

Finally, in the section on the presentation of national and other bodies’ events, the Greek citizens’ national representative, Mr. G. Pagoulatos, marked the numerous events and discussions held in our country, making special reference to two events organised by the Hellenic Parliament, one on migration and the other on digital transition, with the participation of the competent  European Commission Vice-Presidents, Mr Schinas and Mrs Vestager respectively, while noting, among other things, that Greek citizens are keen on the dialogue’s continuation even after the end of the Conference.

 

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