Brussels.- The European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration, Magnus Brunner, asked the EU institutions this Thursday to approve the so-called facilitation directive, presented by the Commission in 2023, which would allow Member States to sanction individuals who collaborate with irregular migration in the EU.
“It is about dismantling illicit trafficking networks. And in this sense, I am really counting on the (European) Parliament and I urge it to adopt its position regarding the directive against illicit trafficking proposed by the Commission almost three years ago,” said Brunner in his speech before the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, which met in an extraordinary session by videoconference to address the situation in Ceuta.
This directive, criticized by pro-immigration organizations, is awaiting the negotiating position of the European Parliament, after the EU Council—the representation of the countries—already established it in December 2024.
The proposed regulation defines the facilitation of irregular entry, transit, or stay as a crime when committed in exchange for financial or material benefit.
Brunner maintained that what happened in the autonomous city of Ceuta, where more than 70,000 migrants from Morocco entered last week, is “irrefutable proof” of the need for “a solid and effective tool to combat the illicit trafficking of persons.”
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The European Commission has embraced the Spanish Government’s narrative that behind the massive entry of migrants into Ceuta are “mafias” and groups dedicated to illicit human trafficking, which requires “strengthening alliances” against this phenomenon.
“We should also strengthen the practical implementation of our alliances against illicit trafficking along migration routes and ensure that Europol’s center against illicit trafficking becomes a true center of excellence,” added the European Commissioner.
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And he pointed out that the EU must “save lives by stopping the traffickers who put them at risk without mercy or scruples for the sole purpose of making a profit.”
Setting a negotiating position
That is why he insisted that it is “really key” for the European Parliament to set its negotiating position to begin the talks that will lead to the drafting of a legal text.
This proposed directive has been criticized by pro-immigration organizations such as PICUM, which maintains that this regulation “does not address these root causes at all.”
“Human smuggling networks thrive where people do not have a safe or realistic way to seek protection or rebuild their lives in Europe. The more difficult it is for people to migrate safely and regularly, the more room smuggling networks have to exploit their vulnerability,” Chiara Catelli, a representative of PICUM, told EFE.
