Deaths in the Mediterranean - lesson plan

I am afraid the lesson plan does not look any good in my blog due to the fact that it has been copied and pasted from Word. If you would like the original document, just let me know and I will send you one.

Lesson plan:
Show
What happens if there are fewer rescue ships http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-32322750  this also takes us to Italy and the latest news there.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32390941 the videos and the statistics

To discuss:
*      As president of the EU parliament, you now no longer can deny what is happening in Italy, Greece and Libya. You feel the urge to come up with a solution to the problem that the majority of the EU member countries can agree to. Thus, you summon the members of the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) to a meeting with the EU council with the following agenda:

*      How can we avoid more deaths in the Mediterranean Sea
ü  Is military force the solution?
ü  Should random ships help?
ü  Should there be fewer coastal guards?
ü  How can we in the EU help Italy taking care of all the refugees?
ü  What can we ask our European Economic Cooperation (EEC) partners to do?
ü  Undertake systematic efforts to identify, capture and destroy vessels before they are used by traffickers?

Roles
A = Federica Mogherini is an Italian politician and diplomat who serves as High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.
You think every country in the EU or connected to the EU by trade (EEC countries) should help – maybe take in refugees proportional with their population? You have a long list of suggestions – make sure the meeting hears them all:
      1) Develop a comprehensive cooperation agenda with countries of origin and transit to build resilient protection systems in close cooperation with UNHCR, enhance efforts to address root causes of refugee flight and support migration and mobility through development cooperation.
     2) Implement a crisis management action plan with regard to arrivals at sea. This should include the deployment of EASO support teams to assist EU countries where asylum seekers are disembarked with the processing of asylum applications and the relocation of those granted international protection within the EU with the consent of the individuals concerned. Such a plan should also foresee the possibility to allocate responsibility for asylum seekers to Member States other than the Member State of disembarkation with the consent of the persons concerned, where the number of arrivals exceeds their processing and reception capacity.
   3)   Provide professional medical and psychological assistance to the refugees and migrants who survived the journey in coping with their often traumatizing experience and take the appropriate measures to ensure the respectful treatment of those who lost their lives at sea
  4) Show genuine solidarity with the Member States of disembarkation. By making an effective use of the discretionary clauses in the recast Dublin Regulation, Member States can reunite family members and examine applications of asylum seekers for humanitarian reasons. European countries should facilitate mutual recognition of positive asylum decisions and the swift transfer of protection statuses within the EU so that refugees can settle where they have more integration prospects.
  5)  Invest significantly in voluntary return programmes that assist those whose claim for international protection was unsuccessful in a fair asylum procedure and other migrants without a right of residence to return to their countries in safety and dignity.


B = UN General Ban Ki-moon (you have only observer status in the meeting. However, you are allowed to state your point of view) said aboard an Italian ship last week, praising Italy's maritime search and rescue efforts,"I think it seems to be the worst humanitarian crisis since the Second World War. So many thousands of people have lost their lives in their pursuit for a better future," "Not a single country -– like Italy -– can bear all this responsibility," he added.

C= British Prime Minister David Cameron said Thursday that Britain would offer to deploy military ships and helicopters to the Mediterranean to help stem a deadly tide of refugees trying to reach Europe by sea. But he stressed that this help would only be given "under the right conditions," as he arrived at an emergency EU summit in Brussels called after 800 people were feared to have died in a shipwreck on Sunday. "That must include that people that we pick up and people we deal with are taken to the nearest safe country, most likely Italy, and don't have immediate recourse to claim asylum in the UK," he said.
Cameron, who is fighting for re-election at home where immigration is one of the hot-button issues, offered the Royal Navy flagship HMS Bulwark, three helicopters and two patrol ship

D = EEC-member Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg (H) is willing to send one ship in August. She thinks it will be hard for Norway to welcome more refugees than we already have said yes to from Syria. Yes, we are the richest country in Europe, but still…

E = Matteo Renzi, Italian Prime Minister, who has branded the people smugglers "the slave traders of the 21st century", is a staunch proponent for military action against smugglers. In addition, he suggests to: Launch a European Search and Rescue Operation in the Mediterranean, which should, at a minimum, be the size of Italy’s Mare Nostrum Operation, which saved over 100,000 people. Such an Operation could be coordinated by the EU Border Agency Frontex as search and rescue is an inherent part of border surveillance according to the Frontex’ Maritime Border Surveillance Regulation.

F = You are a refugee who has survived the crossing and you have been asked to tell your story and to recommend solutions – you have a long list of suggestions – make sure that the meeting hears all of them :
  6)  Significantly increase the numbers of refugees admitted to Europe through resettlement programmes and humanitarian admission.
   7)  Give refugees the possibility to apply for safe entry and international protection through EU embassies in countries neighbouring refugees’ regions of origin. Make use of the possibility to grant humanitarian visas in accordance with Article 19 and 20 EU Visa Code to help those in need of international protection to leave areas of conflict in a safe and legal manner.
    8)   Facilitate family reunification for people in the region who have family members living in Europe so that they can easily join their loved ones. In particular, family reunification should be granted to all beneficiaries of international protection under the same conditions. States should apply a broader definition of family members to include non-nuclear family. Flexibility should also be applied to the amount of documents required to prove family links and with regards to travel documents.
    9)   Expand legal channels for migration beyond highly skilled workers. 

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