Schengen reform must preserve migrants’ right

Together with more than thirty civil society organisations, we co-signed a joint statement on the reform of the Schengen Borders Code which regulates the freedom of movement within the EU

The reform was proposed by the European Commission in December 2021. We now call on the European Parliament and the European Council that are negotiating this file to:

• Counter the dangerous narrative that considers people crossing borders irregularly as a threat and criminalizes them, without recognizing that the lack of regular pathways for asylum seekers often force people to turn to irregular border crossings.
• Uphold the right to apply for asylum, and delete reference to the ‘instrumentalisation of migration’ which reduces access to EU’s territory and asylum procedures.
• Uphold the right to freedom of movement and the principle of non-discrimination, including by amending provisions that could lead to racial and ethnic profiling. Coherence with the EU Action Plan against Racism must be ensured, for instance with respect to ending racial profiling, and combatting structural and institutional discrimination.
• Prohibit the use of technologies which make use of artificial intelligence and other automated decision-making systems.
• Counter the proliferation of exceptional border checks and intra-EU return and transfer procedures, which undermine the right to an individual assessment and risk increasing intra-EU chain pushbacks and detention at the border.