(16 December 2016) – The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has just published a position paper on the current refugee crisis.
According to the EESC, civil society has played a vital role in contributing to a more humane migration crisis management: “Without the response of various NGOs, charities and individuals, the tragic humanitarian situation which has unfolded in many European countries could have been much worse.”
The EESC has conducted 12 fact-finding missions to meet with civil society organisations working with refugees.
The synthesis report of the visits to Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Poland, Slovenia, Sweden and an additional one to Turkey concluded that there is a need to: reduce the number of (irregular) arrivals to Europe, receive and assist refugees in a humane way, offer better support for CSOs working in the field and change the current narrative and ensure the integration of refugees.