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Quadriga - Refugee SOS - Is Europe Responding?

June 5, 2014

Nearly 40,000 migrants, more than ever before, have arrived in Italy since the beginning of the year. Most of them come from Syria or Africa. They have left everything behind - their countries and often their families. Although their destination, Europe, is less than welcoming, desperation drives migrants to embark on perilous journeys.

https://p.dw.com/p/1CDQb

1500 people die each year trying to reach Italy and Greece in overfilled boats. But the danger has not deterred would-be immigrants. Nor have the fences, 12 kilometers long with heights of up to seven meters, that surround the Spanish exclave of Melilla in Morocco. There sub-Saharan migrants continue to risk injury to breach the border.

Massenansturm von Flüchtlingen auf spanische Exklave Melilla
Image: picture-alliance/dpa

The situation has caused a rise in people-trafficking, since many of the migrants cannot enter the EU legally. Those who survive the sea journey to Italy, for example, cannot continue on legally to Germany or other countries. The Dublin II regulation requires the EU member state the migrants first arrive in to keep them and determine their refugee status. Italy is only one of the states on Europe's borders that feel left in the lurch by the other member states.

Libyen-Flüchtlinge Ankunft Italien
Image: Mauro Seminara/AFP/Getty Images

How can the immigration process be better regulated while respecting the rights of refugees? And shouldn't Europe be seeking more migrants? In Germany the population is shrinking by 200,000 each year. Are refugees just a strain on the public purse and grist for the mill for populist politicians - or do they actually make major contributions to society in the countries they settle in? What is Europe afraid of? Can't the EU take in more people?

Syrien Flüchtlinge 01.06.2014
Image: Reuters

Refugee SOS – Is Europe Responding?- Let us know what you think at: quadriga@dw.de

Our guests:

05.06.2014 DW QUADRIGA STUDIOGAST Christian Jakob

Christian Jakob - is an editor of the German newspaper taz and responsible for the front page topics. His reporting focuses on the issues of migration and North-South relations. In his first book “Ethnic Cleansing” he describes the expulsion of the lower class in New Orleans after the catastrophe of Hurricane Katrina. He has also been part of the publication ”Europe sealed tight''.

10.04.2014 DW Quadriga Studiogast Laura Lucchini

Laura Lucchini - After studying communication sciences at university in Milan and Madrid, she completed a master’s degree in journalism in Buenos Aires. Today, she is a freelance journalist for the Argentinean newspaper “La Nación” and the Italian “Linkiesta”.

05.06.2014 DW QUADRIGA STUDIOGAST Miriam Fassbender

Miriam Fassbender - worked as a camera assistant on films such as Desert Flower (Dir: Sherry Horman) and The Baader Meinhof Complex (Dir: Uli Edel). She studied cinematography at the Tisch School of the Arts (NYU) and FAMU in Prague. Fremd (Foreign) was the first feature-length documentary she directed. It follows the journey of a young man from Mali on a migration route to Europe. The documentary gives a voice to the migrants who risk their lives to cross the Mediterranean.