Church/EU Dialogue on Migration and Climate Change

EU/COMECE Meeting

Source: COMECE

Migration and Climate Change were two topics discussed on 23 July when a delegation of Austrian and European Church representatives met with Karoline Edtstadler, Secretary of State for Home Affairs of the Austrian government, to exchange views on the priorities of the Austrian Presidency of the EU Council.

This meeting was in Vienna, and regular meetings of churches with the rotating EU Presidency have been taking place for more than 20 years.

In the field of migration and asylum policy the delegation invited EU leaders to work for a Common European Asylum System, and to make it an appropriate tool to manage migration.

The Church delegation presented to Secretary of State Edtstadler interesting proposals, such as "circular migration," which should open up legal channels for low-skilled workers who meet the needs of receiving countries. They criticised the criminalisation of migrants and the poor respect for their fundamental rights, and called for their humane treatment in every phase of their journey.

Another topic addressed during the meeting was climate change and the upcoming COP 24 meeting in Katowice, Poland, in December. Churches and church relief agencies are profoundly involved in this upcoming United Nations climate summit. The Churches hope for a further strengthening of EU leadership in the UN climate negotiations and a leading role of the Presidency in preparing an EU contribution to the climate summit COP 24 in December in Katovice. What is needed now is a concrete implementation of the commitments of the Paris Agreement based on fair rules and support for third countries, which are most affected by the effects of climate change. This could help also to alleviate climate change-related migration.

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