Cypriot Minister of Justice and Public Order, Kypros Chrysostomides expressed Cyprus’ support to a multi-annual programme of cooperation for migration and development, which was adopted by more than 80 delegations from Europe and Africa that met in Paris on Tuesday.
Following on from the first conference held in Rabat in July 2006, the Second Euro-African Ministerial Conference on Migration and Development took place in Paris on 25 November 2008, within the framework of the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
It resulted in adopting a multi-annual programme of cooperation by the sixty countries and twenty international organisations attending this conference. The programme is based on the three aspects of the global approach to migration: legal migration, combating illegal migration, and synergies between migration and development policy.
This cooperation programme drew inspiration from the conclusions of three meetings of experts that were held in Rabat in March 2008 (legal migration), in Ouagadougou in May 2008 (combating illegal migration), and in Dakar in July 2008 (migration and development). These three meetings set out a series of operational procedures, which can begin to be swiftly implemented. All are aimed at strengthening cooperation between Europe and Africa in all matters relating to the migration route from West Africa.
In his intervention, Chrysostomides expressed Cyprus’ full support to the cooperation programme, noting Nicosia advocates the enhancement of a constructive dialogue between the EU and countries, which are along the West African migration route and other countries as well.
He said immigration should not be considered a threat or a factor of instability but a phenomenon, which must be regulated, adding that “if immigration is supported by the right policies, it can contribute to the development of the destination countries as well as the countries of origin”.
However, he pointed out the urgent need to combat the reasons behind illegal immigration such as poverty and violation of human rights, conflicts and weather changes.
Chrysostomides said Cyprus agrees with the measures proposed to combat illegal immigration, taking into consideration human rights.
“It is known that Cyprus is facing great difficulties in handing the increasing immigration influx, adding that although the immigrants do not come from West African nations, Nicosia supports an overall approach in combating illegal immigration because “we know from first hand the difficulties and problems which recipient countries are facing”, he concluded.
