EU’s migrants problem

Early in October, over 300 migrants drowned in the Mediterranean in their quest to reach the Italian coastal city of Lampedusa. In the previous month 36 migrants, mostly from Myanmar, Afghanistan and Iraq coming Indonesia, drowned in the Pacific in a failed bid to reach Australia. Thousands of migrants have besieged coastal countries in southern […]

Early in October, over 300 migrants drowned in the Mediterranean in their quest to reach the Italian coastal city of Lampedusa. In the previous month 36 migrants, mostly from Myanmar, Afghanistan and Iraq coming Indonesia, drowned in the Pacific in a failed bid to reach Australia. Thousands of migrants have besieged coastal countries in southern Europe like Italy, Malta and Greece, severely straining facilities there.
The EU meeting’s recommendations on how to tackle the wave of migrants are however troubling. It called for greater patrols to deny ‘irregular migrants’ access to Europe. Many EU member states previously tightened immigration rules, some introducing quota for some selected countries. The new Labour government in Australia won election on the platform of a harsh policy to turn back asylum seekers to Australia.
It is clear that EU countries see the problem essentially from their position of being at the receiving end. They conveniently fail to look at the issue also from the originating or emanating end. They may want to ponder on the question: why are migrants leaving their home countries in such large numbers with Europe as their destination, in spite of the hazardous nature of their journeys? Many developed countries, particularly in Europe, ignore, or try to mask, the fact these migrants are fleeing from wars, turmoil and hunger and unemployment that have their roots from European colonisation of Africa and Asia.
Moreover, trade relations between the colonies and the colonialists were skewed in such unfavourable terms that the former colonies will always be at a disadvantage in any interaction. They fix the prices of primary produce as well as those of manufactured goods. It is this unfavourable trade arrangement which continues the colonial legacy that is responsible for some of the challenges facing developing nations, such as unemployment, destitution and social upheavals.  
What the migration challenge has revealed is the reiteration of the notion that this is an interdependent world and no one nation or group of nations, no matter how well off, can afford to live in splendid isolation from the orchestrated woes of others.
Added to that is the woeful governance record of many developing countries that sometimes drive their citizens to seek greener pastures abroad.
Europe should abandon its policy of reckless intervention in the affairs of developing countries in the name of promoting values that are either disruptive to normal life or in are alien to those countries.   It is instructive that in the current wave of migration to Europe, Syrians constitute a large chunk because their country is at war in which many European countries, and the United States, cannot escape blame for choosing to take sides with the rebels who took up arms against a once stable government.
In the short term, Europe cannot afford to be insular to the plight of the migrants. That would be callous and insensitive. It is incumbent on Europe to accommodate those who have succeeded in entering their countries. More importantly, Europe should make genuine effort at recognising their parity with developing countries by ensuring more equitable trade arrangements.