The European refugee crisis : addressing mass influx within the framework of the Common European Asylum System

Abstract

This dissertation entails an analytical study of how the European Union has addressed the 2015 mass influx of refugees and displaced persons and how it intends to address future influxes. The Commission has recently tabled a Proposal (the Dublin IV Proposal) to amend the Dublin III Regulation by streamlining and supplementing it with a corrective fairness mechanism with the aim of addressing situations of mass influx. The dissertation therefore examines whether the Dublin Regulation is an adequate tool with which to address future crisis. An overview of the international law obligations of states in situations of mass influx precedes this examination. In particular the duty of non-refoulement, temporary protection and the principles of solidarity and burden-sharing are found to be important components of international protection for persons fleeing en masse. Following this, a historical account of the development of the Dublin system is given in order to determine the underlying objectives of the system and whether these are compatible with the objective of burden-sharing. It is argued that the structural flaws that already existed in the Dublin system, namely unfair allocation criteria and inefficient implementation of transfer decisions could not withstand the arrival of massive numbers of asylum seekers in 2015 and that this led to the collapse of the system. A critical analysis is also given of the ad hoc emergency measures adopted by the EU to respond to the crisis. A critical appraisal of the Commission’s Dublin IV Proposal is given and compared to existing burden-sharing and crisis management mechanisms in the CEAS. Finally, it is claimed that the retention of the traditional allocation criteria coupled with the mandatory application of safe-third country practices proposed by the Commission in the Dublin IV Proposal render this instrument inadequate to address large scale influx of refugees. It is argued that the challenges posed by a mass influx are better met by the implementation of a Temporary Protection regime.