Publications /
Opinion

Back
Brussels Forum : the Moroccan migration policy presented in a discussion on migrant crisis
Authors
March 15, 2018

« Revise, Reboot, Rebuild : Strategies for a time of Distrust »: that was this year’s theme for the Brussels Forum, a yearly high-level conference held from March 8th to 10th by the US think tank German Marshall Fund (GMF), partner of the OCP Policy Center who attended the event through its delegation. This meeting of some 400 policymakers, academics and private sector operators is reviewing the relationship between Europe and the United States. Brexit, the Trump administration, the migrant crisis and the rise of populism have been discussed, in the presence of Youssef Amrani, former minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Morocco and Special Advisor to the King Mohammed VI, and two senior fellows of the OCP Policy Center, Abdelhak Bassou and Mohammed Loulichki. 

« Our number 1 priority is to end war in Syria. The European Union is the biggest donor in the area, but we really have to work on a political solution ». This strong statement by Federica Mogherini, Italian citizen and Deputy President of the European Commission, was among the opening words of the Brussels Forum. She emphasized the need to « go beyond Washington » and keep on working on the strategic relation between Europe and the USA. « A relation that amounts to 30 % of the world trade », she reminded. In face of the Brexit and the new protectionist temptation of the Trump administration, she stated that « Europe is for free trade and will never be protectionist ». 

The tensions between the North-Atlantic allies since the election of Donald Trump were at the heart of the debate, as well as the feeling of a growing distrust in Western democracies towards politics, but also the press and trade.  Mateusz Morawiecki, Prime Minister of Poland, has talked candidly about the need « not to regulate and centralize more in Europe, but the need to deregulate, rather ». He mentioned in diplomatic ways the underlying tensions in the EU, with « some countries more equal than others » and quoted an article on how the Western European countries have « colonized » the Eastern European countries. « Our imagination about the future, our sense of dignity is different from Western Europe, but we try to find a common language, a common lowest denominator on immigration for instance ». 

The migrant crisis, a hot topic 

On the migrant crisis issue, a hot topic all over the EU, the Polish Prime Minister said that « solidarity is important, and Poland has played its part by welcoming Chechen refugees and 1.5 million people from Ukraine, some of them homeless”. He underlined that his country believes that “ there is a more efficient way to help people in Italy, Libya and Lebanon. With 1.1 billion people in Africa, what is our reply ? Is it 2 million, 12 or 22 million ? How many people from Africa can we accommodate in the EU ? ». 

On a panel held in the evening, on « Where is home in a global world », the question of migration has been examined with some deeper insight. Cynthia Miller-Idriss (Professor at the School of Education of the American University, Washington) talked about the sense of loss experienced by youth attracted by far-right movements in Europe and the USA. Manolis Vournos, the mayor of Chios, main city of the Greek Island of Chios, shared is experience on managing a massive influx of migrants since 2015. He underlined the polarisation this situation has created in his local community, also facing the Greek economic crisis. 

Youssef Amrani’s call for the EU to « change its tools » 

Youssef Amrani, former Morrocan Minister of Foreign Affairs and Special Advisor to the King Mohammed VI, clearly stated that « there is no home today in the global world, where we are facing the same threats and challenges ». He insisted on the fact that globalization, with its positive side – « free movement of people and capital and the spread of liberal values » – also has a darker flip side with « the loss of jobs, the rise of populism and the identity crumble ». Hence, the need of « strong States doing their homework ». 

When asked why he was not talking about migration, Youssef Amrani responded that « migration is an issue, but there are other threats we should address, such as the deconstruction of the jihadist narrative, to propose an alternative narrative ». He reminded that Morocco has a history of « exporting migrants, then being a place of transit, and now a place of destination. We see it as an opportunity. We have to fight against illegal immigration and reinforce the legal migration. The Kingdom has passed laws to give our African brothers a chance to stay ». A policy of regularisation was launched in 2014 to give a legal status to some 25 000 African migrants in Morocco, and a second wave launched in 2016. Youssef Amrani also called for European Union to change its instruments towards migration and integration issues, in order to « focus them differently », he said. « We told you ten years ago Frontex would not work. Today, we have to talk about Libya… And we need solidarity. »
 

RELATED CONTENT

  • April 5, 2022
    يخصص مركز السياسات من أجل الجنوب الجديد حلقة برنامجه الأسبوعي "حديث الثلاثاء" لمستقبل العلاقات المغربية الاسبانية مع العربي الجعايدي، باحث بارز بمركز السياسات من أجل الجنوب الجديد عرفت العلاقة الثنائية المغربية الإسبانية تطوّرًا ملحوظًا مع إعلان الحكومة الإسبانية مساندتها لمبادرة الحكم ...
  • Authors
    March 22, 2022
    African states are in a vulnerable position. The invasion of Ukraine could affect food security and trigger a spike in oil prices, inflicting economic duress on African households. The Black Sea region is home to vast fertile farmlands, and war in the “breadbasket of the world” could threaten wheat and fertilizer supplies. Increased economic hardship and social discontent do not bode well for democratic governance in Africa, especially in light of the recent spate of military coups. ...
  • Authors
    March 16, 2022
    The 2021 German federal election brought about a historic reshuffle of the political parties’ hierarchy in Europe’s biggest economy. The Social Democratic Party are back in control of the Chancellery for the first time since 2005, as part of a three-party coalition at the federal level with the Greens and the Liberals, a first in Germany’s post-war history. Now, the federal government has turned its gaze towards its founding mission: more progress. The first 100 days of the three-pa ...
  • From

    15
    5:30 pm March 2022
    تشكّل الأزمة الروسية الاوكرانية تحديا جيوسياياً غير مسبوق في القارّة الأوروبيّة منذ الحرب العالمية الثانية. فقد تسبّبت في أكبر نزوح في أوروبا منذ 1945، حيث بلغ عدد النازحين الأوكرانيين الذين هربوا من بلادهم مليوني ونصف نسمة. موازاتاً مع ذلك، عادت الى الواجهة مواضيع كثيرة، نذكر منها امكانية الاصطدام المسلّح بين روسيا وحلف شمال الاطلسي، والحرب النووية. الّا أن انعكاسات الحرب لا تقتصر على اوروبا والغرب، بل تأثّر سلباً على الاقتصاد الدولي ودول الجنوب، وتهدّد الامن الغذائي في دول كثيرة، خاصة في المنطقة العربية وفي افريقيا ولفهم هذه الازمة بمختلف أبعادها ووضعها في سياقاتها النظرية والتاريخية والأمنية ومناقشة تأثيراتها الحاليّة أو المتوقَّعة في المدى القريب، ينظّم مركز السياسات من أجل الجنوب الجديد حلقة خاصّة من برنامج حديث الثلاثاء ستركّز على الأحداث الجارية في اوكرانيا وستطرح فرضي ...
  • Authors
    Dominique Lecompte
    Thierry Vircoulon
    March 14, 2022
    Although it has largely gone unnoticed in France, the agreement signed on December 3, 2020 between the European Union (EU) and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (ACP) is a major shift in the long-standing relations between the EU and countries in the Global South. The EU established a development assistance policy as early as the Treaty of Rome in 1957, signed the first cooperation agreement in 1963, and nowadays is often the largest donor to these countries, ...
  • March 11, 2022
    L'opération militaire lancée le 24 février 2022 par les forces armées russes à l'intérieur du territoire de l’Ukraine a pour objectif déclaré d'empêcher l’Organisation du Traité de l’Atlantique Nord (OTAN) de se rapprocher de l”étranger proche” russe et de changer le régime à Kiev. Cette guerre, déclenchée par un membre permanent du Conseil de sécurité, a été menée en violation des principes cardinaux de la Charte des Nations unies. Elle a mis le monde au bord d’ ...
  • March 10, 2022
    Africafé est une émission du Policy Center for the New South qui décrypte l’actualité des organisations africaines et de l’Afrique. A travers de courtes interviews, l’émission tente de proposer d’aborder de manière pédagogique les enjeux des organisations africaines et l’actualité du co...
  • Authors
    March 2, 2022
    The White House  classified the speech as “remarks by President Obama to the People of Africa”, their representatives gathered at Mandela Hall, Addis Ababa,  Ethiopia, July 28, 2015. It was the first address by a US-President to the African Union. He was standing before the audience as “a proud American” and “the son of an African”. His father, Barack Hussein Obama, who grew up near a small village in Nyanza Province, Kenya, won a scholarship to study economics and made history- th ...
  • Authors
    March 1, 2022
    Dag Hammarskjöld, ancien secrétaire général de l’Organisation des Nations unies (ONU) avait, mieux que quiconque, résumé le rôle et les limites de l’organisation onusienne en proclamant que « L'ONU n'a pas été créée pour emmener l'humanité au paradis, mais pour la sauver de l'enfer ». Cette vision minimaliste et, au demeurant, réaliste, de la capacité de l’ONU à réguler les rapports internationaux, cadre parfaitement avec la maturation inachevée du processus d’évolution du droit int ...
  • March 1, 2022
    يخصص مركز السياسات من أجل الجنوب الجديد حلقة برنامجه الأسبوعي "حديث الثلاثاء" لتقييم مخرجات القمة الاوروبية الافريقية ونموذج الشراكة الجديدة بين الطرفين، مع محمد لوليشكي، باحث بارز لدى مركز السياسات من أجل الجنوب الجديد. خلال القمة السادسة التي جمعت الاتحاديين في بروكسل وضع الاتحاد الأ...