The Court of Justice of the European Union on Thursday declared unlawful France’s policy of refusing entry to citizens from states outside the 27 who are staying illegally, a decision that concerns an appeal filed by several associations.
“Any illegally staying third-country national should, as a rule, be subject to a return order” to his country, but “the person in question should be given a certain period of time to leave the country voluntarily,” the court said. .
“Forced deportation is only used as a last resort,” the judges said.
The rule applies even if controls are temporarily reintroduced under the Schengen Borders Code, the court said.
Last May, five non-governmental organizations (NGOs) – Amnesty International France, Anafe, La Cimade, Doctors of the World and Médecins Sans Frontières – accused France of violating the rights of migrants at the French-Spanish border.
According to Amnesty International France, France has been restoring internal border controls for several years – contrary to the principle of free movement within the Schengen area – to monitor the movements of migrants and deport them to neighboring countries, mainly to Spain and Italy.
A report prepared by the NGO showed that French-Spanish border controls were becoming stricter and that many migrants were falling victim to discrimination.
“At the French-Spanish border, these controls affect people of other races in a discriminatory manner and lead to the deportation of many people without respect for their fundamental rights, in violation of national, European and international law,” they said at the time. five NGOs in a joint statement.
“When a Member State [da UE] decides to temporarily reintroduce internal border controls, it may take a decision refusing entry, but only on the basis of the Schengen Borders Code,” the court said on Thursday.
Source: DN
