What changed

SUGGESTIONS

The Committee on Foreign Affairs calls on the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, as the committee responsible, to incorporate the following suggestions into its motion for a resolution:

1. AcknowledgesSupports the ongoing negotiations between the EU and Senegal on the establishment of a status agreement that provides for theFrontex deployment of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) in Senegal; notes that the Senegalese Government is reluctant to sign the status agreement; noteshowever that a status agreement can only be established under the condition that it strictly adheres, including during operations, to the protection of human rights and personal data, the principle of non-refoulement, the prohibition of arbitrary detention and the prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, as enshrined in Article 73(2) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1896; insists on the inclusion of a clear human rights clauseenshrines and guarantees of accountability in Senegaladheres andto reportingstrict offundamental human rights violations by Frontex in relation to all its activities concerning migration and asylum in Senegal;guarantees;

2. Calls foron the inclusion of an adequate human rights monitoring mechanismCommission forand Frontexthe activitiesFundamental inRights allOfficer Frontexto missionsconduct throughan theindependent deploymentassessment of Frontex’sthe Fundamentalhuman Rightsrights Monitorssituation in thirdSenegal countriesas andregards clearthe commitmentstreatment toof transparencymigrants and information sharing regarding Frontex activities;refugees;

3. Calls on the Commission to conduct a thorough and independent assessment of the human rights situation in Senegal as regards the treatment of migrants and refugees and the relevant areas covered by the status agreement before concluding the negotiations with Senegal, in order to be able to fully consider the impact of potential cooperation and to negotiate the necessary safeguards;

3. Maintains that the launch of Frontex operational activities under a status agreement should promote fundamental human rights and EU values;

4. Underlines that the launch of Frontex operational activities under a status agreement should fully respect, promote and strengthen human rights and EU values including with regard to the protection of personal data, the principle of non-refoulement, the prohibition of arbitrary detention and the prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; considers that any status agreement providing for Frontex operations in third countries should integrate this aspect;

4. Considers that Frontex staff who are granted immunity for their activities in Senegal must continue to be held accountable under EU or Member State law;

5. Considers it necessary that Frontex staff who are granted immunity for their activities in Senegal must continue to be held accountable under EU or Member State law; calls on the Executive Director to adopt guidelines on the mandatory waiving of immunity for deployed staff, specifying how requests from the third country authorities will be dealt with, as well as enshrining a strong role for the Fundamental Rights Officer; considers that Frontex staff should not only avoid complicity in human rights violations by Senegalese security forces, but should actively denounce such actions; calls for a clear, swift and efficient mechanism to ensure accountability of Frontex staff in their home country;

5. Calls for clear guidelines and training to be provided to Frontex staff deployed in Senegal;

6. Calls for clear guidelines, prepared in consultation with experts and civil society organisations, and training to be provided to Frontex staff deployed in Senegal and to Senegalese border guards on the regional and Senegalese human rights situation and the legal framework in which they operate, which includes international human rights and humanitarian law and standards;

6. Calls for consistent, regular and transparent reporting on Frontex activities concerning migration and asylum in Senegal;

7. Calls forNotes the EU toefforts assistmade theby Senegalese authorities within strengtheningreceiving theirand capacityprocessing migrants and refugees in the region; calls for the EU to traincontinue andto educatesupport SenegaleseSenegal civilin servantsproviding taskedadequate withprotection processingfor asylummigrants applicationsand refugees in transit and handlingto asylumassist seekers’in complaints;capacity building;

8. Calls for consistent, regular and transparent reporting on Frontex activities inthe Senegalestablishment underof anya potentialrobust statuscomplaint agreement,mechanism withthat ais focuspublicly onaccessible humanand rightsfor compliancean andincident onreporting themechanism humanfor rightsFrontex context;activities;

9. Considers that national and human rights institutions must have access to all the information deemed necessary for them to scrutinise the impact of this status agreement on migration management in Senegal and to scrutinise the conduct of Senegalese security forces in conducting migration management, as well as the human rights risks and consequences;

9. Calls for the EU and Senegalese authorities to enable inclusive dialogue in the preparation of the status agreement;

10. Notes the efforts made by the Senegalese authorities in receiving and processing migrants and refugees in the region; highlights and condemns the repeated occurrences of pushbacks of migrants and refugees from the Mauritanian and Malian borders to Senegal; reiterates and underlines that Frontex should not take part in any form of pushbacks; calls for the EU to continue to support Senegal in providing adequate protection for migrants and refugees in transit and to assist with capacity building and the strengthening of the asylum procedure; calls for the establishment of a mechanism to ensure effective remedy for people impacted by Frontex actions, in the event that a status agreement is concluded;

10. Considers that the EU and Frontex should suspend their activities on migration and asylum carried out in cooperation with Senegalese authorities in the event of persistent human rights violations;

11. Calls for the establishment of a robust and efficient complaint mechanism that is independent and easily accessible to the public, and for an incident reporting mechanism for Frontex activities; considers that this incident reporting mechanism should guarantee the anonymity and confidentiality of individuals reporting on Frontex activities that infringe international humanitarian law or violate human rights;

11. Calls on the Commission to ensure that the conclusion of this status agreement with Senegal and the Frontex’s activities in migration management in Senegal do not impede the right to freedom of movement of individuals as guaranteed under the Economic Community of West African States Treaty, which provides for the long-term establishment of a free movement zone for goods, capital and people.

12. Calls for the EU and Senegalese authorities to enable inclusive, constructive and transparent dialogue in the preparation of the status agreement; stresses, in this context, the importance for the EU to engage in regular dialogue with local human rights organisations and other non-governmental organisations regarding the human rights situation in the country;

13. Is of the opinion that any deployment of Frontex personnel to Senegal and the conducting of operational activities with local and regional security forces can only take place where adequate human rights protection can be guaranteed for migrants and asylum seekers throughout the entire process of their application or return;

14. Considers that the EU and Frontex should suspend their activities on migration and asylum carried out in cooperation with the Senegalese authorities under the status agreement in the event of persistent and serious human rights violations, as set out under the standards of the International Criminal Court;

15. Underlines that the provision of development aid by the EU and its Member States is to be carried out in full transparency and under parliamentary scrutiny;

16. Calls on the Commission to support local civil society organisations that protect and promote the rights of migrants, as well as those monitoring the cooperation of the Senegalese authorities with Frontex;

17. Calls on the Commission to ensure that the conclusion of this status agreement with Senegal and Frontex’s activities in Senegal do not impede the right to freedom of movement of individuals as guaranteed under the Economic Community of West African States Treaty, which provides for the long-term establishment of a free movement zone for goods, capital and people;

18. Calls for the EU and its Member States to ensure safe and legal pathways for migrants and refugees living or in transit in Senegal and seeking a better life in the EU.

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