The Status of Human Rights Protection in Europe: It’s complicated

The UK has voted to leave the European Union and Prime Minister Theresa May has expressed her aversion to the European Convention on Human Rights, but confusion abounds as to what the current architecture of Europe is, let alone what it might look like in the future. This article seeks to provide a comprehensive overview of the development of supranational human rights protections in Europe and the status of the current quest for greater integration. In particular, the stalled movement towards the accession of the EU to the ECHR is examined and likened to a riddle: to avoid subjecting Member States to conflicting obligations, the ECHR must be granted ultimate authority in the field of human rights, but without compromising the autonomy of EU law. The article concludes with a conversation with Dr Sonia Morano-Foadi, whose extensive research into the European human rights institutions enables her to shed some light on the likelihood of the accession riddle ever being solved and to provide a prognosis for European rights protections in the future

Out of sight, out of mind. Reassessing positive obligations towards victims of human trafficking

States bordering the Mediterranean Sea and the Channel are leaving many migrants to their fate. By doing so, they are failing in their legal obligations to identify and protect actual and potential victims of human trafficking. This article challenges the legal position of these states, providing a creative construction of EU and Council of Europe law on human trafficking and European human rights legislation. The work first focuses on how the obligations towards asylum seekers, migrants distressed at sea and victims of trafficking interrelate and overlap; and reflects on the implications of the different statuses. It then considers whether the multiple International Maritime Law Treaties that bind State signatories in respect of rescue-at-sea missions provide protection for actual and potential victims of human trafficking. It undertakes an analysis of European anti-trafficking legal regimes, which include the Council of Europe Convention against Human Trafficking (CETS 197), Article 4 of European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and Directive 2011/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on Preventing and Combating Trafficking in Human Beings and Protecting its Victims (hereafter ‘EU Human Trafficking Directive’). Finally, the article focuses on the UK as a case-study. The piece argues that the international law of the sea, whilst aiming at saving lives of people stranded in the high sea, does not guarantee the identification and protection of human trafficking victims amongst those being saved. The article claims that State’s responsibility for the identification and protection of victims extends beyond the geographical remit of its territorial jurisdictio

Agencification, Fundamental Rights and the non-Delegation Doctrine: Frontex's Mandate on Trafficking in Human Beings (THB)

This article presents findings from an ongoing study examining Frontex's role in safeguarding human rights for undocumented migrants affected by return policies, as well as for actual and potential victims of trafficking in human beings (THB) who face precarious situations at the intersection of undocumented migration and trafficking dynamics. The Lisbon Treaty established the Area of Freedom, Security, and Justice (AFSJ), which has since seen a significantly expanded role for AFSJ decentralised agencies. Despite Member States’ (MSs) reluctance to transfer further powers to EU institutions, these agencies have been tasked with supporting national authorities to close implementation gaps in EU border management and asylum policies. Frontex now conducts substantial operational activities, deploys support teams within MSs' territories, and plays an oversight role. The Court of Justice of the European Union’s (CJEU) non-delegation doctrine serves as a litmus test to legitimise Frontex’s expanded competencies, ensuring that the Agency’s extended powers align with constitutional safeguards. In critically examining Frontex’s adherence to and enforcement of fundamental rights, particularly in the identification and protection of THB’s victims, we suggest that a human rights-led approach to THB not only fulfils legal obligations but also enhances law enforcement outcomes. Effective identification of THB’s survivals is essential to ensure individuals receive necessary protections, facilitating their recovery, integration, and safe voluntary return to their home countries with reduced risk of re-victimisation. Through this analysis, we contribute to the ongoing debate on the Agency's legitimacy, operational accountability, and role within the broader EU constitutional framework

Eurocity London: a qualitative comparison of graduate migration from Germany, Italy and Latvia

This paper compares the motivations and characteristics of the recent migration to London of young-adult graduates from Germany, Italy and Latvia. Conceptually the paper links three domains: the theory of core–periphery structures within Europe; the notion of London as both a global city and a ‘Eurocity’; and the trope of ‘crisis’. The dataset analysed consists of 95 in-depth biographical interviews and the paper’s main objective is to tease out the narrative similarities and differences between the three groups interviewed. Each of the three nationalities represents a different geo-economic positioning within Europe. German graduates move from one economically prosperous country to another; they traverse shallow economic and cultural boundaries. Italian graduates migrate from a relatively peripheral Southern European country where, especially in Southern Italy, employment and career prospects have long been difficult, and have become more so in the wake of the financial crisis. They find employment opportunities in London which are unavailable to them in Italy. Latvian graduates are from a different European periphery, the Eastern one, post-socialist and post-Soviet. Like the Italians, their moves are economically driven whereas, for the Germans, migration is more related to lifestyle and life-stage. For all three groups, the chance to live in a large, multicultural, cosmopolitan city is a great attraction. And for all groups, thoughts about the future are marked by uncertainty and ambiguity

Internationalisation and migrant academics: the hidden narratives of mobility

Internationalisation is a dominant policy discourse in higher education today. It is invariably presented as an ideologically neutral, coherent, disembodied, knowledgedriven policy intervention - an unconditional good. Yet it is a complex assemblage of values linked not only to economic growth and prosperity, but also to global citizenship, transnational identity capital, social cohesion, intercultural competencies and soft power (Clifford and Montgomery 2014; De Wit et al. 2015; Kim 2017; Lomer 2016; Stier 2004). Mobility is the sine qua non of the global academy (Sheller 2014). International movements, flows and networks are perceived as valuable transnational and transferable identity capital and as counterpoints to intellectual parochialism. Fluidity metaphors abound as an antidote to stasis e.g. flows, flux and circulations (Urry 2007). For some, internationalisation is conceptually linked to the political economy of neoliberalism and the spatial extension of the market, risking commodification and commercialisation (Matus and Talburt 2009). Others raise questions about what/whose knowledge is circulating and whether internationalisation is a form of re-colonisation and convergence that seeks to homogenise higher education systems (Stromquist 2007). Internationalisation policies and practices, it seems, are complex entanglements of economic, political, social and affective domains. They are mechanisms for driving the global knowledge 2 economy and the fulfilment of personal aspirations (Hoffman 2009). Academic geographical mobility is often conflated with social mobility and career advancement (Leung 2017). However, Robertson (2010: 646) suggested that ‘the romance of movement and mobility ought to be the first clue that this is something we ought to be particularly curious about.

dispersal and reception in northern italy comparing systems along the brenner route

In the last decades, policy restrictions and practices at national and local levels have curtailed the rights of seekers and holders of international protection, thus impacting on their lives and on the territories they transit through. This is particularly evident in border contexts. Various border areas have gradually transformed into internal hotspots, with increasing border enforcement. This includes Brenner, situated at the border between Italy and Austria. In the wider Brenner route area, particularly in the nearby Italian cities of Verona, Trento and Bolzano, "spaces of transit" have emerged and both public and humanitarian actors have been "forced" to deal with it. This chapter draws upon the work of the multilevel governance of migration (Caponio and Borkert 2010), and on the proliferation of borders (Mezzadra and Neilson 2016), to present a comparative analysis of the reception scenario in these three cities. By building on qualitative data analysis (legal analysis of policy documents, content analysis of interviews and newspaper articles), it discusses to what extent and how the respective local systems of reception have managed to cater for migrants that transit through them. Similarities and differences are pointed out, as well as the relevance of factors such as geographical proximity in influencing the respective approaches

Soft law implementation in the EU multilevel system: legitimacy and governance efficiency revisited

Soft law instruments such as recommendations, guidelines or communications do not entail jurisdictional control, but produce important legal and practical effects. The literature on soft law frequently praises these instruments for enhancing governance efficiency through flexible problem solving. On the other hand critiques stress a lack of legitimacy as soft law is typically adopted outside the legislative arena. Yet, relatively little is known about concrete effects it takes at the national level. On the basis of case study evidence from Germany, this chapter shows that despite being non-binding, EU soft law is frequently implemented. Comparing implementation of nine soft law instruments in financial market regulation, social and environmental policy the chapter highlights that actors implement soft EU instruments either in the form of soft or hard law. Efficiency gains are frequently a main driver of implementation, while legitimacy and accountability become a concern where responsibilities are blurred during implementation