The European border guard organization Frontex made mistakes. This is the conclusion of the European Parliament Committee after four months of investigation.
Frontex has long been heavily criticized for its possible involvement in pushbacks, sending migrants away before they reach the EU borders. There have been many stories about this lately. Many countries on Europe’s external borders are guilty of this.
Frontex, which has to guard Europe’s external borders, is the responsibility of the countries it patrols. According to the commission, it so happened that Greece sent ships from Frontex so that the Greek coast guard could send boats carrying migrants to Turkey.
“As a result, Frontex personnel deliberately risked violating human rights,” said MEP Tyneke Strike, who drafted the report. The politician at GroenLinks wants Frontex to stop getting fired so easily. She says that because of her negative attitude, the organization is jointly responsible. “Frontex was aware of a number of things, but it didn’t do much about it.”
Criticism of director Legere
The Committee also considered the internal organization of Frontex. It was found that the leadership had repeatedly ignored warnings about Frontex’s involvement in human rights abuses. Internal signals and references from human rights organizations have not been heard.
Director Fabrice Leggeri is accused of mismanagement and poor communication. “He doesn’t seem to want to take human rights seriously,” says Strick. GroenLinks wants Leggeri to resign, but Parliament is not about that. Only member states can expel the French.
The report will be presented to Parliament tomorrow morning. The Commission of Inquiry wants the situation in Frontex to improve rapidly.
