The
International Organization for Migration (IOM) project called “Support to Free
Movement of Persons and Migration in West Africa (FMM) is funded by the
European Union (EU).
According to
the IOM news release, the meeting focused on “high mobility from and within
West Africa, where intra-regional and irregular migration feature prominently
in the political agenda of most West African governments.” South-South migration and irregular migration
flows to Europe are recognized as a twofold challenge in Africa and the Middle
East.
Because
ECOWAS believes that intra-regional migration is essential in the African
region’s economic growth and stability, the need for the “rapid development of
a national biometric identity card” has been recognized. Such a biometric ID
card would replace the travel certificate used in the ECOWAS member states.
Of the
million migrants that crossed the Mediterranean into Europe in 2015, many of whom
were from West Africa, approximately 3,700 died en route. To protect migrants
and combat human smuggling, the ECOWAS Free Movement Directorate is going to
establish a Task Force on “irregular migration.”
According
to IOM, Irregular migration is the “Movement
that takes place outside the regulatory norms of the sending, transit and
receiving countries. There is no clear or universally accepted definition of
irregular migration. From the perspective of destination countries it is entry,
stay or work in a country without the necessary authorization or documents
required under immigration regulations. From the perspective of the sending
country, the irregularity is for example seen in cases in which a person
crosses an international boundary without a valid passport or travel document
or does not fulfil the administrative requirements for leaving the country.
There is, however, a tendency to restrict the use of the term "illegal
migration" to cases of smuggling of migrants and trafficking in persons.” https://www.iom.int/key-migration-terms
In layman’s
terms and law-abiding citizens’ logical understanding, citizens who respect
borders and sovereignty, “irregular migration” is illegal immigration dressed up
in United Nation’s progressive euphemism and bureaucratic-speak.
The Task
Force will “combat irregular migration, fight trafficking and smuggling, and
protect vulnerable migrants in the region.” People who abhor 21st
century slavery still practiced by a certain religion would like to know if the
Task Force considers fighting the human slave trade and sex trade that ISIS is
involved in.
The
participants in the meeting in Niger are ECOWAS member states heads of
immigration, ECOWAS Commission, Spanish and French government representatives,
FMM staff, IOM staff, and the European Union Delegation in Niger.
A two-day
visit to Agadez is also planned. Agadez is a “primary transit point for
irregular migrants crossing from West Africa to Europe.” This begs the
question, if all these organizations and the authorities know exactly where the
primary transit point for illegal immigration and human smuggling is, why don’t
they take measures to stop it?
The reason
is probably the fact that the FMM West Africa project, an EU-funded effort
implemented by the Consortium of Partners, “seeks to maximize the development
potential of free movement of persons and migration in West Africa.” http://www.iom.int/
In layman’s
terms, the ultimate goal is to erase borders and establish global citizens. To
facilitate the free movement of persons across national boundaries, a U.N.-deemed
“right,” a biometric ID card will speed up the process of controlling massive
movements of people.
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