EU migration deal with Tunisia under fire over human rights concerns

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The European Union’s ethics watchdog has criticized the lack of transparency surrounding the bloc’s migration deal with Tunisia.

The 2023 agreement provided Tunisia with €105 million to combat human smuggling and €150 million in budgetary support. However, reports have emerged of migrants being beaten, raped, and mistreated by Tunisian authorities.

EU’s ombudsman, Emily O’Reilly, expressed concern over the lack of publicly available information on the deal.

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The lack of transparency is particularly worrying given the serious human rights abuses documented in Tunisia. Human rights groups have reported widespread mistreatment of migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.

Reports of abuse include beatings, excessive force, torture, arbitrary arrests, and collective expulsions. These allegations have sparked concerns that the EU’s funding may be inadvertently supporting human rights violations. The EU’s funding rules state that all money should be spent in a way that respects fundamental rights.

The controversy surrounding the Tunisia deal comes as irregular migration has become a pressing issue on the EU agenda.

Some member states are seeking to expand cooperation with non-EU countries to establish deportation and asylum processing centers outside the bloc. However, human rights groups are urging caution, emphasizing the need for transparency and robust human rights safeguards in any migration cooperation agreements.

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