Red Cross slams Europe’s refugee double standards

UNITED NATIONS — The ready acceptance of Ukrainians fleeing conflict has put a spotlight on Europe’s “double standards” for migrants, standing against its unwelcoming attitude toward people uprooted by violence in Africa, the Middle East and elsewhere, the head of the world’s largest humanitarian network said on May 16.

Francesco Rocca, president of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said he does not think “there is any difference” between someone fleeing eastern Ukraine’s Donbass region and someone escaping the Boko Haram group in Nigeria.

“Those who are fleeing violence, those who are seeking protection, should be treated equally,” said Rocca, whose organization operates in more than 192 countries, with almost 15 million volunteers.

Speaking at a news conference, he said there was “a moral imperative” to help people escape violence and upheaval, and that “the political, public and humanitarian response to the Ukraine crisis has shown what is possible when humanity and dignity come first, when there is global solidarity”.

“We hoped that the Ukrainian crisis would have been a turning point in the European migration policies,” Rocca said. “But unfortunately, this was not the case.”

He said the 27-member European Union still has different approaches to migration at its eastern border from Ukraine and its southern border on the Mediterranean Sea.

Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine has prompted one of the worst humanitarian crises in Europe since World War II. Since the operation started on Feb 24, more than 6 million people have fled Ukraine.