For years Europe has been on the brink of a migrant crisis, and surges in refugees entering the eurozone, a collection of the European Union (EU) states that use the euro, is putting a lot of pressure on political leaders.
Under the current legislation, known as the Dublin Regulation, refugees are to be screened by the country through which they are entering. With about 3,000 people a day seeking asylum on the shores of Greece and Italy, it places the burden unfairly on these two governments.
With the increasing numbers of refugees from Syria due to the on-going civil war, many government officials have turned a blind eye to these procedures.
Now temporary border-controls are being installed around the eurozone to try to control the flow of migrants. This leaves political leaders to choose between the European values of free and open movement, and the realities of managing thousands of displaced persons.
At a time when 18 million people in the EU are still unemployed, with youth unemployment reaching 21.9%, the influx of migrants has caused high tension.
Some have protested against the arrival of new migrants, and more than 200 acts of violence against migrants have been reported in the recent months.
The sheer scale of the crisis has left leaders grappling for answers quickly.
In the Czech Republic, police had to resort to writing numbers on the arms of migrants as they flooded into its main railway station.This caused outrage as many thought it was eerily similar to the Holocaust, when Jewish prisoners were tattooed with identification numbers at concentration camps.
In Budapest, Hungary the railroad station been shut down completely to prevent any more migrants from entering the city. The city’s mayor, Istvan Tarlos, called the situation an “uncontrolled flood”.
An emergency meeting has been scheduled for Sept. 14 for interior ministers of the European Union. So far the European commissioner has called for an immediate redistribution of refugee among all member states. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi believes a single European asylum policy should be created to deal with this problem.
The crisis has gained international attention due to the rise in the number of deaths of migrants making the dangerous journey to Europe, especially children, including one three-year old Syrian boy whose body washed up on the shore of Turkey after he drowned when a boat full of migrants sank.
The migrant crisis in Europe continues to be a heavy issue for politicians and will be a major debate topic in the weeks to come.
The BBC contributed to this report
Photo Credit: BBC News
