The European Union is not facing an immigration crisis, despite the "toxic narrative" and political exploitation, UN experts on immigration said today.
Immigration disputes have divided the European Union, as there are differing views between and within governments as to who should take responsibility for migrants crossing the Mediterranean. The issue threatened to oust German Chancellor Angela Merkel and was a major factor in Britain's exit from the EU.
"We consider this to be a political crisis, not an immigration crisis. "The numbers are not that big," said Leonard Doyle, a spokesman for the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
"We want the toxic narrative against immigrants, to put it bluntly, to limit it and for people to see immigration as it is. It is a necessary part of the modern world, provided it is managed. "The point is, people 's perception is that they're out of control," he said.
The numbers of people at risk of sea voyage peaked in 2015, but fall sharply each year. In the first half of 2018, 46.449 migrants and refugees entered Europe by sea, according to the IOM.
"This is not a crisis," said Charlie Yaxley, a spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. "But what continues to happen is that a small number of countries are carrying a disproportionate burden of welcoming newcomers."
"What is needed is for European states to work with countries in the Mediterranean region as well as to establish a fair distribution of refugees and asylum seekers so that the burden is shared."
However, "although the number of people crossing the Mediterranean has decreased (…) the percentage of those who die while crossing it has increased significantly," said Charlie Yaxley.
So far, in 2018 more than 1.400 people have lost their lives attempting the trip, many hundreds of them following the path of the central Mediterranean leading to Italy and Malta, according to IOM data.
During the first six months of 2018, one in 19 people attempting to cross the Mediterranean died there, compared to 1 in 38 in the same period of 2017.
June was even more deadly, according to Jaxley, as one in seven people died while trying to cross the central Mediterranean.