Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs 1

Given the rising number of those fleeing conflicts worldwide, what coherent direction should the EU’s refugee and asylum policy pursue to account for burden-sharing amongst Member States whilst upholding humanitarian principles?

Honorable delegates of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs 1,

Let me at first congratulate you on having the opportunity to represent your federal state in this January’s National MEP Session in Klosterneuburg.

Right at this moment, the refugee crisis is clearly one of the most pressing issues the EU has to deal with. Therefore, this topic has been chosen for a Committee issue at the National MEP Session. Here, you will have the opportunity to discuss, debate, cooperate, and create a resolution on how our community of states should deal with this problem.

Enclosed, you will find a few links that might prove helpful to you during preparation. I would like to emphasize the need of being well prepared, as it will greatly influence our work.  Without previously acquired knowledge of our issue, you will not be able to actively participate in the committee meetings. However, it is not necessary for you to learn any facts and figures by heart as, upon being asked to do so by a member of the chairing team, you may use your laptop for research during the committee meetings.

Your preparation does not need to be limited to the links provided. Be encouraged to conduct research independently and, most importantly, form your own opinion and ideas on the issue. While doing this, be sure to check the objectivity of your sources. Also, remember to bear in mind the viewpoint of your own county while collecting ideas.

MEP work is done at the assumption of an unlimited budget. Therefore, you do not need to worry about costs while collecting ideas.

We expect a one-page summary about the issue given above, which is to be sent to mep@emilnusser.com by 7^th January 2016. 

An introduction video: http://www.mepeurope.eu/model-european-parliament-norwich-2013/

As your Committee President, together with my Co CP and CP Sec I will be chairing our discussions and direct you towards drafting a resolution. We will show you how it is done but cannot monitor your content input. Therefore it is necessary for all of you to do some preparation using the links and tips provided below.  As you will all maybe be interested in representing Austria in the upcoming MEP sessions in Budapest, Sofia and Copenhagen we will be evaluating and grading your performance in the committee as well as in the General Assembly.

In order to make things easier for you, we have attached a couple of links which can help you with your research. You should inform yourself about current statistics, problems, causes and effects of youth unemployment and an aging society.

Three things to keep in mind:

• The MEP works under the assumption of an unlimited budget, thus financial issues should not be taken into consideration.
• The MEP attempts to remain politically independent as an institution. Hence, political campaigns should not be part of your preparation.
• Bear in mind that, if you want to make arguments or claims, you need proof and evidence. While researching you should not forget that some sources are more credible than others.

Lastly, we are all very much looking forward to meeting and working with you in January!

Kind regards and best wishes,

Your chairing team

Laetitia Reinthaller (CP), Emma Heiling (Co CP), Emil Nusser (CP Sec)

Livian Enachescu (CIE), Larissa Baku (SMO)

Links

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvOnXh3NN9w
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34131911
http://www.unicef.org/emergencies/index_85510.html
https://www.hrw.org/report/2015/11/16/europes-refugee-crisis/agenda-action
https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22730383-800-why-welcoming-more-refugees-makes-economic-sense-for-europe/
http://ec.europa.eu/echo/refugee-crisis_en
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2013:180:0031:0059:EN:PDF
http://ceciliawikstrom.eu/en/politics/migration-and-asylum/the-dublin-iii-regulation/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umqvYhb3wf4
2015 UNHCR subregional operations profile - Northern, Western, Central and Southern Europe
European Union predicts 3 million more migrants by end of next year (Washington Post, 5/11/2015)
Common asylum system at a turning point: Refugees caught in Europe’s solidarity crisis