Commenting on the memorandum of understanding between the European Union (EU) and Tunisia, the Council of Europe's (Strasbourg-based organization of 47 countries) Human Rights Commissioner called on the Council's member states to ensure that any agreement on migration includes human rights guarantees so as not to violate the rights of migrants and refugees.
His comment follows on from the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the EU with Tunisia, adding that recent violations against immigrants and asylum seekers in Tunisia make respect for such guarantees an urgent matter.
The Human Rights Commissioner also called on EU countries to clearly indicate the impact of each agreement on the human rights situation, as "in the absence of clear and tangible guarantees in the framework of cooperation on migration, the tendency of European countries to sacrifice human rights in order to export their responsibilities is worsening".
