The Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party (LSAP) has praised the Christian Social People's Party (CSV) - Democratic Party (DP) government for its response to the events in Ceuta, stating it had not given in to populism and had stood behind the Spanish government, which acted correctly in the crisis, LSAP MP Yves Cruchten said in an RTL interview. Alternative Democratic Reform Party (ADR) MP Tom Weidig, by contrast, believes Luxembourg should have signed the letter from 22 EU states, since in his view Spain "should have done more."
Cruchten starts out describing what happened in Ceuta as "a massive tragedy". It should not be forgotten, he said, that at least 75 people lost their lives. With 10,000 deaths recorded in the Mediterranean this year, that sea, in his words, is turning into a mass grave. Weidig, for his part, opened by pointing out that of the 70,000 people who had reached Ceuta, several thousand were still there.
The ADR MP also does not share the view held by the CSV, DP and LSAP that Spain has managed the crisis well. Spain, he said, had failed to protect an external border of the European Union. Although the Spanish authorities had been in possession of information in advance, 70,000 people had, in his phrasing, been "let through". He did not respond to the point that the swimmers had bypassed the protective walls. Asked about the fact that Ceuta lies on the African continent and outside the Schengen area, he replied that "it is part of Europe, it is part of the external borders". According to his information, asylum could be applied for there, enabling applicants to have other rights.
The ADR MP also criticised the fact that the socialist government in Spain regularised 1.2 million migrants between January and July. That, in his view, rewards illegal migration and encourages people to enter the country illegally.
LSAP's Cruchten countered that the vast majority of those regularised are from Latin America and have been active on the labour market for some time. In his view, one cannot close one's eyes to the fact that society is ageing, that workers are needed, and that these people need legal routes to prevent them from taking dangerous journeys across the Mediterranean in an attempt to reach the European Union.
The ADR too is in favour of legal migration, but through work visas. That model, Weidig argued, had worked very well with Italians and Portuguese in the past, and with people from North Africa. In his words, however, the people who had just stormed Ceuta belonged to a different category. Those who go to university, have specialist skills or have worked for international companies already come to Luxembourg as "expats", he said.
According to the ADR MP, the sharp fall in irregular migration into the EU can be traced back to the deterrence tactics of individual member states. The LSAP, which he considers lacking in efforts to crack down on people smugglers, is not opposed to stronger protection of the EU's external borders either, although LSAP MP Cruchten still voiced criticism of the European border agency Frontex: "We should not forget that the dignity of people, including those fleeing, must always be respected."
On another point, while Cruchten agrees with Home Affairs Minister Léon Gloden that more should be done to counter misinformation, Weidig warned that such moves could end up being turned against dissenting opinions. The ADR MP defended social media as a source of information, adding that he himself greatly relies on social media to stay informed.
