Online seminar “The ‘Instrumentalization’ of Migration and Its Impact on Asylum Protection in the European Union: A Normative Conflict Perspective.”

We invite you to an online seminar, organized by the Center for European Studies at the Australian National University (ANU), titled “The Instrumentalization of Migration and Its Impact on Asylum Protection in the European Union: A Normative Conflict Perspective.” Prof. Dorota Heidrich is currently in Canberra as a visiting professor. The webinar is scheduled to begin at 6:00 a.m.  (CEST)  on June 18.

The webinar will focus on analyzing the phenomenon of the “instrumentalization” of migration, that is, the use of migration flows by states to achieve political and strategic goals. The starting point will be the summer of 2021, when the European Union began to more intensely observe cases of migrants being deliberately directed toward EU borders, including by Turkey, Morocco, Belarus, and Russia.

The seminar will discuss how the European Union and its member states responded to these actions through changes to asylum law, both at the EU and national levels. Particular attention will be paid to how these reforms have affected fundamental standards of refugee protection, including the principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits the return of individuals to countries where they face persecution or serious danger.

Those interested in participating can join online via the Microsoft Teams platform after registering by June 17 at the following email address: europe@anu.edu.au