[ALBSA-Info] Greece – Immigrant bill 'a backward step'

[Gazhebo at aol.com]

Greece – Immigrant bill 'a backward step'
Kathimerini

By Miron Varouhakis

At a time when European countries are moving to grant immigrants longer-term 
residence and work permits, give permanent residence in less time and promote 
innovative foreign employment initiatives, Greece is considering passing an 
immigration bill which is geared in reverse of those policies.

This is the conclusion of a report by the Mediterranean Migration Observatory 
(MMO) at Panteios University, expected to be officially released next week, 
at the same time that Parliament will debate the bill.

"Despite the substantial defects and problems associated with the 1991 Law, 
the draft immigration law represents a significant backward step in the 
management of immigration into Greece," said Martin Baldwin-Edwards, 
co-director of MMO and author of the report."The interests underlying the 
construction of the bill appear to be those of various ministries and 
bureaucrats, rather than the interests and needs of Greece. The fundamental 
philosophy behind it is static and control-oriented; it is out of step with 
the rest of Europe."

The draft bill on immigration which has been designed to curb the flow of 
illegal immigrants coming into the country while offering legal status to 
those already on Greek soil, has attracted strong criticism by human rights 
groups. On February 5 Human Rights Watch released an eight-page report from 
New York which had earlier been sent to Greek parliamentarians, in which it 
criticized the draft bill, calling it "deeply flawed" and a violation of 
human rights.

According to Baldwin-Edwards, the draft bill has fallen short of addressing 
key issues, which include: simplifying bureaucratic procedures, for both 
immigrants and Greek employers; comprehending employer's needs, which are 
difficult to predict; providing legal security for both employers and 
immigrants; reconciling migrants' rights, as a quid pro quo for legal status; 
enforcing laws relating to illegal immigration and employment, but focusing 
on those who exploit rather than those who are being exploited.

Moreover, the draft is not only in contradiction with policies implemented by 
the rest of the European Union, but also with international standards and 
conventions of which Greece is a signatory.

Specifically, on children's education and healthcare there has been a failure 
to make adequate provision for all children's healthcare and education, 
including the children of undocumented immigrants, in contradiction with the 
Convention of the Rights of the Child signed on May 11, 1993. In addition, 
the refusal to extend resident permits for reasons of ill health or 
unemployment is probably in breach of customary international law, 
specifically Article 8 of ILO Convention 97. Violations are also noted in 
provisions for family reunification - which, according to the European 
Convention on the Legal Status of Migrant Workers, requires a maximum waiting 
period of 12 months and not two years as the bill states - and then there are 
the charges for state documents and processing, a practice outlawed in both 
the European Convention on Establishment and the European Convention on the 
Legal Status of Migrant Workers.

Trends, problems
"The implementation of the 1991 law resulted in a decline in the number of 
residence permits granted, and also in the total number valid over the period 
1989-96," the report asserts. "The number of work permits issued annually 
over that period fluctuated at around 30,000 total, of which 7-12,000 were 
non-EU workers. This was at a time when the illegal population was estimated 
at around 400-500,000, notwithstanding over 1,000,000 expulsions in the 
period 1991-95."

The tabled draft bill is not expected to alleviate the problem. The report 
underlines that the draft bill will likely perpetuate the problem of illegal 
immigration, while levying excessive fees and strenuous bureaucratic 
processes for immigrants seekingresidence and work permits.
"The proposed law will likely exacerbate the problem of illegal immigration 
through: a) maintenance of the current financial burdens on potential 
employers; b) increased bureaucratic burdens on both employers and foreign 
workers; c) new burdens of proof (including housing) for migrants to acquire 
a residence permit; d) vastly higher costs of permits; e) for legalized 
immigrants (Green Card holders), the proposal of 6-month permits without the 
automatic right to work," the report notes.

Under the draft bill resident permits will not come cheap. There will be a 
50,000 drachma ($140) fee for 12-month residence permits; the cost will rise 
to 150,000 drachmas ($415) for a permit valid for six years, and to 300,000 
drachmas ($830) for residence permits exceeding six years. Furthermore, 
foreign nationals residing in Greece and who apply for Greek nationality will 
have to pay a fee of 500,000 drachmas ($1,375).

"Furthermore, even those immigrants who acquire legal status will inevitably 
tend to drop into clandestinity, as the frequent renewal of such permits is 
linked to continuity of employment and social security contributions - amply 
demonstrated elsewhere," the report stresses.

Recommendations
The report by the Mediterranean Migration Observatory of Panteios University 
also highlights eight recommendations for modifications to the draft bill.

1. Employment recruitment outside Greece be abandoned, with the possible 
exception of seasonal agricultural workers. It should be replaced by an 
annual quota recruitment by employers from illegal residents of Greece, and 
sponsored immigration for job-seekers.

2. The work and residence permit system be completely overhauled. Work and 
residence permits should be combined with ONE application, one process and 
one official document, reducing administrative costs and delays.

3. Residence and work permits be rescheduled and simplified in a clear 
hierarchical pattern, with transition from one status to another as a norm. 
Initially, a one-year employer-specific permit, renewable once; after two 
years, a three-year sectoral-specific permit; after five years, an 
unrestricted five-year permit; and after 10 years, an unrestricted permit, 
both in duration and labor market access.

4. The planned legalization program be modified to give two different 
statuses: a one-year permit with the automatic right to work, for those with 
minimal employment and social security records; a three-year permit for those 
who satisfy more stringent criteria.

5. Greece should show its respect for the family, as required by the Greek 
Constitution, and facilitate family reunion with less strict but more precise 
criteria, and extend this possibility to other close relatives on 
compassionate or dependency grounds. Further, family members should be given 
immediate access to the labor market.

6. Greece should accept its obligations under international law, as well as 
morally, and provide explicit acceptance of all children resident in Greece - 
including the undocumented - by the education system and public healthcare 
system.

7. The state charges for bureaucratic papers be reduced to a reasonable 
level, as required by international law; that the costs of longer-term 
permits should be little more than the cost of short-term permits, not pro 
rata, as in the draft law.

8. Victims of trafficking and prostitution be granted protection and immunity 
from deportation, with the provision that they testify, if needed, against 
criminal groups.