The European General Court recently dismissed a claim made by a group of Syrian refugees against Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency. The claimants sought to hold Frontex accountable for what they alleged to be the forcible transfer of the refugees from Greece to Turkey, even as they were in the process of applying for asylum.
The refugees argued that through its participation in the joint return operation with Greece, Frontex had contravened its obligations towards the protection of fundamental rights. To substantiate their argument, the claimants pointed to alleged infractions of principles such as non-refoulement, the right to asylum, the prohibition of collective expulsion, child rights, prohibition of degrading treatment, the right to good administration, and effective remedial avenues. It was their contention that in the absence of Frontex’s actions, the refugees would not have been returned to Turkey, thereby enabling them to obtain international protection.
However, in response to these allegations, the Court maintained that, “since Frontex does not have the power to assess the merits of return decisions or applications for international protection, that EU agency cannot be held liable for any damage related to the return of those refugees to Turkey.”
It should be noted that Frontex has increasingly come under scrutiny for its participation in human rights abuses concerning migrants, and for the lack of transparency in its operations.
In its ruling, the Court was explicit in underlining that, “As regards return operations, Frontex’s task is only to provide technical and operational support to the Member States. However, it is the Member States alone that are competent to assess the merits of return decisions and to examine applications for international protection.”
More details about the ruling can be found in the original article at JURIST – News.