Perceiving Migration Crises: A View from the European Neighbourhood

Abstract

For a long time now, "crisis" has been the dominant trope in European discourses on migration. This perception is extremely Eurocentric, as migration to the European Union is minimal compared to other world regions. How do non-EU states such as Tunisia and Turkey, which are bound to the EU through neighbourhood policies and agreements, view not only migration movements perceived as "critical" within the EU but also the ensuing migration agreements? Tunisian media discourses on the EU migration deal of June 2018 show that Tunisian political analysts are aware that the "migration crisis" is actively constructed by political actors in the EU for the latter's own political gain. In Tunisia itself, no such "crisis" was diagnosed - at least in media discourse -despite the high and rising number of forced migrants entering the country. Instead, political reporting focused on local domestic crises and on Tunisia's mediating role within the neighbouring conflict in Libya. Similarly, the reporting in Turkey on the negotiations leading up to the joint EU-Turkey statement of March 2016 shows an acute awareness of European constructions of a "migration crisis." Despite Turkey's rapid development from a migrant-sending state to one of the most important host states for forced migrants in the world, Turkish media reporting focused on local issues and conflicts and on Turkey's strategic interests in the Syrian conflict. EU perceptions of migration as a crisis and discrepancies between a rhetorical commitment to humanitarian values and real-life actions are carefully received and critically evaluated in neigbouring states, highlighting the need to better understand perceptions of the EU, as this can be expected to impact future cooperation. The EU should build knowledge on local and national discourses on migration in (potential) partner states; reflect upon who gains from the narrative of forced migration as a "crisis" both within and outside of the EU; and address severe protection gaps for refugees and migrants in partner states when negotiating cooperative migration governance.