WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The Polish government said Tuesday that it will not support a global compact seeking international cooperation on migration, citing national sovereignty as it joins countries including Hungary, Austria and the United…

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The Polish government said Tuesday that it will not support a global compact seeking international cooperation on migration, citing national sovereignty as it joins countries including Hungary, Austria and the United States in rejecting it.

The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, which won’t be legally binding, was finalized under U.N. auspices in July. It is due to be formally approved at a Dec. 10-11 meeting in Marrakech, Morocco.

After a meeting of the Polish Cabinet, the government press office released a statement saying the document fails to meet “Poland’s demands regarding the confirmation of adequately strong guarantees of the sovereign right to decide who the countries accept in their territory and the distinction between legal and illegal migration.”

Poland’s government has taken a strong anti-migrant position. It won power in 2015 amid Europe’s migration crisis promising not to accept any Muslim migrants, describing them as a risk to the nation’s security and Christian identity.

Following that migrant wave, all 193 U.N. member states in September 2016, including the United States under President Barack Obama, adopted a declaration saying no country can manage international migration on its own, and agreed to launch a process leading to the adoption of a global compact in 2018.

But last December, the United States said it was ending its participation in negotiations on the compact, stating that numerous provisions were “inconsistent with U.S. immigration and refugee policies” under President Donald Trump.

The compact has 23 objectives that seek to boost cooperation to manage migration and numerous actions ranging from technical issues like the portability of earnings by migrant workers to reducing the detention of migrants.

Hungary withdrew in July and Austria in October, while reservations are being expressed in other countries, too, including Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said then that the pact was contrary to his country’s interests because while it had some positive aims, like fighting human trafficking, overall it considered migration an unstoppable and positive phenomenon worthy of support.

Austria’s interior minister, Herbert Kickl, has denounced what he called “an almost irresponsibly naive pro-migration tone.”

Copyright © 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed. </s> Scott Morrison will follow in Donald Trump's footsteps by refusing to sign a global covenant on migration.

The prime minister says the UN's Global Compact on Migration would compromise Australia's border security and undermine its immigration settings.

"It doesn't distinguish between those who illegally enter Australia and those who come the right way," he told 2GB radio on Wednesday.

"I would never allow something to compromise our borders, I worked too hard to ensure that we weren't in that position."

The agreement is supposed to support safe, orderly and regular migration.

Mr Morrison argued the government had already achieved these goals.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said the compact was primarily focused on Europe, where asylum seekers were drowning at sea in the Mediterranean.

"I think this compact was largely directed at that problem, not towards our part of the world," he told Sky News.

Mr Dutton said Australia had stopped boat arrivals and drownings at sea through hardline border protection policies.

"We're not going to surrender that, we want our sovereignty to remain in tact," he said.

"We think there would have been a weakening if we had have signed up to this compact."

Mr Dutton said the lack of distinction between how migrants arrived was a sticking point in not signing the agreement, with concerns about how the courts would interpret the pact.

"We're concerned about whether or not it starves us as a sovereign nation of the ability to decide the way in which we can return people under the compact," he said.

"Certain obligations could be imposed where we needed to support people once they'd been returned back to a country of origin, so it really undermines the tenets of Operation Sovereign Borders."

Australia signed a similar refugee pact earlier this month, but Mr Dutton said that document contained "benign" language and didn't impose any onerous obligations on the country.

The US, Israel, Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Croatia, Hungary and Bulgaria have refused to sign the agreement.

The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration was finalised in July and is to be formally approved in December, before being passed by a resolution in the UN General Assembly in January.

It is not legally binding. </s> Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday Israel would join the United States and other countries in rejecting a UN migration pact set to be adopted in December.

"I have instructed the foreign ministry to announce that Israel will not accede to, and will not sign, the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration," Netanyahu said in a statement.

"We are committed to guarding our borders against illegal migrants. This is what we have done and this is what we will continue to do."

The United Nations' Global Compact for Migration, aimed at boosting cooperation to address the world's growing number of migrants, is set to be adopted during a conference in Morocco on December 10-11.

Its final text was agreed in July after 18 months of negotiations and lays out 23 objectives to open up legal migration and better manage migratory flows as the number of people on the move worldwide has increased to 250 million, or three percent of the world's population.

The United States quit talks on the pact last December, Hungary's anti-immigration prime minister Viktor Orban rejected it in July and Austria followed suit in October.

The Czech Republic said it will reject the pact and Bulgaria last week said it might follow suit.

Israel's government has come under political pressure over the presence of some 42,000 African migrants, mainly from Eritrea and Sudan, and has sought to expel many of them.

Most of the migrants arrived in Israel after 2007, mainly through Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.

Security along the once porous border has since been signficantly tightened with the construction of a barrier fence.

Many of the migrants settled in poor neighbourhoods in the coastal city of Tel Aviv, the country's economic capital. </s> Israel will not sign a nonbinding, first-of-its-kind migration pact aimed at managing migration and making it more orderly and safe, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday.



“I have instructed the Foreign Ministry to announce that Israel will not accede to, and will not sign, the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration,” the prime minister said. “We are committed to guarding our borders against illegal migrants. This is what we have done, and this is what we will continue to do.”

The move comes after the US, Austria, Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic have all said they will not be a part of the UN pact. Australia, Romania and Slovakia have also signaled that they may not join.A number of the Central European and Eastern European countries that have pulled out have governments that ran on planks of limiting migration, and have been at odds with Brussels over the EU’s immigration policies.Israel’s decision to withdraw comes even though Israeli foreign ministery officials took part in drawing up the pact, which grew out of the migration to Europe crisis in 2015, which saw the biggest influx of refugees and migrants since World War II.The pact is to be signed during a meeting in Morocco in December, a meeting that Israel will now not attend.Diplomatic sources said that a number of countries, including the US, Hungary and Austria, turned to Israel with requests to withdraw from the pact, but that the decision was made based on Israel’s interests.“This agreement includes elements that are not in line with Israel’s interests,” one diplomatic official said. “For instance, family reunification for migrants. We are a small country in a very complicated geographic position. We are not like Germany, which can absorb a million people.”US President Donald Trump, who has made stopping the flow of migrants to the US a core issue of his presidency, pulled Washington out of the pact in 2017, saying that it was not compatible with US sovereignty.He explained the US position at the UN General Assembly meeting in New York in September.“We recognize the right of every nation in this room to set its own immigration policy in accordance with its national interests, just as we ask other countries to respect our own right to do the same – which we are doing,” he said. “That is one reason the United States will not participate in the new Global Compact on Migration. Migration should not be governed by an international body unaccountable to our own citizens. Ultimately, the only long-term solution to the migration crisis is to help people build more hopeful futures in their home countries. Make their countries great again.”The pact has been billed as an instrument to govern and manage migration around the world. The UN estimates that there are some 250 million migrants around the world. The pact deals with issues such as why people migrate, how to protect them, how to combat human trafficking, how to integrate the migrants into home countries, and what means can be used to return them home.Meretz MK Michal Rozin, former chairwoman of the Knesset’s committee on foreign workers, blasted Netanyahu’s decision, saying it “is another example of the process of Israel’s moral bankruptcy.”She said this is the “result of the prime minister joining with the extreme Right in Israel, Europe and the US. It cannot be that Israel – founded by many people who were refugees who fled murderous and cruel regimes, and which was among the leading countries in drafting the UN’s Refugee Convention – will join with the forces of hatred, division and nationalism.”

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`; document.getElementById("linkPremium").innerHTML = cont; (function (v, i){ }); </s> Global Compact for Migration Backed by Most of the World

MARRAKECH, Morocco, Dec 10 2018 (IPS) - Safe, orderly and regular migration received support today, Dec. 10, with the adoption by 164 countries of the first-ever inter-governmentally negotiated agreement to cover all dimensions of international migration.

After a few last-minute hitches, including more international tension and argument than was welcome, the intergovernmental conference taking place in the Moroccan city of Marrakech agreed to a Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM), a proactive document that will guide States on all matters related to migration.

Well timed to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the historic adoption of the GCM was presided over by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres who urged countries to treat the Compact as an obligation to human rights that will benefit all.

“We are not establishing a new right to migrate. No. There is not a right for anyone to go anywhere at any time according to his or her whim,” Guterres said during the official ceremony to adopt the Compact. “What we are establishing is the obligation to respect the human rights of migrants—which of course is absolutely obvious when we at the same time celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It would be unconceivable to exclude migrants from the scope of the Universal Declaration.”

The conference was preceded by increasing concerns about certain U.N. member States not supporting the Compact. Some declined outright to participate and adopt the Compact, while others said their final decision must await further internal deliberation. The United States was the most notable and voluble naysayer, condemning the compact and labelling it a violation of national sovereignty.

“We believe the Compact and the process that led to its adoption, including the New York Declaration, represent an effort by the United Nations to advance global governance at the expense of the sovereign right of States to manage their immigration systems in accordance with their national laws, policies, and interests,” the U.S. government said in a national statement released on the eve of the conference.

Other countries who bridled against the compact or refused to sign it include Hungary, Australia, Israel, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, Bulgaria, Latvia, Italy, Switzerland and Chile.

“It will make an enormous positive impact in the lives of millions of people—migrants themselves, the people they leave behind and the communities that will then host them,” said Louise Arbour, the U.N. Special Representative for International Migration.

“This of course will depend on capturing the spirit of today’s event to move to the implementation of the multiplicity of initiatives that this Global Compact will permit member states to put in place. I am delighted to echo the words of the Secretary-General: it is a wonderful occasion, really a historic moment and a really great achievement for multilateralism.”

The adopted Compact lays out 23 objectives covering all aspects of migration, with each having a general goal and catalogue of possible actions that can be implemented by member states. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has drawn enormous criticism for her decision to welcome hundreds of thousands of refugees from places like Syria and Afghanistan to her country. It is a decision that may well have cost her another term in power as she recently announced she will not seek re-election. However, Merkel remarked that the adopted Compact is “about nothing less than the foundation of our international cooperation.”

Such potential significance has attracted to the conference, in addition to high-powered diplomats and officials, approximately 400 non-governmental organizations from civil society, the private sector and academia, and over 700 registered press.

The ceremony adopting the Compact also included speaker Cheryl Perera, a prominent representative of migrant communities, and founder of OneChild, a non-governmental organization which seeks to eliminate the commercial sexual exploitation of children abroad. She called for an end to the drivers of irregular migration on the large scale, and for better protection of migrants on the smaller scale.

“We must do better together,” Perera said. “It is important that we involve the private sector, specifically the national airlines, hotels and others to protect children from trafficking.” </s> Australia will endorse a global deal on refugees despite Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton’s strong criticism of a similar agreement.

The UN was expected to adopt the Global Compact on Refugees overnight, with Australia supporting the deal.

Mr Dutton’s spokesman said Australia would not co-sponsor the motion and would express concerns about the agreement.

“We remain concerned with aspects of the Global Compact on Refugees,” Australia’s statement to the UN will say, according to copy provided to The Australian.

“We reiterate our view — informed by our experience — that states have the right to ensure the security of their borders.”

Mr Dutton has previously criticised a second agreement, the UN Global Compact for Migration, and said Australia would not sign the deal as it was currently drafted.

UN member states, led by Mexico and Switzerland and including Australia, helped negotiate the non-binding Global Compact for Migration, but the US and Hungary withdraw prior to Mr Dutton’s comments.

Since then, the migration compact has become controversial in Europe and was the subject of heated debate in Germany’s parliament last week.

Austria, Poland, the Czech Republic and Bulgaria have also suggested they may withdraw.

The Global Compact on Refugees, which Australia will endorse, was developed by member countries and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees as a means to ensure nations share the burden.

The final draft of the agreement says countries hosting large numbers of refugees as a result of their geographic location or otherwise should receive tangible support for their efforts.

The agreement sets up four yearly global refugee forums, with the first one slated for next year.

The forums will enable states to make pledges of financial and technical assistance during refugee crises, as well as commitments about refugee resettlement places.

The deal also says state will be kept accountable for their commitments through officials meetings every two years in between forums, with the first meeting taking place in 2021.

The government will have to reveal its final position on the Global Compact for Migration at a conference in Morocco next month.

Asked whether the nation would withdraw, a spokesman for the Home Affairs Department said “Australia will not surrender sovereign control of its border protection policies” and the government was “disappointed” with the agreement. </s> More than 150 countries will join a United Nations conference to adopt a global pact to better handle migrant flows, a senior U.N. official said on Sunday, less than the number that initially worked on the plan.

MARRAKESH, Morocco: More than 150 countries will join a United Nations conference to adopt a global pact to better handle migrant flows, a senior U.N. official said on Sunday, less than the number that initially worked on the plan.

In July, all 193 U.N. members except the United States finalised the so-called Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration to better handle migration.

Since then, the text has come under fire from European politicians who say it could increase immigration. At least six European Union members - mostly in formerly Communist Eastern Europe - have shunned the accord

U.N. Special Representative for International Migration Louise Arbour said more than 150 governments had registered for the event in the Moroccan city of Marrakesh set to adopt the accord on Monday, without giving details.

The pact is not legally binding but can provide very useful guidance for countries facing migration, she told a news conference.

"Many challenges will stand in the way of its implementation, not least the toxic and ill-informed narrative that too often persists when it comes to migrants," she said.

In the latest political turmoil over the pact, Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel relaunched his government on Sunday as a minority administration after the biggest party in his coalition quit in a dispute over signing the compact.

The right-wing N-VA pulled its ministers after Michel refused its demand that he not agree to the pact.

Also on Sunday, Chile's Interior Ministry Subsecretary Rodrigo Ubilla told El Mercurio newspaper that the country's representatives would not attend the event, saying: "We have said that migration is not a human right. Countries have a right to determine the entry requirements for foreign citizens."

In November, Austria's right-wing government, which holds the EU presidency, said it would also withdraw, saying the accord would blur the line between legal and illegal migration.

Australia also said in November would not sign up to the migration agreement because it would compromise its hardline immigration policy and endanger national security. nL4N1XV663

Among other leaders, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose 13-year chancellorship has been marked by her open-door migrant policy, will attend the event.

The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration is a framework for cooperation and aims to reduce illegal migration, help integrate migrants and return them to their home countries. </s> Scott Morrison is expected to follow in the steps of the US and a number of other countries in refusing to sign up to an international migration covenant under the auspices of the UN.

The prime minister says the UN's Global Compact on Migration would weaken Australia's border security and undermine its immigration policies, News Corp reports.

"I'm not going to sign up to an agreement that I believe will only be used by those who have always tried to tear our stronger border policies down," Mr Morrison told The Australian.

"I experienced this first-hand back when I was responsible for stopping the boats. We must always decide on these issues and not have our laws undermined by outside influences."

The agreement is supposed to support safe and orderly migration but Mr Morrison said a key sticking point was the failure of the document to differentiate between illegal and "proper" migration when it comes to providing welfare benefits.

Mr Morrison will release a joint statement with Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton and Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne on the matter on Wednesday.

"We do not believe that signing this agreement will add anything to enhancing our capacity to controlling our borders and managing our successful immigration program," the statement will say.

Apart from the US, Israel, Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Croatia, Hungary and Bulgaria have refused to sign the agreement.

The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration was finalised in July and is to be formally approved at a December meeting in Marrakesh, Morocco, before being passed by a resolution in the UN General Assembly in January. It is not legally binding. </s> Australia discards the UN migration pact. The Australian government announced that it would reject a UN migration pact. Prime Minister Scott Morrison, in a joint statement with his home and foreign ministers, said, adopting the pact would risk encouraging illegal entry to Australia.

The pact was already denounced by the United States. Conservative governments in Europe like Poland, Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic had also refused to sign the pact.

The UN Global Compact for Migration was agreed in July after 18 months of negotiations and is due to be adopted next month.
Poland and Israel join Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Australia and Austria in announcing that, despite their agreement in July, they will not sign the United Nations Global Compact for Migration in Marrakech on 10–11 December 2018.