Tuesday, 19 October 2021, from 01:00 pm to 04:00 pm.
Track 4: “Combatting hate speech against refugees and migrants through interreligious and intercultural dialogue”
Supporting active participation of refugees and migrants may be a less effective
at creating inclusive and cohesive societies as long as intolerance, hate speech, negative stereotypes and
prejudices towards newcomers prevail in public discourse. The main focus of this track will be the efforts
to counter rising levels of hate speech through interreligious and intercultural dialogue, in order to
strengthen social cohesion in Europe. The specific focus of the track is on the field of education and on
how governments can guide the educational space to counter hate speech by using dialogue as a tool.​

World Café
Fostering media and information literacy - Community media projects
organized in cooperation with CMFE Community Media Forum Europe
Friday June 11 from 14:00 to 15:20
Follow conference via LIVESTREAM: 10 JUNE - 11 JUNE and 11 JUNE (World Café 2)
Moderator:
Martina Chapman, Independent consultant in Media Literacy and Digital engagement, coauthor, Council of Europe study on “Supporting quality journalism through media and information literacy”
Panelist:

• Mr Michael Nicolai, Coordinator, Project manager of SMART project
• Ms Lina Chawaf, Program manager, Radio Rozana
• Ms Soledad Galiana, radio Coordinator, Ethical Media for Active Citizenship,
• Mr Larry .M. Macaulay, Founder/Editor in chief, Refugee Radio Network -New Neighbours
• Ms Lisa McLean, Editor, Radio ARA, Luxembourg

​

Source: IOM Germany 
Links: REAG/GARP Programme      StarthilfePlus
Related document: IOM_Germany AVRR Counselling​

"There is a need for further action and co-ordination in a wider scope"
The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe have adopted an Action Plan on Protecting Vulnerable Persons in the Context of Migration and Asylum in Europe (2021-2025). “Migrants and asylum seekers face particular challenges, in the Covid-19 pandemic, notably access to healthcare and vaccinations. We are increasing cooperation among member states to protect the most vulnerable persons”, said Council of Europe Secretary General Marija Pejcinovic Buric.

The action plan aims at addressing main challenges and opportunities identified since the previous Action Plan, focusing on children, completed in 2019. The lessons learned, along with discussions with member states and within the Council of Europe, revealed the need for further action and co-ordination in a wider scope. The European Court of Human Rights as well as Council of Europe steering committees and monitoring bodies have emphasised the special protection that states need to provide to vulnerable persons in the context of asylum and migration. In the new action plan, “vulnerable persons in the context of migration and asylum” are persons found to have special needs after individual evaluation of their situation and are entitled to call on states’ obligation to provide special protection and assistance.

“This action plan proposes a targeted assistance package for the Council of Europe member states to enhance their capacity to identify and address vulnerabilities throughout the asylum and migration procedures linked to adequate reception conditions, access to information, legal aid and to justice. It also promotes the support for child refugees in their access to education and young refugees in their transition to adulthood,” said the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Migration and Refugees, Ambassador Drahoslav Štefánek.

Source: Council of Europe
Related documents:

• Council of Europe Action Plan on Protecting Vulnerable Persons in the Context of Migration and Asylum in Europe (2021-2025)

Johansson: "Always the better option: individual at the core, more effective and less costly"
Yesterday, the Commission adopted the first EU Strategy on voluntary return and reintegration. The Strategy promotes voluntary return and reintegration as an integral part of a common EU system for returns, a key objective under the New Pact on Migration and Asylum. It sets out practical measures to strengthen the legal and operational framework for voluntary returns from Europe and from transit countries, improve the quality of return and reintegration programmes, establish better links with development initiatives and strengthen cooperation with partner countries.

Vice-President for Promoting our European Way of Life, Margaritis Schinas, said: “The EU is building a new ecosystem on returns – looking at increasing cooperation on readmission, improving the governance framework, equipping Frontex with a new operational mandate on returns and appointing an EU Return Coordinator. Today's Strategy on voluntary returns and reintegration is another piece of that puzzle. Returns are more effective when they are voluntary and accompanied by genuine reintegration options for returnees and this Strategy will develop a more uniform and coordinated approach among Member States to unlock their full potential.”

Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, said: “Only about a third of people with no right to stay in the EU return to their country of origin and of those who do, fewer than 30% do so voluntarily. Voluntary returns are always the better option: they put the individual at the core, they are more effective and less costly Our first ever strategy on voluntary return and reintegration will help returnees from both the EU and third countries to seize opportunities in their home country, contribute to the development of the community and build trust in our migration system to make it more effective.”

An effective legal and operational framework

Gaps between asylum and return procedures, challenges in preventing absconding, insufficient resources, lack of data, overall fragmentation and limited administrative capacity to follow-up on return decisions all contribute to the low uptake in assisted voluntary returns programmes. Through the proposed recast Return Directive, the amended proposal for an Asylum Procedures Regulation, the Asylum and Migration Management Regulation and the revised Eurodac Regulation, the Commission will continue to put in place fast and fair common procedures and rules on asylum and return, monitor the granting of return and reintegration assistance and reduce the risk of unauthorised movements. Through its enhanced mandate, Frontex can support Member States in all stages of the voluntary return and reintegration process, including on pre-return counselling, post-arrival support and monitoring the effectiveness of reintegration assistance. The Return Coordinator and High Level Network for Return will provide further technical support to Member States in bringing together different strands of EU return policy.

Improved quality of assisted voluntary return programmes

Providing early, tailor-made and effective return counselling taking into account individual circumstances, the needs of children and vulnerable groups, as well as support after return, improves their chances of successful and sustainable reintegration into their home communities. The Commission will work with Frontex to develop a common curriculum for return counsellors complementing existing support from the Agency and making better use of web-based tools such as the Return and Reintegration Assistance Inventory and the Reintegration Assistance Tool. The Commission, in cooperation with Member States, Frontex and the European Return and Reintegration Network, will also develop a quality framework for reintegration service providers based on common standards for managing projects, supported by EU funding.

Strengthening cooperation with partner countries

Cooperation on voluntary return and reintegration is a key aspect of migration partnerships that the EU will strengthen under the New Pact on Migration and Asylum. The EU will support the ownership of reintegration processes in partner countries with capacity building, providing staff with the necessary skills, or supporting governance structures to cater to the specific economic, social and psychosocial needs of returnees. The EU will also continue to provide assistance for voluntary return and reintegration of migrants stranded in other countries, including through exploring new partnerships. Finally, the EU will strengthen links between reintegration programmes and other relevant development initiatives in partner countries. The Commission will ensure a more coordinated use of the financial resources that will be available under different EU funds to support the entirety of the voluntary return and reintegration process.

Commission Staff Working Document: The EU framework on return counselling and the Reintegration Assistance Tool.

Q&A: The EU Strategy on voluntary returns and reintegration

Related documents

• The EU strategy on voluntary return and reintegration

Media professionals are coming together to share what it means to work on intercultural media projects during the New Neighbours online . ​https://t.co/w03i5SJ5P4?amp=1 
Register Here

+Presentation: Introductory session on the “New Neighbours” project
+ Film Screening: The “New Neighbours” series
+ Panel Discussion: Let’s Get Kritikal
COSPE New Neighbours partner – Presents national event organised in the framework of the European project New Neighbours in collaboration with Refugee Radio Network, aiming at disseminating the contents and the results of the project.
The documentaries and media productions created by community media will be shown, and a debate on the issues of the project will be stimulated. Also of interest will be the community media initiatives featured in the Council of Europe “Spaces of Inclusion” report which include programmes presented by migrants for migrants as well as multilingual outputs aimed at engaging with host communities.
New Neighbours is an EU-funded project led by COSPE and a coalition of civil society organisations, including European Broadcasting Union EBU, Media Diversity Institute MDI, Community Media Forum Europe CMFE and Community Medien Institut COMMIT.

Its aim is to highlight the positive social and economic contributions made by migrants and refugees throughout communities across Europe.
The project works with public service media, community media, and civil society organisations. It aims to challenge stereotypes and expose commonly held myths, placing migrant voices at the heart of discussions on migration and delivering innovative messaging in order to help promote the integration of migrants into local communities.

The national event will bring together, public service broadcasters, community media actors, EU offices, civil society organisations, representatives from migrant groups and local authorities.
The event is by invitation only.
Please register at this link by the October 30th 2020: https://bit.ly/2ZrmMqd
Details:
Saturday, November 14, 2020
​at 2 PM – 5 PM
Venue:
Kampnagel - Internationales Zentrum für schönere Künste

Last Chance For Media Pluralism
The role of Community Media in Luxembourg and Europe
The challenges Luxembourgs media landscape is facing, give an outlook on future challenges for the European general public and its media actors. What does the growing diversity of languages, cultural backgrounds and living conditions mean for media institutions in search of their public? How do both representation and participation work and is media pluralism guaranteed? These questions hit Luxembourgs media landscape during a time of preoccupation with other, global crises: the decline of revenu, audience and credibility.
The conference “Last chance for media pluralism” aims to keep the discussion around Luxembourgs media landscape and the local media players focused on the greater goals. It explores the question to which extend Community Media are an important tool to encounter todays and tomorrow challenges.
Friday 9th october
19h30: Introduction (EN/LU)
The answer of Community Media on the big challanges of our time.
Three short presentations.
(20h15) Panel discussion (LU)
“Last Chance for Media Pluralism in Luxembourg”: Representatives
of media an politics discuss to introduction of new legislation.
Saturday 10th october
13h00: Keynote speeches (EN/DE)
International experts including scientists, policy makers and experts
from the Council of Europe analyse the current state of Community
Media on the european Level.
17h00: Press conference (LU/EN)
CMFE and Radio ARA
​18h00: CMFE Annual meet
http://podcast.ara.lu/blog/2020/09/28/konferenz-lescht-chance-fir-medienpluralismus/

Sehr geehrte Medienvertreter/innen,
 ich darf Sie auf folgendes Pressematerial zum heute vorgelegten europäischen Asyl- und Migrationspaket hinweisen:
Pressemitteilung: Neuanfang in der Migrationspolitik: Kommission legt Asyl- und Migrationspaket vor
Fragen und Antworten zum Asyl- und Migrationspaket (auf Englisch)
Fragen und Antworten: Die wichtigsten Änderungen im Vergleich zu den Vorschlägen von 2016 (auf Englisch)
Website der Kommission - Ein neues Migrations- und Asylpaket (auf Englisch)
Rechtsakte - Ein neues Migrations- und Asylpaket
Außerdem hat die Kommission heute die Einrichtung einer neuen Taskforce angekündigt, die sich um den Aufbau neuer Aufnahmelager auf Lesbos kümmern soll.
 Bei Rückfragen stehe ich Ihnen gerne zur Verfügung.
 Mit freundlichen Grüßen,
 KATRIN ABELE
Press Officer / Pressereferentin
European Commission/Europäische Kommission
Representation in Germany/Vertretung in Deutschland
D-10117 Berlin, Unter den Linden 78