Poland's Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, has announced plans to temporarily suspend the right to asylum in response to an increase in illegal border crossings, particularly from Belarus.
During a speech at a meeting of his center-right Civic Coalition political grouping in Warsaw, Tusk said people smugglers - aided by Belarus and Russia - were abusing the right to asylum.
This decision, which aims to curb what Tusk has called a "hybrid attack" on Poland and the European Union, is in line with a strategy called “Regain Control, Ensure Security” that intends to tackle irregular migration especially from the Middle East, Africa and Asia more effectively.
Since taking office, Tusk has pursued stringent migration policies, following suit with the tough stance of previous governments.
He mentioned that the increase in asylum applications—up by approximately 74% in the first half of 2024—has been exacerbated by Belarusian border tactics and the involvement of human smugglers. Tusk's approach aims to ensure that Poland regains control over its borders, stating that "the state must regain 100% of the control over who enters and leaves Poland".
Tusk said he would present the new migration policy at a government meeting on 15 October.
“One of the elements of the migration strategy will be the temporary territorial suspension of the right to asylum,” the prime minister said. “I will demand this, I will demand recognition in Europe for this decision,” he added.
Under international law, countries are obliged to offer people the right to claim asylum. Tusk did not say how he would justify the move to his EU partners.
“We know very well how it is used by Lukashenko, Putin… by people smugglers, people traffickers, how this right to asylum is used exactly against the essence of the right to asylum,” he said. “Poland must take back 100% control over who comes to Poland,” he added.
What has the Polish Government Done Before Pausing The Right to Asylum?
In July, following the death of a 21-year-old soldier who was fatally stabbed by migrants on the border, the government pushed through parliament the decriminalization of the use of firearms by security forces in self-defense in certain circumstances.
Opinion polls suggest much of the public supports the hard-line, with 86% of respondents supporting the use of weapons in self-defense by the security services.
Wrapping Up
“I never saw Donald Tusk as a human rights champion, but this is a new low,” Malgorzata Szuleka, a board member of the Warsaw-based Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, told the BBC.
“There is a humanitarian crisis on the border, but it is also an open migration route. We need to find a place for a rational discussion that is not so politically driven,” she added.
This is to say that Donald Tusk’s Poland migration policy has sparked criticism from human rights advocates, who argue that such a suspension could violate international obligations to protect refugees.
Since Poland is a member of the European Convention on Human Rights, which mandates adherence to principles of non-refoulement, preventing the deportation of individuals to places where they may face persecution, Donald Tusk might have to double back on his words.