VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The fate of migrants who have been  crossing the Mediterranean to seek a better life in Europe has become uncertain. This is because the European Union which was so far  accommodative toward  migrants who mostly came from Africa,  has changed. At a European Summit in Brussels on June 24, several Eastern European countries such as Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland refused to open the door for the migrants. The meeting was held in response to the Italian stance  that began to close the entrance for the arrival of new migrants.

In the meeting, French President Emmanuel Macron stated that there are member states that benefit from EU cooperation but are more concerned with self-interest. Although not explicitly mentioning the name of the country, it is obvious that the  target of the statement is to reject the EU migrant policy. Italy  that has begun to refuse  the presence of migrants reacted to Macron's assertion because Macron, they said, does not know the real situation in Italy. One country that still opens the door for migrants is Spain. It is willing to accept about 600 migrants previously rejected by Italy. While Germany, although  Chancellor Angela Merkel's policy is  quite open to the presence of migrants, now she is facing  an internal problem which is  quite complicated with the refusal of a senior member of the cabinet.

The impact of migrant presence is not only felt in EU member states. Countries that become a buffer zone in the North African region, from Algeria to Egypt feel the immediate impact of their arrival. Egypt, which houses about 300,000 migrants for example, began to object to financing their survival. The Egyptian government calls on the EU to financially support the temporary shelter costs of the migrants.

Indonesia is not directly affected by  the impact of migrant presence. But this problem if not resolved,  may  increase the number of  migrants looking for a better life in Australia.  Not infrequently, they went through the Indonesian archipelago. Indonesia should  take initiative to encourage resolving migrant issues through international forums.