Not for the first time that I’ve noticed, Full Fact is a little light on the full facts. It says this:
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Claim: Under the Geneva Convention refugees should seek refuge in the first safe country they come to.
Conclusion:Incorrect. The UN Refugee Convention does not make this requirement of refugees, and UK case law supports this interpretation. Refugees can legitimately make a claim for asylum in the UK after passing through other “safe” countries.
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Article 31 of The United Nations Convention on the Status of Refugees (nothing to do with the Geneva Convention) says this:
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Article 31 - Refugees unlawfully in the country of refuge
1. The Contracting States shall not impose penalties, on account of their illegal entry or presence, on refugees who, coming directly from a territory where their life or freedom was threatened in the sense of article 1, enter or are present in their territory without authorization, provided they present themselves without delay to the authorities and show good cause for their illegal entry or presence.
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Note the term “..coming directly from a territory where their life or freedom was threatened…” Those arriving from France have not come from such a place. They are perfectly safe there, albeit less comfortable than they would like. Thus their entry to the UK, under A31, is illegal.
The EU’s Dublin Convention was designed to prevent asylum seekers from lodging multiple applications for their claim across different countries in the EU. Among other things it says that the first nation where a migrant’s finger prints are taken and stored is responsible for processing his asylum claim. Of course those in Calais do not submit themselves to such an indignity and the first country where arrivals in rubber boats are processed is thus usually the UK. In July 2017, the European Court of Justice upheld the Dublin Regulation, declaring that it still stands despite the high influx of 2015, giving EU member states the right to deport migrants to the first country of entry to the EU:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/07/26/eu-court-rejects-open-door-policy-upholds-right-member-states/
Of course it is preposterous to allow migrants to roam freely across the Continent heading for their “destination of choice”. They are allegedly fleeing for their safety or to avoid persecution. But that’s exactly what’s happening under the EU’s ridiculous regime, exacerbated by ludicrous Schengen Agreement . Those arriving in the UK from France are illegal migrants under A31 of the UN Convention and are also falling foul of the Dublin Agreement (which was ratified as appropriate by the ECJ). They should be returned to France.