The Floodgates Open: North African Refugees Cause Problems for Europe

   One of the side effects of the NATO "war" in Libya and the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt has been a massive exodus of Muslims from their homelands. Many in Europe fear that these refugees will further destabilize an already troubled economic situation, particularly among the Mediterranean nations such as Greece and Italy. Add to that the threat of radicalization among the refugees as well as the chances that some active terrorists could slip in with the crowd, especially from Somalia or Libya, and it should be obvious that this is a very hazardous situation.

   The Italian island of Lampedusa is currently bearing the brunt of this flood of refugees. Lampedusa is just over one hundred and sixty miles east of Tunisia and has long been a rest stop for African immigrants looking for work in Europe. But the conflicts in North Africa have driven the number of incoming people far beyond the island's ability to reasonably process. According to the German news service Der Spiegel, "the total number of migrants waiting for processing by Italian officials is estimated at more than 7,000" (1). But the facilities on Lampedusa were constructed for a maximum of eight hundred people. When the Italian government attempted to deport many of the refugees, the North Africans rioted and tried to escape the facility (2). Tensions continue to escalate between the citizens of Lampedusa and the immigrants. In response to the massive waves of immigrants, several local women chained themselves to one of the docks in order to prevent new boats from arriving (1). Many more locals have pointed to a recent spike in crime as evidence that the immigrants have to leave Lampedusa.

   There is another consequence to this wave of immigrants: the risk of economic collapse. The EU has already seen discord among its member states as Greece, Spain, Italy, and Portugal continue to spend money they don't have. The more disciplined members of the EU, especially Germany, are tired of providing bailouts for these careless nations. The refugee problem will only make things worse. Italy has been overwhelmed and has requested assistance from other EU members, but such assistance has been slow in coming. In retaliation, the Italian government plans to provide twenty-five thousand migrant workers with travel visas that would allow them to freely travel to any country that is a member of the European Union (3). This action has caused an outcry among the Germans and the French. The Germans do not want to weaken their economy further by having foreign workers either take jobs from native Germans or sit around collecting welfare checks. France, on the other hand, already has a sizable Tunisian population and is unprepared for a sudden influx of immigrants.

   Actions have consequences. It is ironic that France was at the vanguard of the military action against Libya and now seeks to deny refugees from that same conflict access to their country. While this whole situation could pass without further problems, it is much more likely that the refugee crisis could be the straw that broke the camel's back in regards to EU solidarity. After all, what better way to protect your borders from unwanted immigrants using EU travel visas than simply withdrawing from the EU altogether? I'm sure that many in the German government are considering such actions, as are those in France. My prediction is that we will see a rapid rise in nationalism among European nations who are realizing, too late as the case may be, that the same immigrants that they brought in to fund their lavish pensions seek to fundamentally change the fabric of European society.

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References-
1. Peters, Katharina. "North Africans Fleeing for Europe: First Boatload from Libya Arrives on Italian Soil." Der Spiegel Online; March 29, 2011. http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,753805,00.html; accessed April 12, 2011.

2. "Muslims Riot on Lampedusa." Uploaded to Youtube on April 12, 2011.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cdbtqE0E7Y&feature=player_embedded; accessed April 13, 2011

3. Xenakis, John J. "Italy Fights EU Over Tunisian Migrants." Big Peace; April 12, 2011. http://bigpeace.com/jxenakis/2011/04/12/italy-fights-eu-over-tunisian-migrants/; accessed April 12, 2011