Recognised refugees, migrants and other foreign workers yesterday held a peaceful demonstration outside the Philoxenia Conference Centre where EU interior ministers were meeting to discuss migration and asylum issues. They said they wanted to draw attention to the difficulties faced by non-Cypriots seeking to integrate in Cypriot society. The protestors handed over a letter to the interior ministry’s permanent secretary, Andreas Assiotis, so he could distribute it to the European ministers.
They wished, among other things, to draw attention to a report by the Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPEX), which recently ranked Cyprus second from last of all 31 MIPEX countries, saying the island discouraged long-term integration...
The recognised refugees, migrants and foreigners called on the European Commission to monitor Cyprus, during efforts for economic recovery.
According to the MIPEX report, “At 35 points, Cyprus is the only country far below average and falling further behind, ranking second last of all 31 countries”...
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Cyprus Mail: Migrants protest lack of integration as EU ministers meet
Thomas Huddleston
Policy Analyst, Migration Policy Group
Thomas Huddleston is a policy analyst at the Migration Policy Group, a European think-and-do-tank. He coordinates MPG’s research for European cooperation on national integration policies, including the second and third editions of the Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPEX) (published in February 2011) and the third edition of the European Commission’s Handbook on Integration.
