Germany: “The protection of refugees in the European Union”, theme for the Catholic Summit promoted by the Bishops’ Conference

The “Catholic Summit on Refugees”, organised by the competent offices of the German Bishops’ Conference on 30 April in Cologne, will focus on “The protection of refugees in the European Union”. Professionals, experts and volunteers from all over Germany are expected to attend the meeting. “The reception and protection of refugees is a common European task, and in the election year, the question of how we can live up to this responsibility becomes particularly central”, a press release reads. “As a Church, we support a strong refugee protection based on human rights and human dignity, both in Germany and throughout Europe”. The programme for this eighth edition of the Summit, whose work is coordinated by Archbishop Stefan Heße (of Hamburg) responsible for refugees, features a speech by Franz Lamplmair (European Commission’s Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs) on the theme of European policies and a speech by Father Fabio Baggio (Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development) on “Ecclesial perspectives” on refugee protection. The working groups will focus on the different aspects of European refugee protection (the European asylum system, complementary access routes, returns, and anti-trafficking initiatives). Finally, there will be a concluding debate on the current challenges in the protection of refugees in Europe between representatives from the Church and politics.
Valentina Bombelli