The Schengen`s collapse in Scandinavia or Why Sweden and Denmark have chosen to close their Nati

The serial of IS terror attacks in Europe as well as the permanent flow of immigrants and asylum- seekers from the Middle East without any passports or personal documents have forced Sweden and Denmark to close their borders in January 2016. After urgent meeting in Brussels the same month, the EU states have been encouraged to return the free movement status within their territories in short terms. The decision of the two Scandinavian countries can be recognized as opposition to the migration and security policies, currently taken by the European institutions.

Sweden, Denmark and their Dissent from Schengen

The serial of IS terror attacks in Europe and the permanent flow of immigrants and asylum- seekers from the Middle East without any passports or personal documents have forced certain EU member states such as Sweden and Denmark to neglect the Schengen Agreement of 1985[1] and to close their borders.

The severe decision has been taken first by Sweden in November 2015[2]. The security measures proclaimed by the state include a verification control the ID documents of each person who enters the state by car, train, boat or bus and snapshot of the document as form of personal registration. Both Swedish and Danish citizens have been involved in the checkups. The most affected of the safety practices has appeared to be the county of Skåne where the two major transport connections, the Öresund Bridge and Helsingborg – Helsingør ferry bridge line, have overpassed serious financial losses from delays and extra occupation of the personal staff.

Besides, one day after the beginning of the border control in Sweden, Denmark has also decided to close its border with Germany. As result, the three countries have been invited on urgent meeting in Brussels, January 6, in order to discuss the new safety measures with the European Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship[3]. After the constructive discussion, it has been announced that the Schengen agreement and the free movement of people should continue to be protected through the use of collective efforts. At this regard, the exceptional measures, taken by Sweden and Denmark, should be kept to minimum and returned to normal as soon as possible[4].

The Swedish decision to close its border with Denmark has faced strong critic equally from Swedish[5] and Danish[6] policy makers. The Öresund region represents one of the biggest transnational areas in Scandinavia where approximately 31 000 people travel daily from coast to coast due to living and labor reasons. Despite this, Sweden has already reported a drastic decrease in the amount of asylum seekers in Skåne from several hundred to 48 since the first day of the ID control entry into force[7]. Although, the willingness of both Swedish authorities and society is to continue the border safety measures until 2018, further decisions will be taken in Brussels in the end of January 2016.

The Immigration Crisis in Europe

The period between 2014 and 2015 was truly arduous for many of the nations, worldwide. The military conflicts across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region have forced nearly 60 million people to leave their homes and to become migrants, as solution to their despair[8]. Only in the first half of 2015, 4, 2 million individuals have left their own countries and decided to search support in the regions of Asia and the Pacific, Africa and North and Latin America. Among all the migrants, more than 1 million Syrian refugees have decided to come to Europe during the same year by attempting to enter the Schengen zone by boats and land[9].

Although most of the European states have voluntarily signed the Refugee Convention of 1951 and the Protocol of 1967[10], which recognize the right of persons to seek asylum from persecution in other countries, no matter the geographic location or temporal duration, the conflict in Syria and the war against the Islamic State continue to be some of the major obstacles for further acceptance the immigration waves. The multiplied terror attacks of the Islamic State in Europe[11] have increased the sense of fear and treat among EU states and have forced the national governments to become extremely attentive regarding the immigrants who enter the Schengen zone, i.e. the persistent acts of violence in Afghanistan and abuses in Eritrea and Iraq continue to motivate people to search after new living alternatives abroad.

Moreover, the acceptance and integration of such serious amount of immigrants requires an extra financial resources which some of the European members do not necessarily possess. According the statistical research of the Eurostat agency[12], more than 942, 400 people have already claimed asylum in the EU. Despite the fact that in 2014, the whole EU has approved the asylum applications of 184, 665 people, the period January – October 2015 have been also hectic. During that time, Germany has received 315, 000 new asylum claims, followed by Hungary (1, 450) and Sweden (700).

The EU as non-effective Transnational Mechanism

The Nordic countries are familiar as some of the first in Europe which have encouraged the free movement of people across borders. Together with Finland, Iceland and Norway, Sweden and Denmark have been part of the Nordic Passport Union of 1952[13], which permits unrestricted traveling within the Nordic region. Since 1958, the border control between the states has been officially abolished.

In view of this fact and by taking under consideration the Swedish and Danish economic stability and participation in the EU, the Schengen Agreement and the Refugee Convention, the decision of closing the Swedish and Danish borders can lead to the assumption that the Scandinavian states have turned aside from the already established European democratic practices due to the insufficient migration and security measures, currently taken by the institutions.

As known, the increasing Eurosceptic public opinion among EU society and the development of Eurosceptic ideological and political core among states have leaded to success of the populist extremist political parties in many countries, including Sweden[14] and Denmark[15]. In this sense, the universal dialogue between the local and transnational governmental agencies is troubled due to changes in the national priorities and decreasing willingness of the state authorities to follow the standard practices of international collaboration.

[1]EUR-Lex. 2009. The Schengen area and cooperation. EUR-Lex. <http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=URISERV%3Al33020> (09.01.2016)

[2]“Nu inför regeringen kontroller av gränsen”, Expressen, Nov 2015, <http://www.expressen.se/nyheter/nu-infor-regeringen-kontroller-av-gransen/> (06.01.2016)

[3]“Extramöte om gränskontroller i EU”, Aftonbladet, Jan 2016, <http://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/article22043608.ab> (06.01.2016)

[4] Nyheter (Ekot), EU vill inte se gränskontroller, Sveriges Radio (06.01.2016)

[5]Jammeh, S. K., “Id-kontrollerna är ett väsentligt steg fel riktning”, Sydsvenskan Dagblad, Jan 2016, <http://www.sydsvenskan.se/opinion/aktuella-fragor/id-kontrollerna-ar-ett-vasentligt-steg-i-fel-riktning/?utm_source=Fb&utm_medium=sds&utm_campaign=br> (05.01.2016)

[6] “Danmark om svenska id-kontroller: ”Mycket olyckligt”, Fria Tider, Dec 2015, <http://www.friatider.se/danmark-om-svenska-id-kontroller-mycket-olyckligt> (07.01.2015)

[7]Zillen, K. “Bara 48 asylsökande till Skåne under måndagen”, Helsingborgs Dagblad, Jan 2016, <http://www.hd.se/nyheter/sverige/2016/01/05/bara-48-asylsokande-till-skane-under-mandagen/> (05.01.2016)

[8] United Nations Refugee Agency. 2015. UNHCR Mid-Year Trends 2015. Switzerland: United Nations Refugee Agency <https://s3.amazonaws.com/unhcrsharedmedia/2015/2015-midyear-trends-report/2015-12-18_MYT_web.pdf> (07.01.2016)

[9]“Migrant crisis: Migration to Europe explained in graphics”, BBC News, Dec 2015 <http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34131911> (07.01.2016)

[10] United Nations Refugee Agency. Convention and Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees. United Nations Refugee Agency. <http://www.unhcr.org/3b66c2aa10.html> (09.01.2016)

[11]“Terror attacks and arrests in western Europe”, The Economist, Nov 2015, <http://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2015/11/daily-chart-10> (09.01.2016)

[12]Eurostat. 2015. Asylum quarterly report. Eurostat. <http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Asylum_quarterly_report> (09.01.2015)

[13] Roberson, C., Das, D. K., Singer, K. J., (2010) Police Without Borders: The Fading Distinction between Local and Global, U.S.: CRC Press, p.250

[14] Rosén, E. (2014) ’Tolv komma nio procent’, Politism, Sept 2014, <http://www.politism.se/story/tolv-komma-nio-procent/#post-16933> (09.01.2016)

[15] Millis, J. “Denmark votes: Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt defeated by Lars Løkke Rasmussen”, International Business Times, June 2015 <http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/denmark-votes-prime-minister-helle-thorning-schmidt-defeated-by-lars-lokke-rasmussen-1506935> (09.01.2016)

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