‘Put them on an ISLAND’ Furious Orban demands EU rounds up and ships out illegal migrants
VIKTOR Orban has declared the EU should round up and deport illegal immigrants and put them in camps beyond the bloc’s borders.
Viktor Orban said the EU should round up and deport illegal immigrants
The Hungarian Prime Minister, who has been at the forefront of a wave of anti-EU and anti-migrant sentiment, said those who arrive inside the bloc without permission should be held on an island off the North African coast.
Just two weeks ahead of Hungary’s referendum asking people if they want to reject mandatory EU migrant quotas, Mr Orban said illegal immigrants “must be shipped out”.
Under his controversial plans, migrants could file for asylum while waiting in EU-supervised camps.
Those who came illegally must be rounded up and shipped out
He said: "This could be an island, it could be a coastal area in North Africa, but the security and supplies of that area must be guaranteed by the EU in its own interest.
"Those who came illegally must be rounded up and shipped out.
"We must set up large refugee camps outside the EU, with armed security and financial support provided by the Union.
Viktor Orban: 'We cannot allow illegal border crossings'
Mr Orban said illegal immigrants “must be shipped out”
"Everyone who came illegally must return there. There they can file for asylum."
The hardliner has managed to seal the Serbia-Hungary border shut to migrants in recent weeks as he drums up support for the October 2 referendum.
To ease the burden on Italy and Greece, EU states agreed a year ago to distribute 160,000 people to elsewhere in the bloc under a quota system.
Hungary has registered more than 19,000 asylum applications this year
EU states agreed to distribute 160,000 people to elsewhere in the bloc under a quota system
But Mr Orban’s government has opposed the quota, which could see 1,300 migrants resettled in Hungary.
The Prime Minister said the camp was a "grave moral task" that was the only alternative to migrants staying in Europe and being relocated around the continent.
Mr Orban said: "There is only one solution that befits everyone, including us who are not yet in trouble because we defended ourselves and countries like Germany which are in trouble: Taking migrants out of the Union."
It's believed more than 14,000 migrants have crossed Hungary's southern borders illegally
Mr Orban stressed that the external borders of the EU must be strengthened to prevent a repeat of 2015, which saw 9,000 migrants a day cross the border from Serbia to Hungary at the height of the crisis.
He said: "Borders must be used, because they protect us.
“Some imagine a globe without borders...I am one of those who would not like to see the civilisation of the world change."
Martin Schulz hit back at Mr Orban's suggestion
President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz hit back at Mr Orban’s suggestion.
Speaking on German TV, he said: “I don't know anything about the suggestion.
“I don't think it's a good idea to have detention islands, but maybe things are getting confused, maybe the suggestion was about areas for refugees who do not have asylum yet.
“All of us should probably moderate our tone of voice over refugees.”