Trading the return of people who reached the EU to seek asylum to one of a country that is still clearly unstable, for vitally needed humanitarian and development aid is sordid and immoral.

It would be inadmissible that any agreement forged in Brussels makes financial assistance for Afghanistan conditional on the Afghan government’s cooperation to accept the readmission and return of asylum seekers

With 60,000 people stranded in appalling conditions in Greece, European leaders should be taking effective measures to resolve this humanitarian crisis rather than reinforcing borders. What is needed is a humane response based on sharing responsibility for the protection of people fleeing war and persecution,

Refugees and migrants massed onto an inflatable boat reach Mytilene, northern island of Lesbos, after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey on February 17, 2016. © ARIS MESSINIS/AFP/Getty Images

Libyan coast guards escort a boat carrying illegal migrants, who had hoped to set off to Europe with the help of people smugglers from the coastal town of Garabulli, towards the Libyan navy to Tripoli. © MAHMUD TURKIA/AFP/Getty Images

13/06/2016 – 130 civil society organisations have called on the European Union not to squander a unique opportunity to play its part in tackling the conflict minerals trade.

An Afghan migrant in Istanbul, Turkey. At least 20,000 Afghans are lured in Turkish cities by a promise of good wages that are never paid, and smugglers who tell them it is an easy launching point for a better life in Europe. © Amnesty International

From 8 to 14 September 2015, 1000s of people across Europe stoop up and took action to say ‪#‎RefugeesWelcome‬, urging EU leaders to give people fleeing bombs and persecution safe passage and protection. ©Amnesty International

29/04/2016 – The decision of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, announced on 19 April, that the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights in Anchugov and Gladkov v Russia “cannot be implemented” is an affront to human rights and the rule of law, said Amnesty International today.

Pakistani and Afghan migrants protest inside the Moria detention center against the deportation to Turkey, in Mytilene on April 5, 2016. ©AFP/Getty Images

People detained on Lesvos and Chios have virtually no access to legal aid, limited access to services and support, and hardly any information about their current status or possible fate. The fear and desperation are palpable.

©Amnesty International / Olga Stefatou