On Thursday, April 16, 2026, the Institute for Ethnic Studies (INV) hosted Dr. Tamás Molnár, who gave a lecture on the topic Key pressing migration-related fundamental rights challenges in Europe: rights protection under the pressure of power?
The lecture addressed the European Union’s commitment to fundamental rights within its borders. With the “migration and refugee crisis,” attention in Europe shifted from the interior of the European Union to its borders in 2015–2016, which clearly highlighted the challenges in respecting the human rights of those arriving at the EU’s borders.
Despite improvements, challenges in the areas of legislation, policy, practice, and attitudes remain, as more and more people are crossing—or attempting to cross—the EU’s borders. Deaths and disappearances at sea continue. Overcrowded and inadequate reception centers still exist. Concerns regarding the protection of unaccompanied children persist. Reports of serious and systematic violations of fundamental rights at the EU’s external borders continue to emerge, requiring decisive action to ensure the protection of these rights, for example through border control mechanisms coupled with prompt and effective investigations into violations.
However, current developments point in a different direction. The artificial perpetuation of the crisis and the instrumentalization of migrants as a form of “hybrid threat” by some of the EU’s eastern neighbors in recent years has given member states new impetus to adopt measures that deviate from fundamental rights, such as the right to asylum and the prohibition of refoulement.
The lecturer attempted to present and stimulate reflection on several key questions:
- What are the guidelines for protecting the rights of migrants and asylum seekers in Europe under pressure from powerful forces and multiple crises?
- How can we address these multifaceted challenges in a manner consistent with fundamental rights?
- What will the new Pact on Migration and Asylum, set to enter into force in June 2026, bring to this mix?
Dr. habil. Tamás Molnár is a Senior Legal Researcher at the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) in Vienna. His areas of expertise within the FRA include asylum, migration, and borders; homelessness; artificial intelligence and fundamental rights; and horizontal issues of public international law.
