Page 9 - Aruba Today
P. 9
WORLD NEWS 9
Wednesday 17 February
EU businesses, workers brace for return of border controls
GEORGE JAHN panded commerce over southern Sweden and the rica. previously an unthinkable
Associated Press much of a continent that Danish capital Copenha- That could open the gates concept because of its
SOPRON, Hungary (AP) — had before been a patch- gen have in effect fused, to broader border restric- connotation of separation
The Hungarian city of So- work of borders against reflecting how the EU has tions. EU Council President between two regions many
pron, population 50,000, hostile neighbors, competi- turned from a community Donald Tusk has described Austrians still view as one.
the outcome of the debate Even if full disintegration of
as “decisive ... for the future border-free travel among
of the EU” and EU Commis- the 26 Schengen members
sion President Jean-Claude does not seem imminent,
Juncker has warned of a some governments already
collapse of the Schengen are bracing for the possibil-
zone’s domestic market. ity. Under such a scenario,
Meanwhile, new check- a French government study
points are already going sees an 8-percent reduc-
up. tion in economic activity
Austria on Tuesday an- in the zone over the next
nounced controls on its decade amounting to 110
boundary in Tyrol province billion euros— nearly $124
to Italy’s South Tyrol region billion Alexander Klacska,
in anticipation that refu- whose Austrian company
gees will use that as a new runs more than 500 tanker
route as restrictions else- trucks across Europe, cites a
where increase. study based on three hours
Officials spoke of setting up of waiting time for trucks a
“construction measures,” day on Austria’s borders to
bureaucratese for fences, and from its seven neigh-
at the new control points — bors. q
Timea Meszaros AVIA gas station attendant speaks about the European Schengen zone of bor-
der-free travel during an interview with The Associated Press near the Hungarian border in Sieg-
endorf, Austria.
(AP Photo/Ronald Zak)
boasts an abundance of tive business and compet- of nations separated by
beauty shops and 200 den- ing ideological blocs. borders to one of regions.
tists — one for every 250 With locals’ vineyards situ- But in the wake of the refu-
residents. Most businesses ated both in Germany and gee crisis, the whole idea of
don’t target the locals, France just a few minutes’ open EU borders has been
though; they’re looking walk away, residents of his called into question.
at the Austrians streaming “little town of wine-makers” Each country in the zone
across the nearby border are more conscious than is allowed to unilaterally
to shop for bargains. most of the agreement’s put up border controls for
Such cross-border traffic advantages, says Homan. a maximum of six months.
could soon suffer, as the Since the signing, thou- France did so after the
European Union consid- sands of businesses big Nov. 13 terror attack, and
ers re-introducing border and small have flourished following the influx of more
controls for up to two years on the guarantee of free than 1 million migrants into
between some of the 26 travel. EUstatistics show Europe last year, Germany,
nations in the Schengen people making 1.3 billion Austria, Denmark, Sweden
passport-free area to deal crossings over the union’s and Norway have done
with the migrant crisis. internal borders each year, the same. Now, policymak-
In Luxembourg, a thousand while 57 million trucks trans- ers are poised to invoke an
kilometers (600 miles) to port goods worth hundreds emergency provision that
the west, Schengen Mayor of billions over those same allows for an extension of
Ben Homan also has rea- boundaries annually. The such controls for up to two
son to hope the free-bor- free passage has also al- years, citing Greek prob-
der agreement will remain lowed some 1.7 million lems in properly protecting
in place. Its signing there people to live in one coun- the bloc’s external borders
in 1985 heralded a new try and commute to work in from the flow of migrants
era of passport-free travel, another. fleeing war and poverty in
speedy transport and ex- Cities such as Malmo in the Middle East, Asia or Af-
