Family Reunification as the Most Common form of Immigration in the Member States of the EU

Gonca Gülfem BOZDAĞ

Since family life is the fundamental unit of the society, it should be treated with great respect and care. Even though the concept of is based on relations under private law, the protective interference of states should be required owing to its importance given. As a result of the international relations that became highly intense, the progress of free movement of persons and related issues such as immigration and asylum bring out the subject required to be dealt with. In this respect, several arrangements made by the competent authorities of the EU, in particular, to avoid the negative effects of immigration. The main point that should be taken into consideration is the balance between the protection of the Member States against mass influx or over population and the foundation of the free movement of people. The limitations to avoid the negative effects of immigration shall be arranged with a fair approach in line with fundamental human rights.

Family Reunification, The Treaty of Amsterdam, The Council Directive 2003/86/Ec.

Aile hayatı toplumun temel yapıtaşı olduğundan, saygıyla ve itinayla ele alınmalıdır. kavramı özel hukuk ilişkisine dayanmasına rağmen, taşıdığı önem nedeniyle Devletin koruyucu müdahalesini gerektiren bir alan olarak yerini korumuştur. Uluslararası ilişkilerin zaman içinde artması sonucu, kişilerin serbest dolaşımı ve bununla bağlantılı olarak göç ve iltica hususları, çözümlenmesi gereken konusunun ortaya çıkarmasına neden olmuştur. Bu çerçevede, AB’nin yetkili kurumları, özelikle göçün negatif etkilerini ortadan kaldırmak için düzenlemeler yaptılar. Burada dikkate alınması gereken en önemli husus; ülkelerin, kitlesel sığınmadan ve aşırı nüfustan korunması ile kişilerin serbest dolaşımının kurulması arasında dengenin sağlanmasıdır. Göçün olumsuz etkilerinden kaçınmak için yapılan sınırlandırmalar, temel insan hakları ile uyumlu adil bir yaklaşım içinde olmalıdır.

Aile Birliğinin Yeniden Kurulması, Amsterdam Antlaşması, 2003/86/Ec sayılı Konsey Direktifi.

I. INTRODUCTION

Family life, the corner stone of a community, should be treated with respect and care, since the foundation of a stable and healthy society has been achieved through the unification of healthy families. Crucially, the protection of family life has become an essential issue throughout the development of human rights worldwide. This strong link has influenced not only the family life of EU citizens but also the life of third country nationals owing to the progress of free movement of persons and related issues such as immigration and asylum.

In Article 8 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights, it is stated that "Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence". One of the main aims of this Article is to protect individuals against arbitrary interference by public authorities. Also under this provision, national authorities have to provide arrangements for supporting family life.¹ In this context, several arrangements have been provided by authorities of the EU for the improvement of family life including avoiding the negative effects of immigration.

In this study, the policy regarding free movement of persons provided by the Treaty of Amsterdam (ToA) will be explained and then I will attempt to analyze family reunification, an important issue introduced through the development of the free movement of persons, particularly after the arrangements of the ToA, under the scope of the Council Directive 2003/86/Ec. Finally, I will endeavor to suggest some solutions for preventing double standards between individuals sharing life in the community.