Border control and search and rescue (SAR) obligations in the Mediterranean: between human rights and security
21 April 2026. From 18:30 | Conference | English | IEMed
Irregular migration has been securitised in the context of preventing irregular entries of third-country nationals to the European Union (EU) Area of Freedom, Security and Justice. In the maritime sphere, preventing irregular migration from arriving in the EU must ensure respect for the right to life enshrined in a number of international instruments applicable to the EU and to its member states. This speech will examine the tension between preventing irregular migration and ensuring the human rights of migrants in two areas: first, rescues in Frontex-led operations at sea; and second, search and rescue operations within the framework of the EU’s integrated border management activities in the Mediterranean. Finally, we will include some final reflections on the measures that could be taken in order to address human insecurity and the weakening of human rights at the European sea borders.
A lecture by Silvia Morgades, Associate Professor Serra Húnter in International Public Law and International Relations in the Department of Law at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona. She also collaborates as lecturer at the Centre for International Studies CEI-International Affairs. She has conducted postdoctoral research at Université Paris 1-Sorbonne and IHEID Geneva and, since 2019, she has been a Research Affiliate at the Refugee Law Initiative, University of London.
In her research, she explores the international and European legal system of international protection, the legal framework of international migrations, the European Union Law, the protection of victims in International Humanitarian Law and European human rights law.
Among her publications, Els drets humans com a motor de l’evolució del règim internacional de protecció dels refugiats (2008, Generalitat de Catalunya) and the collective work ¿Una Unión Europea en crisis? Reflexiones para un debate urgente (2019, La Catarata). She is the author of several works published in scientific journals and collective works in the field of Public International Law and European Union Law. Her work has been published in journals such as Revista de Derecho Comunitario Europeo; Revue Générale de Droit International Public; International Journal of Refugee Law; and European Journal of Migration and Law.
A session within the framework of the Aula Mediterrània lecture series. Co-organised with the Master’s Degree in Governance – Migration Studies Track, GRITIM-UPF.
Speakers
Silvia Morgades
Associate Professor Serra Húnter in International Public Law and International Relations Universitat Pompeu Fabra
Mahmoud Mansour
Phd Student, GRITIM-UPFOrganised by
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