Kashmiri woman Nilam moves to nursing home despite son's invitations after conflicts with daughter-in-law

The European Union (EU) is currently debating the creation of migrant return centers in third countries and is open to intensifying its external borders through physical, technological, and human resources.

This debate is shaped by a complex decade, which includes the 2015 refugee crisis, the use of migratory flows by external countries, the questioning of the Schengen area, the rise of right-wing and far-right forces, and a gradual shift in European policy towards stricter control, accelerated returns, and greater collaboration with countries of origin and transit.

The incident that occurred in Ceuta, with the arrival of tens of thousands of individuals from Morocco, brought this issue back to the main focus. This led Brussels to demand the 'full' implementation of the new migration guidelines and to 'strengthen the common response' through increased surveillance and improved prevention systems.

The European Commissioner for Internal Affairs, Magnus Brunner, argued that 'Europe has never had so much control over irregular migration as it does now.' However, he warned that the images of the humanitarian tragedy, which resulted in at least 141 deaths, according to data from NGOs such as Caminando Fronteras and the Moroccan Association of Human Rights, require learning 'the correct lessons.'

For the executive body, these lessons involve speeding up deportations, strengthening the role of Frontex, and tightening partnerships with third countries, while reinforcing mechanisms to identify disinformation campaigns or coordinated migratory movements.

Carmen González, a researcher at the Elcano Royal Institute, explains that this change cannot be understood without considering the 'interstate conflicts' generated since 2015 by the management of asylum seekers. These conflicts revealed 'deep differences' between member states and have become an 'existential threat' to free movement due to the lack of common rules.

Added to this internal fissure are 'two major shocks' that, according to the researcher, changed how European societies viewed arrivals. She cites that in 2021, Morocco stimulated the entry of thousands of people into Ceuta during a diplomatic crisis with Spain, and Belarus facilitated the arrival of migrants in Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia, in retaliation for European sanctions.

These migratory movements added a layer of security to a debate that previously focused on reception policies. After almost ten years of negotiations, the EU finally approved the Migration and Asylum Pact in 2024, which comes into force this June and establishes, among other things, controls and accelerated procedures at external borders and a solidarity system.

The transformation is also visible in the debate about physical barriers. For many years, Brussels refused to finance walls or fences built by European countries on their external borders with community budget money, despite requests from various governments, although it provided European funds for surveillance, equipment, or complementary infrastructure.

The most notable change occurred in the field of returns. The new European legislation, approved by the European Parliament in June, allows sending people with a final expulsion decision to centers located in third countries, even if they have no ties to them, provided there is an agreement and certain guarantees are met.

The Spanish Green MEP, Mélissa Camara, told Europa Press that 'the legalization of these centers outside the EU makes our return policy more dehumanized than ever. There, people have no name: they are identified by numbers and suicide attempts are regularly reported. They have no idea of the day or time and also do not know when they can leave.'

On the other hand, Javier Zarzalejos, president of the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties and MEP for the European People's Party (EPP), refutes that these devices allow talk of an externalization of European migration policy, considering them merely 'another instrument,' dependent on agreements with states that must respect Union law and fundamental rights.

This legislative evolution occurred parallel to a change in the European political landscape, where immigration began to influence public debate, government alliances, and political programs in an increasing number of member states.

González points to the European elections of June 2024 as another relevant milestone, due to the advance of conservative and far-right forces and the retreat of socialists, liberals, and greens, which resulted in a European Parliament 'much more favorable to prioritizing restrictive policies.'

The researcher emphasizes, however, that this phenomenon does not only affect conservative parties, as in the last decade, historical groups such as the social democrats of Germany, Sweden, or Denmark have also hardened their positions regarding the displacement of some of their voters towards anti-immigration stances.

González explains that 'immigration has ceased to be a relatively marginal issue in the political life of some European states to become a central theme,' framing the community's evolution within a 'steadily more restrictive spirit of the times' that 'extends beyond European borders.'

Camara, however, focuses her criticism on the EPP and part of the Renew liberals, accusing them of having chosen to 'build alternative majorities with the far-right' since the last European elections, to approve migration measures that would hardly have gained support before.

She emphasizes: 'During the negotiations on the Return Regulation, the far-right participated directly in negotiating the commitments. They were seated at the negotiation table and imposed some of their red lines. This would have been unthinkable a few years ago.'

Zarzalejos, for his part, denies that his political family has adopted the far-right agenda and argues that measures such as the new return system seek to respond to problems that 'exist and concern citizens,' in addition to avoiding the perception that governments are 'being overtaken' by migratory flows.

In parallel, the EU faces another paradox: while demanding greater control of its perimeter, countries like France, Germany, or Austria have reintroduced internal controls in a space designed to eliminate barriers between its members, despite the Schengen Borders Code considering them an 'exceptional and temporary measure' in the face of 'serious threats to public order or national security.'

In June, the Commission took an unprecedented formal step by requesting nine countries to 'progressively eliminate and gradually lift' these measures, asking that they be replaced by 'alternatives and mitigating measures,' such as increased police cooperation, non-systematic checks, or new technological tools.

Currently, the Ceuta crisis has once again tested these rules, after Italy decided to impose controls on travelers from Spain, despite Madrid stating that almost all migrants returned to Morocco and Brussels confirming that there were no displacements to the rest of the continent.

A woman whose opinion was once authoritative in the village council, resolving disputes and making agreements between families, is now spending her final days in a nursing home, far from her own family. This elderly resident of the village in Haryana, known as Virmati, served as the village elder for many years, taking on responsibilities in managing the panchayat, resolving residents' conflicts, and listening to their problems.

However, over time, her life changed in a way she may never have imagined. She had to leave her own home and go to a nursing home. When asked why the woman, who once led the village, had to end up in such an institution, she replied that she left the house herself, and the village remains her home; she has not forgotten it.

Nevertheless, she said that her children betrayed her. According to the elderly woman, her children beat her. The first time this happened, she forgave them, believing it was a mistake and that family conflict could be resolved within the family. But after that incident, they started using violence against her again.

The victim claims that this time her children, along with their daughters-in-law, attacked her. After this trauma, she could not cope with the situation. She noted that while she managed the entire village and resolved disputes, she could not even take care of two daughters-in-law in her own home. Eventually, she decided to leave the house. After leaving the residence, she went four days without food or water, and none of her children came to her—neither son nor daughter called.

Speaking about this, pain was evident on her face. She received such treatment from the family she trusted the most, which forced her to leave her home. The woman mentioned that she has brothers and sisters, as well as relatives in the village. Her brother visits her, and her sister also comes. They offer her to go with them and live together, but she refuses.

She believes that her children 'have lost their minds.' She hopes that one day God will hear her words. She cares for the age of her brothers and sisters, noting that they are also aging. She fears that if something happens to them, the responsibility will fall on her children. Furthermore, she is afraid that any disgrace might fall upon her brothers and sisters. Therefore, she decided to spend her remaining life in a nursing home.

She feels it is better to spend her life there because at least they provide services there. When asked about the nursing home, she said that the service there is good. However, she admits that a person has to convince themselves of the necessity of living in such an institution and must think about themselves.

The story of this elderly woman emerged at a time when the death of 74-year-old textile merchant Shivacharan Ramratna Gupta from Mumbai raised questions about the lives of the elderly in nursing homes. Shivacharan Gupta had lived in a nursing home for the last three years. His death occurred on August 4, and his wife passed away in the same ashram about two years ago.

The lack of water, sanitation, and hygiene constitutes a serious challenge in various countries; however, the Sahel region—a semi-arid belt crossing the African continent—is where the highest number of deaths, school dropouts, illnesses, and migrations are concentrated.

Data compiled by UNICEF and the World Health Organization, although not yet released, reveals that approximately 28% of children in Africa do not have access to safe drinking water, according to a specialist and manager of the UN's WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) program.

This specialist warned that there are nearly 200 million African children without access to running water, emphasizing that this number almost doubles when inadequate sanitation is considered. Martina Rama detailed that up to five years of age, the child's immune system is more vulnerable, and the lack of access to water and sanitation causes various diseases, with diarrhea being the most common, alongside respiratory infections, malnutrition, and parasites.

Previous reports, dating back to 2019, already indicated that 264,000 children in this age group died in a single year due to health problems linked to water and sanitation scarcity.

Girls are the most affected group by this situation. Martina Rama explained that they often assume the responsibility of fetching water when taps are unavailable at home or in the yard. This involves walking for one or two hours daily to a well, waiting in line, and then returning home.

This routine hinders the school attendance of many girls, leading to early school abandonment. Even when they manage to continue their education for a few years, they face practical obstacles during adolescence, such as menstrual hygiene, which is directly linked to sanitation, especially in the absence of sanitary facilities at school. The specialist observed that this difficulty, combined with the shame inherent to the age, causes several young women to miss classes once a month, often culminating in complete dropout.

The problem transcends the youngest, presenting enough severity to affect entire communities and generate conflicts between neighbors, which the specialist predicts as one of the most urgent issues in the near future.

In the Sahel region, where drought is severe and water resources are scarce, disputes are emerging between settled communities, farmers, and nomadic pastoralist communities. She admitted that there were historical balances between these two groups, but that this is no longer the case.

When one community has water, for example, through a well, and another tries to use it, the well custodians may deny access, claiming exclusive ownership, which triggers numerous conflicts. These confrontations tend to escalate, and, according to Martina Rama, the only way out is often migration, either to other areas of the continent or to more developed countries.

The responsible party also warned that climate change exacerbates the scenario, as reduced rainfall prevents water sources, such as rivers and lakes, from filling sufficiently to meet needs during dry periods.