The second lesson is the importance of political will. In the face of the current crisis, the EU has splintered on East-West lines when it comes to asylum policies.
On the one hand, there are countries that have suspended the Dublin rule, which places responsibility for processing an asylum seeker’s claims on the first EU country they arrive at. On the other hand, there are countries which insist on enacting the regulation.
In this matter, ASEAN needs to recognise that no matter how good and effective harmonisation of asylum policies are, nothing is fully guaranteed if it is not supported with political will and strong commitment by regional members.