EU Rejects Anti-Migration ‘Save Europe Act’ Despite 600,000 Signatures

BRUSSELS — The European Commission has rejected a citizens’ petition seeking to halt non-Western immigration into Europe and remove “unintegrated” non-European residents, despite the initiative being backed by nearly 600,000 supporters.

On July 22, the European Commission refused to register the “Save Europe Act” as a European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI), arguing that the proposal to halt non-Western immigration and promote remigration is incompatible with the European Union’s fundamental values.

Reacting to the decision, Dutch activist Eva Vlaardingerbroek stated in a video published on YouTube: “The Commission says that it goes against European values to want to keep Europe European and to not want to become a minority in our own homelands … We will not allow the Commission to hide behind such vague principles that they seem to think they have the right to define. We are going to take this to court.”

The European Commission argued that the proposal discriminates “on the basis of race and ethnic origin,” and therefore could not proceed. The commission also said the mechanism of ECIs cannot be used to promote messages that are “manifestly contrary” to the principles established in the EU treaties.

The “Save Europe Act” was organized by a committee including Vlaardingerbroek and the Austrian activist Martin Sellner. Their proposal called for a temporary suspension of non-Western immigration channels, including family reunification and study visas. It also advocated the return not only of illegal migrants but also of legally resident non-European nationals considered “unintegrated” or a serious cultural or financial burden on host countries, to their nation of origin

Following the commission’s decision, campaign organizers announced both legal action and public demonstrations. “The Commission acted against European law by preventing citizens from asking for specific measures,” Sellner told Euronews. He said the campaign’s legal team intends to file a lawsuit challenging the decision.

An admissible ECI must be formally considered by EU institutions once it has collected at least 1 million signatures from citizens across seven or more member states.

Vlaardingerbroek also described the commission’s decision as “an outrageous violation of the democratic rights of the native peoples of Europe,” arguing that Europeans have the right to preserve their demographic continuity and adding that the campaign would continue despite the refusal to register the initiative.

Last week, approximately 200 supporters demonstrated outside the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, calling on the commission to allow the initiative to proceed.

The protest was met by a counter-demonstration organized by several Members of the European Parliament, including Italian Green MEP Cristina Guarda. Guarda defended the commission’s decision, calling the refusal “a righteous act” and describing the petition as “hate propaganda promoted by the far right.”

The “Save Europe Act” is also supported by prominent nationalist leaders such as Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, Spain’s Santiago Abascal, Romania’s George Simion, and Italy’s Roberto Vannacci.