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EU: Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe: 16-3-17

16 March 2017

EU  
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe
16.3.17
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Keep in touch: Statewatch Observatory: Refugee crisis in the Med and inside the EU: Daily news (updated through the day), commentaries and official documents

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EU: New measures going through on what is known is as the "Package" on the Common European Asylum System (CEAS):

1. Criteria and mechanisms for determining the Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection lodged in one of the Member States by a third-country national or a stateless person. Recast

2. Eurodac system for the comparison of fingerprints of applicants for international protection and for identifying illegally staying third-country nationals or stateless persons; requests for the comparison with Eurodac data. Recast

3. European Union Agency for Asylum

4. Common procedure for international protection in the Union

5. Qualification of third-country nationals or stateless persons as beneficiaries of international protection, uniform status for refugees or for persons eligible for subsidiary protection and content of the protection granted

6. Reception of applicants for international protection. Recast

7. Union resettlement framework

8. EU common list of safe countries of origin

And see: Reform of the Dublin system (pdf) and Safe countries of origin: Proposed common EU list (pdf). Note: As yet there is no new proposal on long-term "solidarity" concerning the relocation of refugees within the EU.

North Shore Lesvos Night Watch (link)

"We are badly in need of thermal imaging equipment for our volunteers to be able to spot boats at night.Kara is kindly organizing a fund raiser for us, please help us if you can. We can only continues to do this with your assistance, thank you.."

We do watch on the North Shore of Lesvos. As most boats make this crossing in the dark we need to be able to spot the refugee boats before they crash into the rocks and prevent any tradgedy. Please help us purchase these..."

Are You Syrious (15.3.17, link)

Feature: Will there be Dublin returns to Greece?

"On December 8 2016, the EC officially recommended that, starting on March 15, the European countries (EU, Norway & Switzerland) should be able to send asylum seekers who traveled through Greece back to Greece. Some governments (Germany, Austria and Belgium) have said that they plan to implement this and it’s very likely that other countries will follow. However, they did mention gradual returns, applying the decision primarily to the ones who arrive after this date and not including unaccompanied minors or others that are considered vulnerable at that point. In general, it is unclear how and if these recommended returns will be put into practice and how (not to mention - why)....."

Greece: Arrivals

"41 people were officialy registered on Samos this Wednesday morning."

Rome: “Not in my name”

"Other protests are also held across Italy. Protesting against possible legislation that would lead to multiplied deportation centres, that are in fact detention facilities, people also gathered in front of the seat of the Italian Chamber of Deputies in Rome, the Montecitorio."

HUNGARY: Asylum Information on Hungary - March 2017: Detention of all aslyum-seekers (pdf):

"Please consider the following changes carefully, when planning to enter Hungary: The asylum law in Hungary will change in March 2017. All asylum seekers entering Hungary legally through the Transit Zone will be detained in a container camp at the Hungarian border with Serbia. This includes families, unaccompanied minors above the age of 14, single women and men. Unaccompanied children under the age of 14 will be brought to an open facility in a different part of the country. Detention will
last for the whole duration of the asylum procedure. In practice, the asylum procedure in Hungary lasts 4 to 9 months. There will be no legal way to oppose detention and there will be no option for bail out (bail out = paying money to go out)."

Turkey again threatens to cancel migration deal (News That Moves, link):

"From Reuters: Turkey is again threatening to cancel the EU-Turkey migration deal. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said his government is reconsidering the six billion dollar agreement with the EU.

A year ago, on March 18, Turkey had agreed to stop migrants from crossing into Greece in exchange for financial aid and accelerated visa-free EU travel for Turkish citizens.

“We may cancel the readmission agreement. The EU has been wasting our time on the visa liberalisation issue,” Cavusoglu said, adding that, “We are not applying the readmission agreement at the moment, and we are evaluating the refugee deal.”"

From Syria to Bulgaria, part I: Escaping death (euractiv, link):

"Some years ago, an ambitious Kurd from a village in northern Syria won a scholarship to study abroad. He ended up in Havana, where he learned Spanish. Elias later returned to Syria, where he became a journalist at the state news agency, SANA. EURACTIV Romania reports."

and: From Syria to Bulgaria, part II: ‘Now, I am a teacher in Sofia’ (euractiv, link)

Thursday, March 16, 2017, 00:01 by Dimitris Avramopoulos and Carmelo Abela Solid EU migration, asylum policy (Times of Malta, link)

Frontex: Arrival of migrants in February: surge in Italy, drop in Greece (link)

Hungary: Court awards €20,000 to asylum seekers after human rights law breaches (link):

"Human rights judges say the detention of two Bangladeshi migrants in the border zone between Hungary and Serbia was unlawful.

The Strasbourg also ruled yesterday that the removal of the asylum seekers from Hungary to Serbia exposed them to the risk of inhuman and degrading reception conditions in Greece. "

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