April
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Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (29.4.16)EU: After the 18 March EU-Turkey "Statement", the "Letter" of assurances from Turkey, yet another set of "letters": What is the legal basis of "non-binding" documents?
Council of the European Union: Standard Operating Procedures implementing the mechanism for resettlement from Turkey to the EU as set out in the EU-Turkey Statement of 18 March 2016 - Endorsement (LIMITE doc no: 8366-16, pdf)
"Once endorsed by the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States and Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein meeting in the margins of COREPER, the Standard Operating Procedures will be formalised by way of an exchange of letters between the Commission and the Turkish authorities."
The following are excluded or NOT eligible:
"The person does not constitute a threat to public policy, internal security and public health;
A candidate who has refused admission to a particular Member State is no longer eligible;
Priority will be given to eligible persons who have not previously entered or tried to enter the EU irregularly"
"Germany's interior minister on Friday put the onus on Italy to halt a new mass influx of migrants to northern Europe, lending backing to Austria in a row with Rome.
"We share Austria's position that there should not be a repeat of what happened along the Balkan route last autumn on the road from the Italian border northwards," said Thomas de Maiziere after a meeting with his Austrian counterpart Wolfgang Sobotka.
"We have said we want to reduce the numbers of refugees sustainably, above all at the external borders, and a policy of simply waving people through would only spur more from outside the EU to come to Europe," said the German interior minister..."
"The Observatory has been informed by reliable sources about the ongoing crackdown on civil society actors providing humanitarian assistance to migrants and asylum seekers arriving in the Greek islands, even including judicial harassment against several groups and NGOs acting to protect migrants' rights, of Team Humanity Denmark....
on February 21, 2016 a last minute amendment was made to a Law voted by the Greek Parliament, in violation of several provisions of the Parliament’s Rules of Procedures. The new provision assigns the supervision and coordination of services provided to migrants and asylum seekers to the Greek Army and Minister of Defence, in newly established army-run facilities. This provision has led to a coordinated effort to stop civil society activities in camps that are not run by the army, through extensive threats of arrest and prosecution]. Moreover, several journalists and NGOs, including the Hellenic Action for Human Rights “Pleiades”’, are often not allowed access to army-run facilities....
The Observatory strongly condemns this crackdown on civil society actors in Greece, calls on the Greek authorities to put an end to the ongoing attempts to criminalise NGOs and volunteers working in the country in the field of humanitarian assistance to migrants and asylum-seekers or otherwise prevent them from carrying out their work and urges them to lift the ban on civil society activists and journalists to enter army-run camps."
See also: Council proposals on migrant smuggling would criminalise humanitarian assistance by civil society, local people and volunteers - Greece: NGOs and volunteers have to "register" with the police and be vetted (Statewatch) and NGOs and volunteers helping refugees in Greece to be placed under state control (Statewatch)
"In the European Parliament, questions were asked about the legal nature of the EU-Turkey Statement of 18 March, pursuant to which Greece has started to return asylum seekers to Turkey this week. Apparently, the EU’s procedure for negotiating and concluding treaties with third countries, laid down in in Art. 218 TFEU, has not been followed. The European Parliament wants to know whether the Council nonetheless considers the Statement to be a treaty, and, if not, whether Turkey has been informed about the non-binding nature. Importantly, for treaties “covering fields to which the ordinary legislative procedure applies” (asylum and immigration is such a field), the Council may only conclude a treaty with a third country after obtaining consent of the European Parliament (Art. 218(6)(a)(v) TFEU)......
That the institutional role of the EP has been neglected confirms the worrying trend that intergovernmental decision-making is taking over in the Union, and that national interests increasingly often prevail over the common values of the Union. This is bad for European democracy."
53,717 refugees and migrants in Greece today
"After a few quiet days, late this afternoon, 23 new arrivals from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan (11 adults and 12 kids) were registered by volunteers at #Samos. At the same time, 41 persons arrived in Lesvos....
380 unaccompanied minors to be sent to a separate camp at Lesvos.
At Moria, according to Deputy Migration Minister Yannis Mouzalas, there are 380 unaccompanied minors who will be transferred to a separate camp. The Greek government decided to move all unaccompanied underage kids to a separate camp on the island under the supervision of NGOs Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children and METAdrasi....
Solidarity is our weapon!
Around 200 refugees found a new home at the largest self-organized hospitality center in Greece, #CityPlaza, a old hotel in downtown Athens. The Facebook page they established details how the City Plaza was a hotel in downtown Athens which was abandoned by its management more than 6 years ago...
People deported to Croatia from other EU countries
Today we received information from different sources about deportations of refugees from different EU countries (as of now we know of Slovenia, Austria, Sweden, Switzerland) to Croatia. Apparently, they are sent back on the grounds of so called Dublin transfers?—?deportations in the first safe EU country of entry. Currently there are at least 20–30 persons in Croatia who were sent back in this way....
Fingerprinting of refugees to begin on rescue boats
The Italian government announced that refugees and migrants will be fingerprinted as soon as they are picked up by rescue boats. It was announced that this approach could help to reduce mounting tensions between Italy and its EU partners over the large numbers of migrants who arrive in Italy but are not registered here and then travel on to northern Europe. If they are not registered in Italy, neighboring countries like Austria and France and popular destination states like Germany and Sweden do not have the option of sending them back to Italy, which they should be able to do under the EU’s Dublin convention rules governing asylum claims....
230 people charged with a crime for helping refugees
According to a media report, the public prosecutor’s office charged 230 people for helping other people transit through the country “illegally” during the biggest wave of refugees last fall. Danish trafficking laws don’t distinguish between smuggling people for financial gain and doing it for humanitarian reasons. Some of them, as we reported earlier, are distinguished human rights activists, but many are just ordinary people who were helping other people in need."
"In Greece, Alternate Migration Minister Yannis Mouzalas has agreed to the permanent presence of lawyers in two accommodation centers (Elaionas in Athens, and Moria on Lesvos island), following a meeting with the head of the Athens Bar Association.
The Ministry said the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE) has also expressed an interest in offering legal aid to refugees in Moria." [emphasis added]
Comment: Does not the Ministry know that under the Asylum Procedures Directive refugees have the right to legal aid? Why is it not ensuring that it is available to all?
“Nostalgia” for a pro-Nazi past, spurning of ethnic minorities and pressure on the press: Croatian activists say an alarming climate of intolerance is taking hold under a new conservative government.
Since the ruling coalition took power in the European Union country in January, critics say authorities have turned a blind eye – and even contributed to – concerns over a far-right right surge.
Last week, in response, angry Jewish, ethnic Serb and anti-fascist groups refused to attend a ceremony remembering tens of thousands who died at Jasenovac, the most notorious concentration camp under Croatia’s pro-Nazi Ustasha regime during World War II.
The boycott was a “brave and correct decision in the face of the wave of neo-fascist Ustasha nostalgia which is sweeping Croatia”, said Efraim Zuroff at the Simon Wiesenthal Center, an international Jewish rights organisation".
"Europe is witnessing a dangerous revival of fascist and racist populist parties and organisations. Over the next few weeks we are going to publish a series of articles analysing the scale of this threat.
We will focus on the countries where fascist and racist parties have made significant electoral and/or organisational breakthroughs. There are small fascist groups operating in several other countries, but with very small numbers and little impact. We intend to look separately at the situation in Russia at a later date and have not included it here."
Italy: Border plans 'an enormous mistake' (The Local, at, link): "Italy told Austria Thursday it would prove Vienna was "wasting money" on anti-migrant measures and closing the border between the two countries would be "an enormous mistake"."
Migrants cling to trucks in bid to reach Sweden (The Local, dk, link): "Growing numbers of asylum seekers are trying to get to Sweden from Denmark by clinging to trucks, a ferry company has warned."
Mimica: Emergency Trust Fund for Africa ‘might not be a game-changer’ (euractiv, link): "In a wide-ranging interview, Commissioner Neven Mimica tells EurActiv.com’s Matthew Tempest about the executive’s master plan for legal migration, as well as the limits of development aid to African states in the rough."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (28.4.16)
"To paraphrase an old saying information is security. We will respond to the terrorist threat effectively when we make our information systems interconnected, interoperable, and searchable..."
The Commissioner argues for a "Single Search Interface" where: "all data is searchable with just one click" - this requires major changes to laws on the book where acess is limited or prescribed. And see: Statewatch Analysis: Commission proposals on migration and internal security databases: a new list of old “needs” (pdf)
"Both the EU and Turkey need each other, as equal partners. This is a balanced partnership, one where we aim for each side to deliver on its commitments, but without renouncing our principles or conditions."
Many would argue that the EU wanted a deal at any price - even if it means tearing up all human rights and asylum law adopted since 1945.
"We must remember an element of political context: while we are working on these issues, we are witnessing the worrying rise in left and right wing violent extremism."
In context "right wing violent extremism" is carried out by extreme nationalists, racists and fascists. While what is characterised as "left wing violent extremism" is anti-racist and anti-fascist responses to the former - which is a piece of perverse logic.
UNHCR reports (27.4.16):
"In a letter to the European Commission sent on Tuesday, 26 April, the Turkish government pledged to bolster legal protection to non-Syrians upon return to Turkey as part of the EU-Turkey Agreement. This follows previous assurances concerning Syrians and the fact that all returned Syrians could be granted or re-avail themselves from temporary protection. These pledges aim to support the implementation of the EU-Turkey agreement by addressing the remaining legal concerns hampering its full implementation." [emphasis added]
Tony Bunyan, Statewatch Director, comments:
"If this "letter" addressees legal concerns about the EU-Turkey "dodgy deal" why has it not been published? Does it commit Turkey to fully signing up to the Geneva Convention? If not it is worthless.
First we had the EU-Turkey deal in a "Statement" (18 March) and now an unpublished "letter" - neither of which are legally binding. In their desperate haste to shut the borders the EU is neglecting the basic tenets of lawful decision-making"
""I am concerned that European countries are now adopting increasingly restrictive immigration and refugee policies," Ban said in a speech to the Austrian parliament.
"Such policies negatively affect the obligation of member states under international humanitarian law and European law."
His comments came a day after the Austrian parliament adopted one of Europe's toughest asylum laws, as the country's political leaders struggle to halt the surging far-right which is leading in presidential polls."
By August 2016, the European institutions aim to replace Frontex by a new coast guards and border-guards agency which will further jeopardise the rights of migrants and refugees. This new mandate reinforces the serious concerns expressed by the FRONTEXIT campaign since its establishment: deter, control and keep away men, women and children deemed undesirable while they are exerting their right to leave any country and the right to seek asylum."
"The agreement to return migrants and asylum seekers from Greece to Turkey, which Turkey and EU countries agreed on 18 March, sparked strong criticism from GUE/NGL MEPs during a European Parliament debate this morning, which focused on its legal aspects, implementation and democratic control.
Spanish GUE/NGL MEP, Marina Albiol, said: "The EU-Turkey agreement, which involves thousands of people remaining in Turkey, is inhuman and cruel. This agreement undermines EU standards regarding the return of refugees in the EU to their countries of origin. It undermines our legislation on refugees, the Geneva Convention, the European Charter of Human Rights and a long list of other laws and agreements."
MEP Albiol mentioned Article 263 of the TFEU which gives the Parliament the possibility to introduce an appeal to the European Court of Justice if EU legislation is not being complied with by the Council. "If we don't do this in this case, then the European Parliament will be an accomplice to the crimes being committed by our governments."
"MEPs and diplomats say that if Turkey fails to meet all of the required criteria — which include guarantees to protect civil liberties — they will exercise their legislative power to deny visa liberalization. For its part, Turkey has already said that lifting the restrictions before June is a non-negotiable part of its controversial agreement to stem the flow of refugees into the EU.
Unless somebody backs down, that means the EU’s whole deal with Ankara — pushed by Angela Merkel, hashed out in difficult negotiations with the European Commission and other EU leaders, and now vigorously defended by Council President Donald Tusk — could unravel altogether.
“The feeling of lack of trust on the visa [liberalization] and on the camps [for refugees] is widespread, no one believes in it but we cannot say it openly because there is no alternative” — An EU diplomat
A key deadline hits next Wednesday, when the Commission will issue its next report on Turkey’s progress in meeting the criteria. MEPs say they worry the Commission will try to gloss over shortcomings in that progress in order to keep Ankara happy. They promise they will insist on holding everyone to the EU rules."
"According to media, the Director of the Greek Asylum Service announced that people are now able to lodge asylum claims directly at temporary accommodation centres following difficulties in obtaining an appointment via Skype. As of 25 April, authorities will examine 50 applications per day on the islands. So far (as of 20 April), the Asylum Service registered 3,870 applications for relocation, of which 1,570 were accepted by EU Member States.
In Turkey, during the period between 22 to26 April, sources reported that some 270 people were apprehended, intercepted, or rescued at Turkey’s land and sea borders. Their countries of origin include Afghanistan, Iran, Myanmar, Pakistan, Palestine and Syria."
"Austria has passed one of Europe's toughest asylum laws, designed to stop inflows of people seeking international protection. Lawmakers passed the new bill on Wednesday (27 April) amid broader fears over migration that have helped the far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) to surge in popularity, with its main candidate taking a surprise lead in presidential elections.
The law allows the federal government to declare a "state of emergency" and refuse entry to migrants if numbers suddenly rise.
The new measures will give border police the power to turn back asylum seekers including Syrians, denying them the right to have their cases heard.
Those who can convince the police that their lives are in danger or that they risk degrading treatment in a neighbouring country will be allowed to apply for asylum." [emphasis added]
Migrant crisis: Austria passes controversial new asylum law (BBC News, link) and see: MEPs urge Juncker to stand against Austria border fence (euractiv, link): "Leading MEPs have urged European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to take a position against Austria’s plans to erect a fence at its border with Italy, at the Brenner pass."
Also: Austria: Drastic, Unjustified Measures against Asylum Seekers (HRW, link): "The key feature of the package of special measures is a fast-track admissibility procedure for asylum seekers at Austrian land borders. Austrian police officers will examine applications solely for the purposes of determining whether individuals can be returned to the neighboring country from which they came. Only people who argue successfully that their lives would be in danger or that they face a real risk of torture or inhuman or degrading treatment in a neighboring country, or who have a nuclear family member already in Austria, will be allowed to formally apply for asylum. Appeals against returns will only be possible after the return has taken place. The law increases the amount of time people can be detained pending return from five to 14 days."
"A highly contested EU deal with Turkey may not be ideal, but it is the only solution to stem the migration crisis, the bloc's Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Christos Stylianides said Thursday.
The deal in which Turkey agrees to take back certain migrants fleeing to Greece in exchange for visa-free travel in the EU has angered member countries and rights activists. The accord is awash with legal and moral concerns, and critics have accused the EU of sacrificing its values and overlooking Turkey's growing crackdown on free speech in order to secure the deal."
New legislation makes it more difficult to seek asylum in Austria, gives the government the right to declare a state of emergency in response to refugee influx
The German website dw.com reported that the Austrian parliament passed legislation which makes it significantly harder for refugees to seek asylum in Austria. It allows the government to declare a state of emergency if the influx of migrants to the country “threatens national security,” and allows asylum seekers to be rejected directly at the border. This would include refugees from war-torn countries such as Syria.
Amnesty International condemns the new legislation, calling it a violation of international law, while Human Rights Watch calls it a “blow to the rights of asylum seekers”. Judith Sunderland, acting deputy Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch, says “these measures constitute a legal wall to asylum just as despicable as a razor-wire fence”, adding Austria should not take “unilateral decisions to pass asylum seekers around like hot potatoes.”...
"79 new arrivals to Greece today.
Refugees are continuing to arrive to Greece, and more are making their way into other countries on the Balkan route, as well as some EU countries. According to the UNHCR data, yesterday 62 people were registered on the Greek islands, 17 on mainland Greece. At the same time, 73 people were registered in Serbia, 127 in Hungary, and 230 in Austria...
Greek authorities are struggling to find accommodations for unaccompanied minors.
Ekathimerini.com reports that 380 unaccompanied minors remain without housing due to staff shortages. According to the law, it is illegal for a minor to be housed in hotspots, but this continues to happen. The National Center of Social Solidarity is working to accommodate 200 minors by the end of May....
17 people injured during the clashes at Moria camp as people remain detained and in fear of deportation to Turkey.
According to the Greece media, 17 people have been injured during the clashes yesterday at #Moria camp. The atmosphere is still tense. One of the volunteers reported:
“I arrived after almost all people were in tents, but I witness one unnecessary shot of teargas. Police closed the area around for hours, many ambulances comes from #Mytilene collect injured refugees. #MSF doctors waiting outside if needed. Bad situation for few refugees from Cameron, Kongo seeking asylum, they stays over 1 month without access to any official information, asylum process not starting.”
Around 4000 refugees are being kept in a closed center in Moria, waiting for their decision for asylum. Many of them are afraid of being sent back to Turkey...
Refugees have launched a petition to replace the inefficient Skype system used by the Asylum Office.
People at Idomeni are petitioning for the replacement of the “failed system of only being able to make asylum appointments to the Greek Asylum Office with a Skype call that is never picked up with a face-to-face service in the refugee camps here in Greece”. Refugees in Greece have only three options to continue their lives beyond camps: to apply for asylum in Greece, to apply for family reunification or for relocation to another country in the EU if they want us. You can sign the petition here..
"High court orders Theresa May to reconsider refusal to allow six families entry into Britain.
More than 30 refugees who have been stranded in UK sovereign military bases in Cyprus since 1998 have been given fresh hope of finding a permanent home in Britain. The high court in London has ordered the home secretary, Theresa May, to reconsider her refusal to allow the six families entry on grounds she did not consider all the relevant circumstances."
EU Commissioner Avramopoulos inaugurates EU Regional Task Force's new building in Catania (ANAmpa, link): "Avramopoulos underlined. "With the inauguration of the new building of the EU Regional Task Force, we have taken another important step in consolidating our hotspot approach here in Italy," he added."
Czech Republic: Government condemns hate-related attacks on Prague cafes and shops (Prague Minotor, link): "The Czech cabinet condemned the authors of threatening inscriptions and Nazi symbols, which appeared at several places in Prague this weekend, at its meeting yesterday. It seems that the extremist graffiti was scrawled on cafes and shops participating in the HateFree Zone project that promotes tolerance to minorities and refugees and is supported by the Government Office."
EC concerned about Brenner Pass situation, Juncker to meet Renzi (ANSA, link): " The European Commission said Thursday that it was worried by Austria's plans to introduce controls at its border with Italy at the Brenner Pass. "The European Commission follows all the developments in Europe that go against the schedule to return (to the normal functioning of the Schengen agreement), in this case with serious concern," said EC spokesperson Mina Andreeva, adding that EC President Jean-Claude Juncker will meet Italian Premier Matteo Renzi in Rome next Thursday"
Ital;y-Austria: Tense talks as Italy fumes over Austria migrant 'slap' (The Local.at, link): ".Italy and Austria were set for showdown talks Thursday as Italian politicians and media reacted furiously to Vienna's new anti-migrant measures that could close the border between the two countries."
Refugees: Attacks on refugee homes as high as ever, German Criminal Police Office says (DW, link): "Despite decreasing numbers of refugees in Germany, the number of crimes on refugee accommodation shows no sign of waning. One of the German Criminal Police Office's (BKA) main fears is an attack by a lone wolf."
Justice: 'Oldschool Society' neo-Nazis go on trial for refugee home attacks (DW, link): "Four Germans have gone on trial on suspicion of planning to detonate nail bombs at a home for asylum seekers. The three men and one woman allegedly formed a far-right terror group, known as as the "Oldschool Society.""
Greece: Authorities scramble to find housing for child refugees (ekathimerini.com, link): "Some 380 unaccompanied minors remain in closed hot spots, detention centers and even on the streets, as a program to house them in rented apartments has yet to materialize due to staff shortages and despite increased funding by the European Union, authorities said on Wednesday."
Border checks between Italy and Austria 'inevitable', Hofer (ANSA, link): " Border checks at the Brenner Pass are inevitable, the head of Austria's far-right, anti-immigrant Freedom Party (FPO) Norbert Hofer has said. The FPO, which is pushing for tighter border control, won the first round of the country's presidential elections on Sunday."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (27.4.16)
"NATO is planning a naval blockade of the Libyan coat this summer to close off the central Mediterranean migration route, as the numbers of migrants using the route, which features Malta as a central point, are expected to surge.
The military alliance is reportedly just three months away from launching the mission, according to Italian Defence Minister Roberta Pinotti, who revealed the plans as the leaders of the US, Britain, France, Germany and Italy met in Hanover, Germany yesterday..
The plan will also incorporate parts of a broader Italian strategy to repatriate migrants found to have no claim for asylum, in other words, purely economic migrants, back to their home countries.... The repatriation plans have been heavily criticised by human rights groups and even Pope Francis, since they make an arbitrary distinction between genuine asylum seekers and economic migrants."
and see:Italy says NATO three months from Libya coast mission (France 24, link):
"NATO is already operating a naval force in the Aegean Sea to stop migrant boats reaching the Greek islands from Turkey.But an operation off Libya would be more complicated and potentially dangerous given the country's instability and the presence in some coastal regions of militants allied to the Islamic State group. Turning migrant boats back to Libya would also be hugely controversial given the unstable situation there."
"Caritas Europa seeks to contribute to appropriate humanitarian responses by providing evidence about the situations of migrants and asylum seekers, supported by
insight from Caritas’ staff and volunteers helping the people in need. It provides an in-depth analysis of the impact that current EU asylum and migration policies
are having on migrants in Europe....Appropriate responses can only derive from recognising that migrants and asylum seekers are not a “flow” nor an “invasion”, but are women, men, and children,
whose human rights and needs are being jeopardised.""The border crossing where hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees entered Turkey in the first years of the war is almost deserted. It’s been closed for a year, and any Syrian hoping to be smuggled to safety in the neighboring country risks being shot.
Just across the frontier, in Syria, the situation is infinitely worse. Some 45,000 civilians were displaced by recent fighting between moderate rebels and ISIL in mid-April, and 20,000 are sleeping out in the open, aid workers say. “People are sitting on blankets, sleeping under the trees,” Ali al-Sheikh, a Syrian humanitarian volunteer, said at the Kilis border crossing Saturday. “They are short of drinking water. There are very few tents. There is sewage all around.”
This is the scene that German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Council President Donald Tusk didn’t see when they visited a model refugee camp 50 kilometers from the border last weekend."
"Important information for refugees in Greece and volunteers to inform them:
The new asylum procedure is to have an interview about the admissibility of their claim for asylum in Greece first, before the substantive interview. Most people having their asylum claims rejected now are being rejected on inadmissibility by the government claiming that Turkey is a Safe Third Country for them.
Three of the absolutely key legal criteria for a Safe Third Country are-
1) that there is no risk of refoulement (forcible repatriation to their country of origin or any country or area where they have a well-founded fear of return to) and
2) that they have fully legal access to have their substantive claims for asylum examined in that third country, and
3) that they can get recognition of Refugee Status and effective protection in accordance with the Geneva Refugee Convention 1951 in that third country.
The Turkish governor of Izmir has explicitly said that non-Syrians will be detained for immediate deportation if returned from Greece, i.e. no access to asylum procedures and no chance to have their substantive claim examined or to receive effective protection.and this is in fact what has happened to all non-Syrian returnees so far."
Demonstrators face pepper spray over Brenner pass (The Local.at, link):
"Hundreds of Italian demonstrators on Sunday faced off with similar numbers of Austrian police at the border between the two countries in the latest sign of tensions arising from Europe's migrant crisis....
The demonstration had been called to protest over Austria's preparations for a possible restoration of border controls at the Brenner pass in the Alps because of fears of a potential surge of migrant arrivals in Italy. Wielding inflatable dinghies and brandishing a "People Over Borders" banner and "Refugees Welcome" placards, the protestors marched across the border and pushed up against a police line designed to prevent them blocking the road on the Austrian side."
Brenner closure would 'seriously damage' EU, Delrio says (ANSA, link):
"The closure of the Brenner Pass on the Italy-Austria border would cause "very serious damage" to the European Union, Italian Transport and Infrastructure Minister Graziano Delrio said on Tuesday.
"The closure of the Brenner Pass would cause very serious damage to the economy and transport, but also to the European Union because the Brenner Pass is the symbol of European integration," Delrio said. Austria has begun building a barrier along its side of the Brenner Pass at the border with Italy, which it says is letting too many asylum seekers through".
Austria Re-introduces Checks on Border with Hungary (novinite.com, link):
"Austria has re-introduced checks on its border with Hungary to curb the flow of irregular migrants, AP reported on Monday.
Austrian police have said that the number of attempts to smuggle illegal migrants into the country has increased since the Western Balkan migration route was closed to migrants earlier this year. The border controls began to apply on Monday morning, according to AP. Police haven’t said how long the controls will remain in force."
"With little fanfare or media attention, the European Union and Greece yesterday quietly resumed deporting “irregular migrants” from Greece to Turkey.
After a two-week pause, boats reportedly took 31 people from Kos, 13 from Lesbos, and five from Chios – among them Afghanis, Iranians, and Jordanians....The EU and Greece insist that all of the deportees declined to seek asylum in Greece. But can we be sure?
According to the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, among the first deportees in early April were 13 people who wished to seek protection in Greece. Our research on the Greek islands suggests that number could be higher."
"As reported by local media, a group of 35 people currently located on the island of Lesvos are expected to be returned to Turkey on 26 April as part of the EU-Turkey agreement. Greek media reported that the majority have expressed their wish to be repatriated given the present situation, which only allows
for application to asylum in Greece."In Slovenia, the stricter asylum legislation, which was passed a month and a half ago in the National Assembly, became effective on 24 April 2016. The legislation entails the acceleration of the processing of asylum claims, restriction for the conditions for asylum, and reduces the time frame for legal recourse. In addition, asylum applications are automatically considered inadmissible if the applicant enters Slovenia from.a safe country."
"Peers hope to win over Conservative MPs after voting to set a quota on total unaccompanied children allowed into UK.. The plight of child refugees stranded in Europe has become the centre of a battle between the House of Commons and the Lords, after peers voted in support of a second proposal urging the government to take action.
Peers voted by 279 to 172, a majority of 107, for an amendment to the immigration bill calling on ministers to relocate and support a specified number of children in the UK.
MPs, who narrowly rejected an earlier call by Lord Dubs for 3,000 unaccompanied children to be given homes in the UK, will now be asked to consider this “softer” proposal, which some Tories say they will back.
Greece: Protesting migrants removed from Idomeni railway tracks (ekathimerini.com., link): "Greek police on Wednesday said migrants and refugees were peacefully removed from the Idomeni railway line, near the Greek border with Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). Migrants had been occupying the tracks demanding the opening of the border."
Eliasson: Europe needs a unified position on refugees (DW, link): "UN Deputy Secretary General, Jan Eliasson, worries about the negative view on refugees in Europe. In a DW interview, he said Europe needs to accept the necessity of migration and diversity for a vital society."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (26.4.16)
"As reported by local media, a group of 35 people currently located on the island of Lesvos are expected to be returned to Turkey on 26 April as part of the EU-Turkey agreement. Greek media reported that the majority have expressed their wish to be repatriated given the present situation, which only allows
for application to asylum in Greece."
"The aim of this Communication is to put forward a policy framework to prevent forced displacement from becoming protracted and to gradually end dependence on humanitarian assistance in existing displacement situations by fostering self-reliance and enabling the displaced to live in dignity as contributors to their host societies, until voluntary return or resettlement." [emphasis added]
and Forced Displacement and Development (SWD-142-16, pdf):
"It provides an overview and assessment of the existing EU policies, instruments and practice in assisting refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs) and asylum seekers (together referred to as "forcibly displaced people") in third partner countries. It focuses on protracted forced displacement and its context, drivers and consequences for the displaced and their host communities and countries and presents findings and recommendations resulting from the review of past and ongoing stand-alone EU projects and interventions." [emphasis added]
"On April 20, more than 160 asylum seekers and migrants reached Lesbos and Chios from Turkey. The police detained them in the closed facilities on those islands, Moria and VIAL, as they do everyone who has arrived on the islands since the ill-conceived EU-Turkey deal came into force a month ago.
But this blanket and automatic detention is unjustifiable on legal, humanitarian and practical grounds.
First, authorities should not automatically detain asylum seekers more than the shortest reasonable time. When they do, and alternatives exist, it constitutes arbitrary detention under international law.
Second, the conditions in Moria and VIAL, where about 4,500 people are held, are unacceptably poor. When the facilities became prison-like detention centers, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, and most nongovernmental organizations stopped providing services."
"GUE/NGL MEPs have strongly condemned the proposal presented by the Italian Prime Minister to extend the EU-Turkey deal on refugees to all 'countries of origin and transit'
Italian MEP, Barbara Spinelli, criticised the document presented by the Italian Government: "From the outset, the proposal of the Italian Prime Minister to the European Commission and the European Council completely neglects the fact that the agreement signed by the EU and Turkey may be illegitimate under EU and international law."
"Worse, the EU-Turkey agreement is presented as a positive model for future arrangements which could be extended to the African countries which are part of the Khartoum and Rabat processes (including states ruled by dictators such as Eritrea or Sudan), and financed with EU funds."
See: 'Migration compact non-paper' (pdf)
"The medical relief charity Medecins sans Frontieres has relaunched rescue operations in the Mediterranean Sea, accusing European governments of failing to act to save migrants in peril at sea, it said on Monday....
"The absence of a global solution to the current refugee crisis, and the European states' policies of deterrence, as well their refusal to provide alternatives to the deadly sea crossing, continue to kill thousands," said Joanne Liu, president of MSF International in a statement." (emphasis added]
"69 new arrivals on Greek islands: "There were 69 new arrivals on Greek islands today (Monday) and the total number of refugees in Greece today numbers 45, 360 with 7,450 in the islands, 14,020 in the Attica region, 3,400 in central Greece, 300 in southern Greece and 20,190 in northern Greece...
800 in Idomeni left without water because of landlord: "No good news from #Idomeni as usual. 10,232 people still reside there. The owner of Hotel Hara has turned off all water supplies, leaving a population of over 800 including many families without water....
Austria announced temporary border control on the border with Hungary to limit the inflow of undocumented migrants: After announcing border controls on their border with Italy, Austria introduced today temporary border control on its border with Hungary to limit the inflow of undocumented migrants, local media reported. According to the Austrian newspaper Osterreich, the border controls were scheduled to apply from 8 a.m. local time. The newspaper added that the authorities plan to pay special attention to vans entering Austria from Hungary....
Norway offering money to asylum seekers to leave voluntarily: "While Germany’s policies might be questionable and cynical, Norway has gone even further. The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (Utlendingsdirektoratet—UDI) is offering a 10,000 kroner bonus to asylum seekers to leave voluntarily. UDI will offer an additional 10,000 kroner to the first 500 asylum seekers who apply for a voluntary return to their home countries. Beginning on Monday, the offer will run for six weeks on a first-come, first-served basis. “We need to entice more to voluntarily travel back by giving them a bit more money on their way out. This will save us a lot of money because it is expensive to have people in the asylum centres,” Integration Minister Sylvi Listhaug told broadcaster NRK. The offer entails giving asylum seekers an additional 10,000 kroner in travel expenses on top of the 20,000 kroner already offered....
SWEDEN: Building that was to be re-purposed into a home for refugee children set on fire in a case of arson "In other integration-gone-wrong-in-Europe story, a building that was to be repurposed into a home for refugee children has been set ablaze in a second apparent arson attack in the east of Sweden in the city of Haernoesand. Firefighters managed to contain the fire, but not before it devoured the former school building. No one was injured in the incident, though the building was totally destroyed. An investigation has been launched, while the incident was classified as an arson, according to local media."
"The United States yesterday (25 April) offered its backing for a NATO naval operation off the cost of Libya, in support of a controversial Italian plan to close the Western Mediterranean refugee route to Europe....
Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi told reporters after meeting the US president and the leaders of Britain, France and Germany in Hanover, Germany...
Italian Minister of Defence Roberta Pinotti had earlier revealed that preparations for a naval blockade were already advanced, with approval expected when NATO leaders meet on 7 July in Warsaw. US officials confirmed that Washington is fully on board."
"Clashes broke out between police and migrants held at a detention centre on the Greek island of Lesvos on Tuesday, a police spokesman said.
The spokesman said incidents started from a wing holding minors at the Moria camp and spread. Bins were set on fire, the spokesman said.
“Riot police are conducting an operation in and out of the camp at the moment,” the spokesman said."
Berlin steps up efforts to expand its ‘safe list’ (euractiv, link):
"Critics have denounced Germany’s intention to put Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia on a list of safe countries of origin in an attempt to reduce the number of asylum seekers coming from those countries...
Critics have denounced Germany’s intention to put Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia on a list of safe countries of origin in an attempt to reduce the number of asylum seekers coming from those countries...
Human rights organisations have criticised the proposal and highlighted that not all refugees from those countries should be tarred with the same brush, as many would still be eligible for asylum. “It contradicts the basic principle of the asylum procedure,” the head of Pro Asyl, Günter Burkhardt, said."
Turkey to boost legal protection for migrants, easing EU returns (FT, link): "Ankara will bolster the legal protection it extends to non-Syrian refugees in a concession that paves the way for the EU to fully implement a deal to send back thousands of asylum seekers currently stranded in Greece"
Comment: Does this mean fully implementing the Geneva Conventioin - can we see the letter to the Commission?
How Turkey’s Promise to Stop the Flow of Refugees Is Creating a New Crisis (INYT, link): "Turkey is struggling to cope with the 2.7 million Syrians it hosts and honor its agreement to stop refugees from crossing into Europe. And renewed fighting in Syria last week pushed tens of thousands of Syrians closer to the border with Turkey, in a sign that the problem could still get worse."
Czech Republic: Graffitis in Prague probably motivated by hate (Prague Monitor, link):"The unknown perpetrators who scrawled threatening inscriptions or Nazi symbols at several places in Prague at the weekend are suspected of graffiti spread and hate-motivated crimes, police spokesman Tomas Hulan told CTK Saturday.
He said the police suspect them of damaging other's property with graffiti, inciting to hatred of another group of persons and restricting their rights and freedoms, and of the crime of sympathy for a movement aimed to suppress man's rights and freedoms. If found guilty, they face up to three years in prison.".
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (25.4.16)
It’s now clear that the moral posturing of the West is fraudulent.
This is of course not to suggest that other places are of better moral quality. Far from it: consider the Thai junta returning Chinese dissidents to China, the Egyptian military dictatorship’s complicity in Israel’s blockade of Gaza, the Gulf states’ systematic exploitation of guest workers, or the alleged abuses committed by Mexican agents, on behalf of the United States, against Central Americans fleeing gangster terror. The world is in large part run by mean, venal and greedy pfeople. But the next time the West invokes its moral superiority remember that they have already failed humanity’s most basic test."
This year, in 2016, the EU has taken a further step towards barbarity: not only has it closed its internal borders by dismantling the Schengen area, but it has consciously decided to send refugees back to the war zones from which they had previously fled, and from which they are still escaping.
The agreement with Turkey signed on 20 March 2016, which enables the mass deportation of refugees who manage to reach Greece, cannot be interpreted in any other way. Thousands of these returnees are sent back by the Erdogan regime to the Syrian war zones from which they had initially escaped: a deportation that violates national, European and international laws."
This article is the foreword from the recent report Death by Rescue: the Lethal Effects of the EU's Policies of Non-Assistance (link)
EU leaders' praise of Turkey triggers NGO anger (EUobserver, link): "”Turkey is the best example in the entire world of how to treat refugees”, European Council president Donald Tusk claimed on Saturday (23 April), drawing criticism from human rights organisations.
He spoke at a press conference in Gaziantep, southern Turkey, where he travelled together with German chancellor Angela Merkel and European Commission vice-president Frans Timmermans.
”Nobody has the right to lecture Turkey on what you should do. I am very proud you are my partner. I am absolutely sure we will succeed. We have no other way”, Tusk said.
His statement drew applause from the conference. "
Obama questions Merkel’s idea for safe zones in Syria (New Europe, link): "US President Barack Obama has openly disagreed with German Chancellor Angela Merkel about the creation of “safe zones” for refugees in Syria. At a news conference in Hanover, however, the visiting president sought to smooth over any differences.
“As a practical matter, sadly, it is very difficult to see how it would operate short of us being willing to militarily take over a chunk of that country,” Obama told reporters in Hanover on April 24. “And that requires a big military commitment” to protect refugees from attacks.
As reported by Bloomberg, Merkel said safe zones couldn’t be imposed from outside but would have to come out of negotiations in Geneva to end the war, identifying areas where people can feel “particularly safe.” Obama said he agreed with that version of the proposal."
UK: Ministers urged to let in 3,000 unaccompanied child refugees (The Guardian, link): "Opposition MPs hope to inflict an embarrassing defeat on the government on Monday over its refusal to extend help to unaccompanied child refugees from Syria and other war-torn countries who are stranded in Europe.
Charities led by Save the Children are urging MPs on both sides of the house to back an amendment to the immigration bill tabled by the Labour peer Alf Dubs and passed by the House of Lords, which would force the government to accept 3,000 unaccompanied children.
Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat leader, has written to every MP urging them to support the amendment. He said: “The vote on Monday is a test of Britain’s humanity. MPs must stand up for the values and traditions that make Britain great.”"
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (23-24.4.16)
"Today Turkey is the best example in the entire world of how to treat refugees."
Tony Bunyan, Statewatch Director, comments:
"Why is the EU not the best example in the entire world of how to treat refugees?"
"Contrary to many other large refugee settlements around the world, the Calais camp is not an officially recognised refugee camp. This has left it marginalised without any statistics or data available regarding the camp, its inhabitants or their living conditions. While the existence of statistics by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is the norm elsewhere, none have been gathered in Calais.
Moreover, there is no border data, and no registration process has been put in place by the authorities. This makes it impossible to gain an indepth understanding of
the realities of life in the camp. It also means that thousands of people are ‘slipping through the net’, being left outside of the system. As a result, the people in the Calais camp are rendered incredibly vulnerable - among them a significant number of unaccompanied children".
"Solidarity center on Chios was burned down by an unknown party:
Soli Cafe, a solidarity center on #Chios that treated refugees as equals, and has been under constant police and fascist pressure and attacks recently, was set on fire last night. Culprits are still unknown. Fortunately, gas canisters had been removed from the building in time to prevent greater damage.
Meanwhile, Vial camp on Chios is still closed for independent volunteers as well as some NGO’s trying to get in. Refugees are still being detained under Greek law for up to 25 days. Volunteers have collected multiple testimonials confirming that the food provided is of poor quality, and nutritionally insufficient. There’s lack of medical support as well....
International lawyers and translators needed!
An international network of lawyers is trying to get a grip on how asylum claims in Greece are being handled. At the moment they need support of both Greek and international colleagues to review all the refugee cases in time. Translators fluent in Greek, Arabic and Farsi are needed as well. They are also looking for friendly contacts within EASO to meet with during their legal coordination meetings. If you can help with legal expertise or you know someone who could be useful, please contact ariel.ricker@gmail.com...."
"In Turkey, so far (as of 18 April), 326 people were returned boat to Dikili (Turkey) since the implementation of the EU-Turkey agreement, including 202 people on 4 April and 124 people on 8 April. Main nationalities include Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Iraq, India, Morocco, Egypt and Palestine. Two Syrians have been returned to date.
All non-Syrians returned by sea were referred to Kirklareli removal centre, while Syrians are transferred to Duzici camp for processing. Despite written requests, UNHCR still does not have access to them, including to the 13 persons who had expressed their wish to apply for asylum. Discussions are on-going with authorities on UNHCR’s access to removal centres."
"In Greece, on 20 April, the European Economic and Social Committee, the Economic and Social Committee of Greece and the Permanent Representation of the European Commission in Athens co-chaired a conference entitled: "Human flows and the world we share: Can Europe Tackle the Refugee and Migrant Issue?". Speaking at the conference, the Greek Alternate Defence Minister, responsible for coordinating efforts to tackle the refugee crisis, said that given the fact many people will remain in the country for one, two or more years, and rights should be granted as required; in this context, the government may consider issuing a refugee passport. The Minister also said that there are 34 operating host centers across Greece, noting that Eidomeni and Piraeus are not included in the list." [emphasis added]
According to the latest official figures, there are 53,817 migrants throughout the country: 29,298 are at camps and centers in northern Greece, while in Attica there are 14,359, of which 3,294 are at the port of Piraeus.
Authorities estimate that it will take more than a month to process all the asylum applications submitted.... Afghans have repeatedly protested what they say is preferential treatment given to Syrians."
Angela Merkel to launch EU aid programme for Syrians on Turkey visit (Guardian link): £German chancellor will attend photocall with Ahmet Davutoglu at refugee camp in Gaziantep amid concerns over her policy....In exchange for Turkish acquiescence, Europe has promised looser visa restrictions for Turks travelling to Europe and agreed to accelerate negotiations over Turkey’s proposed accession to the EU... But Merkel and her European colleagues have been accused of pandering too much to Turkey, amid calls for stronger international criticism of the government’s crackdown on political opponents."
Rumour: Is the Relocation Program Real? (News That Moves, link)
UK: David Cameron faces knife-edge vote on child refugee policy (Observer, link): "Tory MPs join chorus of calls for UK to admit more unaccompanied young people fleeing war-torn homelands"
Babies Detained in Refugee Centers on Greek Island “Not Getting Adequate Milk” (Press Project, link): "Asylum seekers who are held in a detention center in Chios claim babies under six months old are being given only 100ml of milk a day"
Czech Republic: Migrant crisis fuelling negative sentiments towards foreigners and the EU (Radio, Praha, link)
Refugee crisis: the ugly truth behind the cynical EU-Turkey deal (FIDH< link): " March 18 2016, European Union leaders and Turkey struck a shameful deal providing for fast-track procedures aimed at returning ‘all new irregular migrants’ reaching the Greek islands after March 20 who do not have a legitimate asylum claim back to Turkey and an infamous ‘migrant swap’."
Swiss halt Muslim family's citizenship process after refusal to shake hands (Daily Sabah, link): "As anti-immigration sentiment increases across Europe, Switzerland has suspended the citizenship process of a Muslim family after brothers refused to shake female teachers' hands, saying it violates their beliefs."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (22.4.16)
Donald Tusk: EU needs ‘tough’ migration policies (politico, link): "Tusk defended more recent EU actions to tighten border controls and stop the flow of refugees, saying they were necessary to stop growing “radical, populist, often nationalist sentiment” that had led to “apocalyptic prophesies and questions about the future of Europe.”"
Tony Bunyan, Statewatch Director, comments:
"The President of the Council of the European Union, demonstrates a bizarre logic. If refugees are not stopped, and denied their right to ask for asylum, this will lead to "radical, populate, often nationalistic sentiment" - so the racists and nationalist win and determine EU policy. This is a blatant abdication of responsibility to uphold and enforce the purported fundamental values of the EU as set out in the Treaty and the Charter."
Across Europe, volunteers have been moved to act to help refugees seeking safety; from sea rescues, to teaching languages. Here, volunteers share stories from their involvement over the past months, revealing the emotional cost of this vast humanitarian crisis as it has unfolded"
"Nearly 54 thousand refugees are currently located on Greek territory, according to the Greek Government. The highest concentration of refugees is still recorded in Idomeni, with 10,257 refugees inside the camp. Even though NATO’s secretary general Jens Stoltenberg said today that the number of refugees crossing the Aegean Sea into Europe is significantly lower, new arrivals are still recorded on a daily basis. According to the Greek Government, 196 new arrivals were recorded on Lesvos and 18 on Samos until 7:30 AM today"
"As we reported yesterday, the “administrative restriction” process for asylum applicants on Lesvos and Chios is in theory in effect as of Monday. This means that refugees cannot be detained in registration centers after 25 days since their asylum applications take longer than that to process. However, refugees from ?#?Moria? camp on Lesvos have not heard of anyone leaving the camp so far. Similarly, volunteers from ?#?Vial? camp on Chios report that the authorities there have not opened the camp. Earlier today, refugees themselves broke free from Vial camp. For now, they are free to come and go from the inside to outside of the camp. All of the NGOs active on site are having meetings on how to handle the situation. The atmosphere is described as tense by the volunteers."
" The Supreme Administrative Court in Finland has overturned the decision to return Afghani asylum seekers to Hungary. The decision to return the asylum seekers was made by the Finnish Immigration Service and the Administrative Court of Helsinki. Before coming to Finland, the asylum seekers arrived in Hungary via Serbia and applied for asylum in Hungary in September 2014. According to the Supreme Administrative Court, there was a genuine threat that the asylum seekers would be deported from Hungary back to Serbia, if they were to be sent back."
"On the initiative of Greek Foreign Minister, a quadripartite meeting between Foreign Ministers and Interior Ministers of Greece, Albania, Bulgaria and Macedonia is being held in Thessaloniki, April 21-22 with the focus on border cooperation. They will discuss the main challenges of migration and regional cooperation in the field of border management, combating trafficking and terrorist networks and management of the refugee crisis."
Operation Triton, facilitated by Europe’s border security agency, Frontex, began on 1 November 2014 and is mandated to enforce Italy’s maritime border. Triton replaced an earlier and much wider Italian Navy operation, Mare Nostrum, which began in October 2013 and was mandated to save migrant lives beyond Italy’s territorial waters. When EU officials decided on the more limited scope of Triton, they knew their decision would result in the drowning of numerous migrants. As one Frontex official wryly noted, “the withdrawal of naval assets from the area, if not properly planned and announced well in advance, would likely result in a higher number of fatalities.” But the European Commission turned a blind eye – leading to a spike in migrant deaths, which the authors, Charles Heller and Lorenzo Pezzani meticulously document.
From a legal perspective, this set of circumstances raises the question whether the migrants’ rights were violated, and if so, whether EU actors can be held legally accountable. In my view, the report exposes no illegal activity by European agents, either at the operational or at the policymaking level. Perhaps more troubling, the report raises the specter of unaccountable violence ingrained in the very structure of international law. If international law is somehow to blame for circumstances that made these utterly preventable deaths possible, then perhaps it is law itself that should be indicted."
An article examining the legal implications of the Death by Rescue reported released earlier this week. See: Summary of report: Death by Rescue - The lethal effects of the EU's policies of non-assistance at sea (pdf) and the full report (link).
"Finland’s Supreme Administrative Court recently ruled that returning an Afghan asylum seeker to Hungary was problematic because of the country’s asylum procedures.
The court declared that deporting asylum seekers via Serbia threatened the fundamental rights of people seeking international protection. As a result of the Court’s decision the Finnish Immigration Service has suspended asylum seeker returns to Hungary.
The Afghan asylum seeker had come to Finland by way of Hungary and Serbia. The Supreme Administrative Court deemed that there is a risk that the man would be deported from Hungary to Serbia and from there to Afghanistan without having any authorities assess his asylum application or his need for international protection. Hungary is the only EU country that considers Serbia to be safe for asylum seekers and returns them there.
The Court determined that there are major problems with Hungary’s asylum procedures. It pointed to large numbers of asylum applications, difficulties in providing legal guidance and other problems facing asylum seekers in Hungary. It said that these factors made it impossible to be clear if the man’s return to Serbia and other third countries would be stopped or deferred."
See: Finland suspends asylum seeker returns to Hungary following higher court ruling (YLE, link). Hungary is the second EU country to which asylum-seekers can no longer be returned from Finland. A previous court ruling saw returns to Greece suspended.
From September 2012: Serbia is "no longer a safe third country" but Commission says that readmission "functions smoothly" (Statewatch News Online)
We did not want to frame people as victims, avoiding the prism of humanitarian paternalism which is often the basis of art projects, but as courageous people who, by the very fact that they had decided to set out on such a journey, made a radical change in their life – fleeing war, conflicts and poverty. We were interested when, how and where they had been travelling before we met them. We asked why they had embarked on such a journey, what troubles they had survived, how they had crossed borders, what their experiences were with police and people in the countries they had passed through.
Together we sketched maps, piecing together their routes, which in some cases had taken up to 7 years. Sometimes the maps lack detail or are unclear, and sometimes they would skip parts of the journey.
We wanted to show their routes factually, and thus draw attention to Europe’s inhumane asylum policy."
Bulgaria, Greece, Albania, Macedonia to Discuss Migrant Crisis (Novinite, link): "Interior and foreign ministers of Bulgaria, Greece, Albania and Macedonia are to meet in Thessaloniki on Thursday and Friday to discuss possible measures to control the migrant inflow into Europe.
The meeting has been called by Greece's top diplomat, Nikos Kotzias. (...)
Bulgaria and other Greek neighbors for their part fear the numbers of migrants trying to enter their territories will rise this spring and summer."
And: CZECH REPUBLIC: PM rejects permanent refugee redistribution mechanism (Prague Monitor, link): "Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka (Social Democrats, CSSD) told the Czech Chamber of Deputies yesterday he disagreed with the creation of a permanent mechanism redistributing refugees among EU countries and a transition of the powers relating to asylum to the European Commission.
These are efforts to federalise the asylum policy, Sobotka said. (...)
Sobotka said he wanted to prepare a joint position of the Visegrad Four (the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia) to the EC proposal.
"There is a big chance of our proceeding jointly," Sobotka said, adding that the Czech Republic would look for other allies, too, in support of its stand."
New ‘European Border Guard’ system to be agreed by 30 June (euractiv, link): "EU interior ministers formally agreed yesterday (21 April) on a proposal for a new border and coastguard force that could intervene in under-pressure countries like Greece to slow the influx of migrants."
Idomeni: Syrian refugee hit by police van dies in hospital (News That Moves, link):
"The Syrian refugee who was hit by a police van on Monday, died in Papageorgiou hospital in Thessaloniki Thursday noon. The man suffered severe injuries in the head, the doctors could not save him.
Officially the Greek police says that it was an accident. According to Greek police, the man was fixing something on his tent in Idomeni camp, he lost his balance and fell on the side of the police van. The van driver was a 46-year-old policeman. The exact causes of the accident are been investigated by the Traffic Police of Kilkis..."
Merkel sees drop of refugees as an ‘opportunity’ (euractiv, link): "German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday (21 April) that fewer asylum seekers were now reaching European shores, giving EU nations a chance to shore up plans to protect the continent’s outer borders."
Czech Police Detain Afghan Migrants in Bulgarian-Registered Van (Novinite, link): "Czech police have detained 26 illegal migrants from Afghanistan in a Bulgarian-registered van close to the border with Germany, Czech media reported on Thursday.
The irregular migrants – 11 men, five women and 10 children – were detained near the town of Domažlice, some 20 km from the Czech Republic’s border with Germany, Radio Prague said, citing the Minister of the Interior Milan Chovanec.
The migrants had said they planned to seek asylum in Germany.
The driver of the Peugeot Boxer van and his companion, who is suspected of being the mastermind of the people trafficking, have escaped. The Czech police has launched a search for them."
CZECH REPUBLIC: Iraqi Christians return home from Czech Republic (Prague Daily Monitor, link): "A group of 16 Iraqi Christian refugees who wanted to leave the Czech Republic for Germany last week departed for Iraq this afternoon, said Kiril Christov, spokesman for the Refugee Facilities Administration of the Czech Interior Ministry.
"All of them agreed with the voluntary return and all of them boarded the plane. Everything went well," Christov told CTK."
CZECH REPUBLIC: Migrant crisis fuelling negative sentiments towards foreigners and the EU (Radio Prague, link): "The migrant crisis is making Czechs increasingly wary of foreigners. According to a recent poll conducted by the STEM agency, the number of people who think an ethnic group or minority should have the right to live in the Czech Republic according to its own traditions has dropped by almost a half to 25 percent in the past two years. Only 25 percent of respondents now say requests for Czech citizenship should be granted without regard to nationality or ethnicity. And three quarters of Czechs consider foreigners to be a security threat. For this week’s Panorama I spoke to the head of the STEM polling agency, sociologist Jan Hartl, about how the crisis has changed attitudes to foreigners and even to the country’s next door neighbours."
Two survivors from Ethiopia and Somalia tell of mystery migrant shipwreck (Deutsche Welle, link): "An Ethiopian and a Somali man say they were on two boats heading to Italy from Libya when one of the vessels sank. The UN refugee agency says up to 500 people may have drowned in the tragedy.
Visibly shaken from their ordeal, the two men - 25-year-old Muaz Mahmoud Aymo and 28-year-old Mowlid Isman - described how they were among 200 people aboard a small boat when smugglers forced them onto a larger vessel, which already had 300 people on board.
"When we moved to that boat, the big boat fell into the water and my baby (of) two months and my 21-year-old wife, and all died in the middle of the ocean," Aymo told reporters at the offices of the Greek charity Praxis.
"Only 41 made it, we swam to save our lives to the small boat. And I saved two persons," he added.
The two said although they managed to get back on board the smaller boat, the smuggler refused to wait and help others struggling in the sea."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (21.4.16)
"A delegation of eight participants in the course of the “Advanced training school for legal operators specialised in international protection” organised by ASGI in Rome alongside legal operators from the ADL Zavidovici association, the K-Pax cooperative, the Idea Prisma 82 cooperative and the Alternata cooperative travelled to Greece within the framework of the #overthefortress caravan organised by Melting Pot and the Ambasciata dei Diritti delle Marche to observe the legal conditions of migrants in the camp in Idomeni and the government-run camps in the vicinity. The monitoring was also carried out with the help of mediators from the caravan.
On 26 and 27 March, we visited the Idomeni camp and interviewed the foreign citizens who were there, as well as some international organisations."Translation by Statewatch. The original version (in Italian) of the report "Idomeni, un'analisi giuridica sui diritti negati ai migranti" is available on the ASGI website
“Governments and political leaders should refrain from using xenophobic rhetoric linking migrants to social problems or security risks, thereby making the integration of the few migrants staying in the country even more problematic”, said Daniel Mitov, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria and Chairman of the Committee of Ministers, addressing the Assembly today.
“Migration is not a threat to our democracies, but intolerance and hatred do represent such a threat”, he added, highlighting the responsibility of the international community to improve the difficult humanitarian situation and to protect migrants’ human rights."
"Strasbourg, 20.04.2016 - A delegation of the Council of Europe's Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) carried out an ad hoc visit to Greece from 13 to 18 April 2016.
The purpose of the visit was to examine the situation of foreign nationals deprived of their liberty in the recently established “Reception and Identification Centres” (so-called “hotspots”). Particular attention was paid to the treatment, conditions, regime, health-care services and legal safeguards offered to them. To this end, the delegation visited the Moria “hotspot” on Lesvos and the VIAL “hotspot” on Chios and spoke in private with foreign nationals (including families, unaccompanied children and other vulnerable groups) held in both centres. It also visited Mytilini police station on Lesvos and Chios police station and the coast guard detention facility on Chios."
"In Greece, 134 people arrived on average to the islands in April. There are currently 46,333 people located on the mainland and 7,645 on the islands. Of those on the islands, 5,844 have expressed intention to apply for asylum as of the 18 April. Of the 2,671 relocation requests, 860 transfers took place so far. A total of 3,288 pledges have been made available by EU Member States as of 19 April." The latter figure of 3,288 is down 949 on the number of pledges as 1 April 2016.
On Tuesday, a UNHCR team interviewed survivors of what could be one of the worst tragedies involving refugees and migrants in the last 12 months. If confirmed, as
many as 500 people may have lost their lives when a large ship went down in the Mediterranean Sea at an unknown location between Libya and Italy. The 41 survivors (37 men, three women and a three-year-old child) were rescued by a merchant ship and taken to Kalamata, in the Peloponnese peninsula of Greece on 16 April. Those rescued include 23 Somalis, 11 Ethiopians, 6 Egyptians and a Sudanese."
"Up to 500 are feared to have drowned off the Libyan coast while trying to cross to Europe, the UN’s refugee agency said on Wednesday (20 April), but a muted response to the tragedy suggests empathy is dwindling across the continent.
UNHCR said the 41 survivors, 37 men, three women and a three-year-old child were rescued by merchant ships and taken to Kalamata, Greece on 16 April. The survivors included Somalis, Ethiopians, Egyptians and Sudanese."
"Human rights body says agreement at worst breaks international law and progress on integrating refugees is ‘shamefully slow’...The EU-Turkey agreement “at best strains and at worst exceeds the limits of what is permissible under European and international law”, states the report by the Dutch parliamentarian Tineke Strik. “Even on paper, it raises many serious questions of compatibility with basic norms on refugees’ and migrants’ rights. It has so far given every indication of being even more problematic in practice.”" [emphasis added]
And see Report: The situation of refugees and migrants under the EU-Turkey Agreement of 18 March 2016 (pdf): Report: Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons Rapporteur: Ms Tineke STRIK, Netherlands, Socialist Group and Press release (link)
EU-Turkey refugee pact leads to fatal Libya crossings (New Europe, link): "As reported by Bloomberg, however, the EU-Turkey deal is forcing people smugglers to switch routes. This is based on the United Nations report that 500 migrants travelling between Libya and Italy may have drowned last week."
Migrant camp near Athens poses public health risk, say five mayors (ekathimerini.com, link): "Five mayors of Athens's coastal suburbs warned Wednesday of the "enormous" health risks posed by a nearby camp housing over 4,000 migrants and refugees. "The conditions are out of control and present enormous risks to the public health," the mayors complained in a letter to Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, in reference to the camp at Elliniko, the site of Athens's old airport. A total of 4,153 people, including many families, have been held there for the last month in miserable conditions."
Ankara denies entry to German journalist (euractiv, link):
"Turkish authorities at Istanbul airport denied entry yesterday (20 April) to a German public television journalist who arrived from Cairo and planned to travel to the Turkey-Syria border, the ARD broadcaster said.
ARD journalist Volker Schwenck announced his detention on Twitter and posted a picture of an entry ban letter given to him by authorities with the headline in Turkish and English: “Inadmissible Passenger Notification Report.”"
Burying drowned migrants is part of a broader Greek problem (Ecomonist, link)
EU states grow wary as Turkey presses for action on visas pledge (FT, link)
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (20.4.16)
"Eight Syrians, most of them women and children, have been killed by Turkish border guards while fleeing their war-torn homeland.
The group was trying to cross into Turkey via a mountain smuggling route at the western end of the frontier when they were pushed back by Turkish forces firing live rounds. Mobile phone footage obtained by The Times shows a man carrying his young son, who has been shot in both legs, back down the winding mountain path in the hope of reaching medical help..." and
Turkish border guards shoot DEAD eight Syrians including women and children as they try to flee their war-torn homeland (Daily Mail, link)
- Managing the Refugee Crisis: Commission reports on implementation of EU-Turkey Statement (Press release, pdf)
- First Report on the progress made in the implementation of the EU-Turkey Statement (COM 231-16, pdf)
- Annex to Com 231-16: funding (pdf)
- Implementing the EU-Turkey Agreement – Questions and Answers (pdf)- Operational implementation of the EU-Turkey Agreement including number of "returns" (pdf)
Includes: European Border Guard, IT systems for Security and Borders, Databases (Ministers will also discuss the systematic feeding and consistent use of European and international databases), Reform of the Common European Asylum System and Migration (Home affairs ministers will hold an exchange of views on several migration-related issues, and in particular the implementation of the 17-18 March 2016 European Council conclusions and the implementation of the EU-Turkey statement of 18 March 2016).
"The European Union's executive said on Wednesday it will propose on May 4 granting Turks visa-free travel to the bloc from late June in a deal under which it is to stop uncontrolled migration into Europe - provided Ankara meets the remaining conditions....
The Commission did not say how many of the 72 benchmarks for visa liberalisation Turkey has yet to complete but it pointed to several areas where work remains to be done."
"As of Monday, the “administrative restriction” process for asylum applicants on Lesvos and Chios is in effect, meaning that they cannot be detained in registration centers after 25 days. The migrants are gradually free to leave the hotspots since their asylum applications take longer than 25 days to process.
The migrants released from the registration centers are given a specific document that says their asylum application is in process and they cannot leave the island until there is a decision on their case."
Fire in Greek camp burns more than a dozen tents (ekathimerini.com, link): "A fire broke out in a refugee camp in northern Greece Wednesday, burning more than a dozen tents and sparking a protest by refugees. Police said at least two people were taken to a hospital suffering from smoke inhalation."
Turkey and EU hail successes of migrant deal (euobserver, link)
PEGIDA founder dragged before German court (euractiv, link): "Lutz Bachmann, one of the founders of the German xenophobic PEGIDA movement, was put on trial in Dresden yesterday (18 April). The prosecution accuses him of having repeatedly harassed refugees and migrants on social media and inciting hatred. EurActiv Germany reports."
Turkey and EU hail successes of migrant deal (euobserver, link): "The EU commission and Turkey have praised their controversial migrant deal for breaking the business model of the people smugglers and decreasing the number of migrants travelling to Europe. EU commission president Jean-Claude Juncker and Turkish PM Ahmet Davutoglu talked about the deal at the Council of Europe on Tuesday (19 April), a day before the EU’s executive was due to unveil its first assessment of the agreement."
Germany arrests refugee shelter fire suspects (euobserver, link): "German authorities on Tuesday arrested five people suspected of setting refugee shelters on fire. “With today’s operation, the security authorities have dealt a powerful blow to a regional right-wing terrorist group,” said interior minister Thomas de Maiziere. The early morning police raids took place in Saxony."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (19.4.16)
"UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday denounced rising attacks on migrants and refugees, calling for “political will” to resolve the root causes of Europe’s worst migration crisis in decades.
“The continuing increase in anti-migrant and anti-refugee rhetoric and violent attacks against these communities... across all Europe is deeply worrying,” Ban told a press conference in The Hague. “These actions in divided communities sow instability and betray the values and human rights standards that underpin international solidarity.”
Croatia: Criminalsing helping refugees: "Today, a public discussion panel was held in Zagreb, organized by the Center for Peace Studies and the Welcome Initiative. The panel was held with the aim of discussing the changes of the Law on foreigners. Special focus was placed on trying to make a joint effort through conversation with Ministry of Interior representatives on curbing the newly introduced provision of the law that institutes the criminalization of solidarity (referring to any category of helping the foreigner without valid permission to stay in Croatia). The changes would criminalize helping the foreigners that are in so called 'illegal' status unless they are in mortal danger. Many of the organizations, including the ombudsman office see this provision as something that should be changed in order to better work together on integration and prevention of trafficking and/or exploiting migrant workers. The changes to the law should be applied from July this year, but hopefully with many amended clauses. "
Sprious reasoning to exclude Afghans from EU relocation scheme: rights are not based on percentages: "If you were wondering why Afghans are not yet eligible for EU’s relocation program, News that moves reported today the calculations of EASO that state that the program applies to nationalities who have an average EU-wide asylum recognition rate equal to or higher than 75%, on the basis of EUROSTAT data for the previous quarter. Eligible nationalities are updated quarterly. Afghans have an asylum recognition rate lower than 75% EU-wide, therefore they are not eligible. Currently, nationals or stateless persons who are residents in of Syria, Iraq, Eritrea, Burundi, Central African Republic, Costa Rica, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Bahrain, Maldives, and British overseas countries and territories are eligible to participate to the relocation programme."
"According to Save The Children, more than 1,500 refugee children in Greece have currently no safe shelter and many of them are being held in detention centres and police cells. The Independent newspaper reports that only 477 sheltered spaces are available for unaccompanied refugee children in Greece at the moment.
Spokesperson for Save the Children, Sacha Myers, said “we estimate that there are at least 2,000 unaccompanied children in Greece – we know there are hundreds, potentially thousands more.” According to the law, refugees “can only stay in a detention centre for 25 days and then need to be moved to a more permanent shelter, but because they’re full, the children are either staying in detention or being moved into police cells,” Myers said.
According to UNHCR, currently more than 22,000 refugee and migrant children are stranded in Greece. Of that total, unaccompanied and separated children represent about 10 percent of all refugee and migrant children in Greece"
"Looking back—as the Forensic Oceanography report requires us to do—we have an idea of how in just two and a half years, we have passed from hypocritical declarations on Lampedusa to active indifference in front of the 350 children drowned at sea following the death of Alan Kurdi, as if this were a natural catastrophe that does not affect the political sphere. The more European institutions have talked about rights and humanity, the more they have proceeded towards a subtraction of means, personnel, financial assistance for search and rescue, engaging in agreements with Third Countries not reliable from the point of view of respect for fundamental rights (the Rabat and Karthoum processes) and in the deliberate and shameless outsourcing of refoulement culminating in the EU-Turkey agreement."
"The first round of European Union-sanctioned deportations of 66 people from the Greek island of Chios to Turkey on April 4, 2016 was rushed, chaotic, and violated the rights of those deported, Human Rights Watch said today. In Turkey, the detained deportees lost contact with family and friends held in Greece, and Turkish authorities have not allowed visits by rights groups or the United Nations.
“In the mad dash to start the deportations deal with Turkey, the European Union and Greece tossed rights to the wind, including for people who wanted to seek asylum,” said Fred Abrahams, Human Rights Watch associate director for program. “The abusive deportations expose the fundamental flaws in the EU’s expedited mass returns to a country that cannot be considered safe.”
"The EU stands ready to offer security sector support in response to possible GNA requests. Should a Libyan request be forthcoming and following consultations with the Libyans, a possible civilian CSDP mission could support Libyan efforts inter alia through advice and capacity building in the fields of police and criminal justice including on counter-terrorism, border management, countering irregular migration and smuggling of migrants and trafficking of human beings, as part of broader Security Sector Reform support. This possible mission could draw upon the existing planning capacity of EUBAM Libya. In addition to the possible civilian mission, further consideration will also be given to support that can be provided through EUNAVFOR MED Sophia, by enhancing its capacity to disrupt the business model of human smugglers and trafficking networks and to contribute to broader security in support to the legitimate Libyan authorities, for example through potential capacity building for the Libyan Coastguard, and the implementation of international law."
EU set to upgrade naval mission in Mediterranean (FT, link): "Europe’s governments signalled they are ready to expand the role of an EU naval mission in the Mediterranean, as the bloc braces itself for an expected surge in the number of asylum seekers seeking to make the dangerous sea crossing from north Africa. The EU is under pressure to find solutions ahead of a likely influx this summer of people setting off for Europe from the coast of Libya and neighbouring countries."
and: EU navies prepare to start work in Libyan waters (euobserver, link): "The EU is to make plans for posting security experts to Libya and for moving its naval operation into Libyan waters following initial talks with the country’s new government. "
"On the Greek island of Lesvos, those remaining at informal sites (Olive Grove and Tsamakis) were taken to Moria for registration by police forces. They had arrived prior to 20 March when the EU-Turkey agreement came into force. As of 15 April, of the 7,216 people present on the Greek islands, at least 5,380 expressed their intent to seek asylum....
The media reports that over 400 people drowned in the Mediterranean after several overcrowded boats capsized whilst crossing from Egypt to Italy or Greece in the past few days...
Between 11-15 April, some 287 people were apprehended at Turkey’s land borders and 130 were intercepted or rescued along the Turkey’s sea borders, according to the Turkish Coast Guard."
Turkish PM issues EU visa ultimatum (euobserver, link): "Turkey's prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu has warned the migrant swap deal with the EU risks collapse unless visa restrictions are lifted on Turkish nationals by June as planned. "I maintain my belief that, god willing, we will have the visa exemption in June. In the absence of that, then of course no-one can expect Turkey to adhere to its commitments," he said on Monday (18 April) in Ankara."
Austria’s neighbours fear more border controls (euractiv, link): "While increased people-trafficking has been recorded in eastern Austria, increased border controls in the west, specifically at the Brenner Pass, continue to be mooted. EurActiv Germany reports.
Although Hungarian authorities have made their zero-tolerance stance on migrants clear, more people are coming from that direction into Austria. Guided by smugglers, they enter Austria and Germany in minibuses and vans. This month, 24 traffickers and 520 refugees have been apprehended in Burgenland, the easternmost region of the alpine republic.."
Migrant crisis: Hundreds dead after capsize, say survivors (BBC News, link)
Migrants reoccupy border rail crossing (ekathimerini.com, link)::"An attempt by the Greek Police (ELAS) Monday to halt a month-long migrants’ protest on the railway line connecting Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia was short-lived as the protesters returned to the site shortly after the police intervention. The railway line opened for a short while in the morning after police peacefully removed the migrants from the area. But the migrants did not stay away for long. They returned with their tents and rolled large stones onto the railway tracks."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (18.4.16)
Riot police dispersed refugees and migrants from the rail track early on Monday morning, to have them hours later return and recamp at the very same site. Meanwhile, the Hellenic Centre for Disease Control & Prevention (KEELPNO), raises the alarm on serious health risks on Idomeni and Piraeus camps. Mange and other skin diseases have been reported, together with widespread while cases of gastroenteritis and food poisoning, as food and water are exposed to April’s rising temperatures."
Press release: 13 aid and refugee agencies say UK is failing in its responsibility to protect most vulnerable people displaced by conflict (Freedom From Torture, link): "Freedom from Torture, along with Oxfam, the British Refugee Council, the International Rescue Committee (IRC-UK) and ten other agencies say it’s not enough for the UK government to provide aid for refugees in countries like Lebanon and Jordan. The UK has an obligation to offer a safe haven to its fair share of refugees and do all it can to ensure protection for people on the move, whatever their legal status."
EU: PM Orbán Presents “Schengen 2.0” Plan To Protect Europe’s Borders (Hungary Today, link): "Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has presented a ten-point proposal package on the protection of the European Union’s external borders and free movement within the community at a meeting of centrist democratic parties in Lisbon, Portugal.
The Hungarian leader’s Schengen 2.0 plan aims to protect external borders, as opposed to the European Commission’s proposal on managing the migrant crisis, which is an attempt to reform the asylum system. Mr. Orbán disclosed his plan on Friday at the Centrist Democrat International (CDUI)’s meeting in the Portuguese capital on Friday. The plan is necessary because the EU is endeavouring to reform the asylum system, while Hungary’s position is that it is the borders that have to be protected, the Hungarian Prime Minister, who is also a vice chairman of the centre-right group, argued. In the coming weeks, the Hungarian government is sending the action plan to Visegrád countries and Prime Ministers of other EU member states, while Mr. Orbán will explain his proposals in person in Germany next week and in several other European countries in the upcoming period."
And see: Orban will tour EU capitals with ‘Schengen 2.0’ plan (EurActiv, link): "Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will tour EU capitals to push for a 10-point plan for the protection of EU’s external borders and free movement within the community, dubbed ‘Schengen 2.0’."
A paper produced by the European External Action Service in February 2016 provides an overview of current CFSP missions and sets out possibilities for their future development. Key issues are ensuring that missions take into account the requirements of EU migration and counter-terrorism policy, and the paper notes overall that: "there will likely be needs to intensify CFSP actions in support of Third States, either via projects implemented by civilian CSDP missions or through dedicated CFSP projects. This will also require additional staffing, skills and expertise in project management." Several hundred million euros are currently available for ongoing and future CSDP missions.
See: European External Action Service, CFSP budget orientations for 2016 and 2017 (doc. 6383/16, 22 February 2016, pdf) and COR 1 (pdf)
On migration, the paper notes:
"Migration is at the heart of the political debate in the EU and, for a few years now, is one of the strategic priorities of the external relations of the Union. The ongoing refugee crisis has put discussions on refugees and irregular migration on top of political agenda of the EU. The EU has not only set up a military CSDP operation EUNAVFOR MED Sophia, but also taken significant steps together with its neighbours and partners by creating a set of measures and action plans to jointly meet the challenges. Civilian CSDP missions in the concerned regions may need to be further reinforced with migration dimension and experts, as it was the case in 2015 of EUCAP Sahel Niger."
On "radical and terrorist organizations":
"Destabilization by radical and terrorist organizations is already partly addressed through notably CSDP missions assisting with capacity building in Mali and Niger. Pending the evolution of the fragile regional environment, additional experts and assets could possibly be requested to reinforce CSDP missions."
The paper is structured by the following headings: CFSP and CSDP in the changing global security environment; Future CSDP; Conclusions; Annex I - Current CSDP missions and mid-term forecast; Annex II - Possible non-proliferation and disarmament projects.
The report, Trapped in Greece: an avoidable refugee crisis, examines the situation of refugees and migrants – the majority women and children –trapped on mainland Greece, following the complete closure of the Macedonian border on 7 March."
And see: Forgotten migrants at risk in Greece, says Amnesty (EUobserver, link)
GREECE: E.U. Politics Turn Migrants’ Dreams Into Nightmares on an Overcrowded Greek Island (Time, link): "Yasmin and her family paid smugglers to get them through Turkey, and eventually, to Chios. Like the hundreds of thousands of migrants who took the same route last year, they were hoping to use Greece as a way station into mainland Europe, and then to safety in Germany. But in the last few weeks, the situation in Europe has drastically changed. As a result of the new deal between Turkey and the E.U., which went to into effect last month, all migrants arriving in Greece after March 20 are required to either register for asylum in Greece or be sent back to Turkey. The borders with the rest of Europe have essentially been shut."
GREECE: For These Greek Grandmas, Helping Migrants Brings Back Their Own Past (NPR, link): "The migrants on rafts began landing on the rocky shores of Lesbos a year ago. In a pretty village of colorful fishing boats, one of the first people they saw was Efstratia Mavrapidou, 89, who was born here. She's fragile, her eyes clouded by cataracts. But she made her way to shore by cane.
She wanted to be there to embrace the migrants crowded onto those rafts, especially the young mothers who wept as they clasped tiny, sea-drenched babies.
Many were war refugees from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. They reminded her of her own mother, Evanthea, who fled Turkey via the Ayvalik archipelago nearly a century earlier, crossing the same stretch of the Aegean Sea on a crowded wooden fishing boat."
ITALY-EU: Moving on Up: Italy to Route Northern African Migrants to Europe (Sputnik News, link)
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (16-17.4.16)
New evidence proves EU policymakers knew reduced search-and-rescue operation would cause mass migrant deaths (Press Release, pdf)
"A new investigation accuses EU policymakers of “killing by neglect” after cutting rescue missions in the Mediterranean in full knowledge of the lethal consequences of their actions. Meeting transcripts and documents unearthed in a report from Goldsmiths, University of London and the University of York show that the EU border agency Frontex’s own internal assessment of replacing Mare Nostrum with Triton predicted increased deaths at sea, but the policy was introduced anyway.
Researchers found that a previously unreported 2014 Frontex internal assessment on “tackling migrant flows” stated:
“It has to be stressed that the withdrawal of naval assets from the area, if not properly planned and announced well in advance, would likely result in a higher number of fatalities.”The researchers from the ESRC-funded ˜Precarious Trajectories” project argue that because the decision to retreat from state-led search and rescue operations was taken in full knowledge of the risk, EU policy makers and agencies carry a strong degree of responsibility for mass deaths at sea...."
and see: For press: : Summary of report: Death by Rescue - The lethal effects of the EU's policies of non-assistance at sea (8 pages, pdf)
The report will be launched on Monday 18 April at 6pm at The Mosaic Rooms, 226 Cromwell Road, SW5 0SW London. For details and to book a ticket click here.
- Discussion paper on Commission Communication "Towards a reform of the Common European Asylum System and enhancing legal avenues to Europe" (LIMITE doc no: 7861-16, pdf): Discussion on Commission's new asylum paper.
- Draft Council Decision amending Council Decision (EU) 2015/1601 of 22 September 2015 establishing provisional measures in the area of international protection for the benefit of Italy and Greece (LIMITE doc no: 7500-16, pdf) Resettlement issues -EU-Turkey plan
- Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Union code on Visas (Visa Code) (recast) - mandate for negotiations with the European Parliament (LIMITE doc no: 7714-16, pdf) Council deal on visa code, no humanitarian clause. Only benefits states agreeing readmission deals
"European Court of Human Rights opened up the case against Macedonia and Greece for last Sunday's tergas bombing, plastic bullet shooting and torturous unannounced military exercise yesterday – all of it at Idomeni Camp. They still did not find room for indicating an urgent measure at this point. The applicants, women fleeing war alone with their children, in their majority, are invited to complete their submissions by May 9th."
See: Italian Italian Non-Paper: MIGRATION COMPACT: Contribution to an EU strategy for external action on migration (pdf): Like current EU policy it avoids the issue of "safe countries" to use forced returns to or states where EU-funded: "reception centres" (open or closed?) are set up.
Electra (link): "Confirmed. The "safe 3rd country" principle started applying in cases of asylum seekers detained in Moria after March 20th.
We expect from lawyers whose "clients" got such asylum claim rejections to immediately communicate with lawyers practicing in Greece so that the rejections are urgently appealed within the 5 day time limit set. The concerns are huge. HUGE."
"The EU-Turkey refugee deal is just the latest effort of EU members trying to keep refugees out. A contribution to the openGlobalRights debate on the future of refugee protection.
In the short time since it was announced, a great deal has been written about the EU-Turkey refugee deal, with some commentators suggesting that the proposed arrangement represents a new turn in European asylum policy. In fact, it is simply the latest episode in a longstanding effort on the part of EU members and other industrialised states to curtail and manage the arrival of asylum seekers."
"This week, Frontex launched discussions with industry representatives about a possible use of remote piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) for maritime border surveillance and the potential for industry to provide these kinds of services to Frontex.
While at the moment there is no European legislation that allows the use of remotely piloted aircraft in shared airspace, the preliminary discussions were meant to explore the feasibility of extending the pool of assets providing aerial surveillance services to include medium altitude long endurance RPAS." [emphasis added]
Tony Bunyan, Statewatch Director, comments:
"I'm sure the "industry" will be very interested in extending its markets. But is Frontex going to consult more widely on the desirability and ethics of using drones to police EU sea borders to exclude people fleeing from war, persecution, poverty and climate change or is it just a practical question of whether they can be supplied?"
"Pope Francis is to visit the island where more than 50,000 people are thought to have spent time helping those fleeing war.
More than 50,000 volunteers are thought to have passed through since men, women and children – the vast majority fleeing war in Syria – began to land on its shores in flimsy boats last summer.
At no other time in modern history have NGOs or individuals stepped in to make up for the limited resources of a near bankrupt country that has struggled to cope with the influx." [emphasis added]
Standing around his four-foot-long grave on Thursday, February 25, 2016 were four members of his family, three dozen humanitarian aid workers, two EU border police, and the team of Spanish medics who had lifted Ahmed’s small body off of a boat two days earlier. He was three years old.
According to the UNHCR’s best estimates, 13,144 refugees arrived in small dinghies on Chios’ beaches and cliffs in February 2016. Ahmed’s funeral was not the only one held that month."
Greece: Understanding refugees’ repugnance of the camps (New Europe, link): "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here’ – Dante Alighieri, Divine Comedy"
Turkey 'fires live rounds to drive away Syrian refugees fleeing Islamic State' (Telegraph, link)
Swedish minister 'had dinner with Turkish fascists' (The Local.se,link): "The Swedish Minister of Housing, Mehmet Kaplan, has sparked controversy after a photograph of him emerged having dinner with members of the far-right Turkish organization, Grey Wolves, according to Swedish daily newspaper, Aftonbladet."
Europe can't take in millions: German ex-chancellor (The Local.de, link): "Former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl has warned that Europe can't become "a new home" for millions of migrants, in a veiled criticism of incumbent Angela Merkel's liberal asylum policies. ... Orban -- whose country has erected razorwire border fences to deter migrants -- earlier this year said that an uncontrolled influx exposes Europe to the risks of "terrorism, criminality, anti-Semitism and homophobia".."
Italy: It's a 'spike', not an invasion (The Local.at, link): "Italy insisted Friday it was not facing an "invasion" after a spike in migrant boat crossings from Libya exacerbated fears the country is on the verge of becoming the main entry point for people trying to reach Europe."
Pope in Greece: Pope brings hope to migrants, chastises leaders in Lesvos visit (ekathimerini.com, link): "Declaring “we are all migrants,” Pope Francis on Saturday brought a message of hope to thousands of people facing expulsion from Greece as he slammed the world community for failing to end the wars fueling the crisis... The vast majority have requested asylum but will likely be deported under a controversial agreement reached last month to tackle Europe’s refugee crisis by sending all irregular migrants who land in Greece back to Turkey... "
Pope Francis takes refugees to Rome after Lesbos visit (Guardian, link): "Pontiff visits Greek island to highlight refugee crisis, telling crowds: ‘We hope the world will heed these scenes of tragic need’... Pope Francis has taken a dozen highly vulnerable refugees who faced deportation from the Greek island of Lesbos back to Rome, offering them refuge in a rebuke to the EU’s policy of sending migrants and refugees back to Turkey. The leader of the Roman Catholic church made the unprecedented intervention on Saturday during a trip to the island to highlight the refugee crisis unfolding across the continent. "
School For Children In Idomeni (News That Moves, link): "Greek media is reporting that a group of volunteers have set up an informal school for refugee children at the Idomeni camp, in northern Greece, near the Greece-FYROM border. According to the Greek news agency ANA-MPA, at the makeshift ‘Idomeni cultural centre’ daily classes includes maths, Kurdish and Arabic language. Courses for adults are also held. Refugees who have have studied maths, science or languages are teaching in the school."
A family reunification dilemma for the EU (Global Government Forum, link): "Many of the asylum seekers heading for Europe hope to bring their families over later – so governments are squeezing refugees’ rights to family reunification. But Yermi Brenner finds that this may hamper the integration of those who’ve already found asylum in the EU."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (15.4.16)
"After clashes which started when Macedonian (FYROM) police and soldiers stopped refugees from crossing the Greek/Macedonian (FYROM) border on Sunday, some of the mainstream media are blaming activists who support refugees in Idomeni for inciting refugee protests....
Not only the Greek government, but also the European Union (EU), are embarrassed because activists and volunteers from all over Europe are doing work that they should be doing – supplying refugees with basic needs like food, sanitary products, and medical help." [emphasis added]
And see; Eelectra (link):
"At least 54 volunteers were arbitrarily temporarily deprived of their freedom yesterday. ADM volunteers have suffered several breaches of their rights, intimidation, harassment by authorities, illegal searches, much of which has been for months reported to the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders, Michel Forst and to hundreds of NGOs. Now part of the media has targeted them, in what seems a coordinated appeal to darkness."
"For nearly 20 years, this small Italian town has provided thousands of migrants with a safe place to call their own.
The longtime mayor first realized the potential of refugees after a boatful of Kurdish migrants arrived on Riace’s shores in 1998. With the town struggling to cope with its young residents leaving for opportunities elsewhere, Lucano—a schoolteacher at the time—decided to offer abandoned apartments and job training to those who ended up in Riace. Since that time, it has welcomed more than 6,000 migrants.
For every refugee there, the town receives about $40 every day in government subsidies for a year, which then goes to migrants and their housing costs. While a majority of refugees move north in search of better job opportunities once they acquire their documents, some stay, as Riace offers a safe haven for many families fleeing conflict around the world."
"The latest figures show that Turkish law enforcement captured more than 1,500 smuggling suspects in 2015, 400 suspects have been arrested so far in 2016 and that more than 65,000 migrants have been intercepted at sea and land by security forces since January."
And see: (IOM): Mediterranean Migrant Arrivals in 2016: 177, 207; Deaths: 732 (link) and UNHCR: 178,357 arrivals in the EU, 153,362 in Greece, 24.092 in Italy. 728 dead/missing.
"Deportations of refugees and migrants to Turkey and the detention of asylum-seekers on Greek islands must stop, three aid groups said on Friday, citing fears for human rights raised by an EU-Turkey deal to curb an influx of people into Europe...
"Refugees could be returned to Turkey without having had a proper asylum hearing or without receiving the necessary information about their legal rights," international charity Oxfam, humanitarian NGO Norwegian Refugee Council and Greek group Solidarity Now warned in a joint statement...
"The increasing use of detention as a restriction of the freedom of movement of asylum-seekers on the grounds of their irregular entry is a major concern," they aid groups said.
From the onset, the EU-Turkey agreement has been fiercely criticised by United Nations refugee and human rights agencies, as well as rights groups, as immoral and a violation of international humanitarian law against blanket returns..."
Se aslo: Deportations of refugees and migrants from Greece must be halted as fears of human rights violations grow (Solidarity Now, Greece, link)
In addition to Iran and Iraq, Turkey has proposed Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Eritrea, Morocco, Ghana, Myanmar, the Republic of Congo, Somali, Sudan and Tunisia conclude readmission deals, Turkish officials told Hürriyet Daily News on April 12.
“Negotiations have still been underway with these source countries,” the same officials, speaking anonymously, said."
"Please read and share as much as possible, also pass on to any friends you may have in the press to see if we can get some attention on this problem...
NUTRITION OF BABIES IN VIAL DETENTION CENTER, CHIOS
As many are aware, conditions in Vial are atrocious. There is a dire shortage of drinking water and of food, and a complete dearth of most everything else. But the most vexing, appalling, devastating situation by far, the one that is calling out for immediate change, is that of young babies at Vial. There is no system whatsoever in place for distribution of baby milk (baby formula) for young babies. Patchwork semi-solutions have been brought by selfless, exhausting efforts on the part of individual volunteers (in particular Kostas Tanainis) who have occasionally been allowed in depending on the irrational whim of guards; there is no official policy in place. When donated baby milk has been delivered to the camp but volunteers were not allowed to distribute it, it has languished undistributed."
This petition will be delivered to: Alexis Tsipras, Greece Police, EU Union, media"
"Greek military are circling #Idomeni and the surrounding areas as part of a supposed drill. Soldiers deployed on ground just hundreds of meters from the main camp, 5 fighter jets and 4 military choppers all active. Kids and mothers screaming and scared in camp due to the military presence, which obviously brings back memories of the war they are fleeing from. Volunteers also being arrested regularly for frivolous offenses. 26 arrested yesterday alone. The Greek clampdown has begun, crazy scenes to witness in 21st century Europe....
Oxfam, British Refugee Council, International Rescue Committee and 10 other organisations have condemned UK government as turning a blind eye to suffering on its doorstep and needs to “accept its moral responsibility”. Although the UK pledged 7.7 billion British pounds to countries in the Middle East (Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon) in February, the organisations called for the UK to step up their efforts to create a “safe haven” within British borders along with contributing more to humanitarian aid and assistance in improving conditions for refugees trapped at borders and in transit (particularly Greece). Maurice Wren from the British Refugee Council explained that “While European leaders demonstrate a collective failure of political leadership and moral courage, people who have escaped war and tyranny are met with barbed wire and tear gas, mums are forced to bathe their infants in dirty puddles, and yet more refugee children drown on Europe’s shores.”...
Germany deported 60 percent more migrants last year than in 2014, the government said on Wednesday, with figures from January and February showing that the pace of repatriations further accelerating. Some 22,369 people were forcibly returned to their countries of origin in 2015, up from 13,851 the previous year. In the first two months of this year close to 4,500 people were repatriated - twice as many as in January and February 2015. Meanwhile, the number of asylum seekers who have voluntarily left Germany also rose sharply, from 13,573 in 2014 to 37,200 in 2015. From January to March this year, voluntary repatriations reached 14,095."
"Kyrgyz human rights activists have gathered outside of parliament in Bishkek to protest against a proposed "foreign agents" law being considered by lawmakers.
The bill would require noncommercial, nongovernmental organizations involved in political activities -- and which receive any funds from foreign sources -- to be labled as “foreign agents”."
Seems a bit similar to what's happening in Greece?: NGOs and volunteers helping refugees in Greece to be placed under state control (Statewatch)
Greek army exercises trigger reaction from Turkey, FYROM (ekathimerini.com, link): "The Greek armed forces on Thursday staged military exercises on the country’s border with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and over the Aegean island of Oinousses, following several days of Turkish violations of Greek air space and tensions with FYROM. ... On Thursday, Greek police officers continued to conduct checks on volunteers and activists suspected of inciting refugees to storm across the FYROM border. Officers are attempting to prevent the activists, most of whom are foreign and aligned with anti-establishment groups, from distributing leaflets that urge the refugees to defy the advice of Greek and FYROM authorities and breach the frontier. Two Spanish men, aged 27 and 28, were detained on Thursday on several charges including disturbing the peace and putting the Greek state at risk. According to police sources, the two men were seen in a crowd of migrants trying to scale the barbed-wire border fence."
EU asylum applications from lone children quadruple (euobserver, link)
Greece: Almost Four Thousand People Still At Piraeus Port (News That Moves, link): "As of 13 April around 3,800 people were still waiting at the Piraeus port, in Athens, according to UNHCR data. Until recently, more than 5,000 people were camped there. Greek authorities announced that they are planning to fully evacuate the port by the end of April."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (14.4.16)
"They've made volunteers so afraid to perform their activities, which are safeguarding human rights, that even they now call the attempts of refugees to escape breaches of their right to dinity and reach safety "illegal". Crackdown against civil society is widening and intensifying in Idomeni. Volunteers must understand that if they don't jointly speak up, they're gonna be next.."
See Statement by InterVolve (International volunteers) (pdf): "Four of our volunteers were arrested today for carrying two-way radios on their way to camp of Eidomeni..We reserve our right to initiate legal action concerning false accusations made today by journalists and the media."
And see: Greek Police crack down on activists along FYROM border (ekathimerini.com, link):
"As tensions flared anew at Greece’s border with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia on Wednesday, police detained five foreign nationals – a German, a Briton and three Norwegians – who are alleged to have committed a string of offenses while acting in purported solidarity with refugees who want to cross the border.
The German woman was arrested near the Idomeni refugee camp after officers found a can of pepper spray in her possession. The other four activists were said to be carrying transistor radios that were allegedly tuned into the frequency used by the Greek Police (ELAS).
Officers have been conducting spot checks on people in and around the Idomeni camp amid fears that certain activists are exhorting refugees and migrants to break through Greece’s border with FYROM."
"Clashes erupted at Greece’s northern border for the second time in three days on Wednesday, with the Macedonian police firing tear gas on scores of migrants as they protested border closings that have left more than 12,000 stranded in a makeshift refugee camp.
The protests in Idomeni, a town in Greece on the border with Macedonia, came as Greek authorities arrested 14 activists there, saying that they had incited the migrants to storm the razor-wire fence dividing the two countries."
"Reporting about the refugees who have attempted the dangerous trip across Aegean, we sometimes forget to reflect on living conditions of those who couldn't afford the place on a smuggler's boat. One of our volunteer contacts, who wishes to remain anonymous, has sent us a disturbing personal testimony about refugees who are stuck in Turkey: ...
MSF issued a report about the state of the migrants and refugees at the closed facility on Samos. There are more than 700 asylum seekers, mostly from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afganistan, Syria, Iraq, Sudan, Lebanon, Algeria, Morocco and Egypt, on Samos currently. Many are women and children. According to MSF, most of them arrived by boat after 20 March. “Migrants were told they will be sent to a camp in Athens in accordance with the relocation mechanism set out in the Dublin Regulation. This allows refugees to choose eight countries from the list of EU states, and efforts will be made to send them to one of them. However, there appears to be no guarantee that the choice of eight countries will be respected. In general, people don’t know what even the near future holds for them..."
"Army's helicopters, air jets and armed soldiers in coordinated activity have left Idomeni Camp. It cannot be deemed justified, under ANY respect, that a military exercise took place exactly where thousands of people having fled war have camped, without ANY concern on -at least- informing about it? These people have re-lived the terror of war attacks today. Children cannot stop crying and shaking. Who is going to treat these children who have been re-traumatized today? WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO US LATELY?" and
(link) "Interim measure request just sent to the European Court of Human Rights, on behalf of several women alone with dozens of children, stranded in Idomeni, requesting authorities to stop terrorising them, and especially their children. After the recent teargas, grenades and shooting plastic bullets that Greek authorities just watched F.Y.R.O.M. authorities throw and fire, today refugees in Idomeni are surrounded by air and land by jets glying low above their heads, tanks, army with guns running around them in an acute war-like environment. No one has informed them why this is happening. For God's, Allah's, Jesus', Buddha's and Universe's sake.
These people have just fled war.These thousands of children have escaped a war field. STOP doing this to them! Enough with inhumanity. ENOUGH!"
Human rights group slams EU, Greece over refugee, migrant living conditions on islands (ekathimerini.com, link): "Human Rights Watch issued a statement criticizing what it said were the “deplorable conditions” in which about 4,000 people were being detained on the Greek islands of Lesvos and Chios.... The statement also said: “Turkey cannot be considered a safe country due to its refusal to grant effective protection to non-Europeans in need, including Afghans and Iraqis.”"
UNHCR Daily Report 13.4.16: "Regarding relocation and resettlement of persons in need of international protection, EU Member States were urged by the European Commission (EC) to urgently deliver on their political and legal commitments.
Only 208 people were relocated since 16 March, bringing the total number of relocated applicants from Greece and Italy to 1,145. The EC estimates that between 35,000 and 40,000 people in Greece would be eligible for relocation. As of 12 April, 615 people were relocated from Greece. The EC calls on EU Member States to drastically increase their relocation efforts in order to alleviate the urgent humanitarian situation in Greece and prevent the deterioration of the situation in Italy."Daily Report 14.4.16:: "A broad majority of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voiced concern over the agreement and called on the Commission and Council to closely monitor the situation of human rights and freedom of speech in Turkey, as well as allegations that Syrian refugees are being pushed back to Syria by the Turkish authorities. They also questioned whether Turkey can be considered a “safe country” of return for refugees."
Refugee country ‘safe lists’ complicated by European disunity (euractiv, link): "The Geneva Convention clearly defines where can be considered a “safe country of origin”, but the refugee crisis has complicated the issue and thrust it back into the limelight.... This is particularly relevant in the current debate, where Germany wants to list Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia as safe, yet Bulgaria has long included Algeria on its own list. Morocco and Tunisia are currently not listed on any national lists as safe. The matter highlights in particular how flexible international law is and how much power individual countries have over determining where is safe and where is not. Currently, 12 member states have compiled “safe lists”, yet there is not one single country that appears on all 12 lists, emphasising the bloc’s failures to coordinate on a common refugee policy...".
Greece: Tell us what it's like to live in Lesbos (The Guardian, link): "Pope Francis is set to arrive on the Greek island on Saturday to show his support and solidarity for refugees. We’d like to know what life is like in Lesbos."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (13.4.16)
"We, the independent volunteers of the Shorba Crew and other groups in Idomeni have not been starting protests in the camps and strongly resent accusations by the media that we are 'fake volunteers'. Since January, The Shorba Crew have cooked over 500,000 meals and served them in and around Idomeni camp. Media and police has accused volunteers of starting the protests in camp which have been responded to with the sickening and indiscriminate violence of the FYROM border forces. As a result volunteers have been subject to intensified police harassment.
Yesterday (12/04/16) three volunteers were illegally detained while driving to the Idomeni camp. The reason given was to provide identification - something that we all do regularly on site....
A female member of the group was illegally forced to strip for a complete search, again without pretext. Phones were taken. The owner of the car was beaten then handcuffed and taken to another room by four other police and loudly threatened with more violence while his friends had to listen outside. He has since been taken to Kilkis and remains in police custody until at least tomorrow morning. No reason has been given for this violent detainment and violation."
"2016 began with a move to have all volunteers registered with the police. In a crisis where immigration law criminalises vital humanitarian work, this is a recipe for disaster. And it is not just about elbowing out the political activists; to ‘allow authorities time to organise the registration process’, entire flights chartered for volunteers have been cancelled. Even Clowns Without Borders were barred from the camps. The same thing is now happening in France, where independent volunteers are being barred from the camps at Dunkirk and Calais, reduced to watching months of work burned to the ground by authorities branding them ‘uncaring’ and ‘dangerous’.
There’s another glaring cause for concern on the Greek front: over half their police are Golden Dawn supporters. So, fifty-fifty chance you’re registering sensitive information with an armed fascist. That wasn’t an abstract danger to any of us: we had witnessed the racism and brutality. One night, we were so afraid of the police in our building, we slept in the car....
It was the beginning of a crackdown ordered from the highest levels. The Council of the European Union is preparing plans to equate humanitarian assistance with people trafficking, criminalising those saving lives at sea and caring for survivors on land. “We feel as if we are in the resistance in World War Two,” said Lara. “We were ‘randomly’ checked for papers and passports and told not to feed the hungry. Every move we make is being watched.”
See Statewatch coverage: NGOs and volunteers helping refugees in Greece to be placed under state control and Council proposals on migrant smuggling would criminalise humanitarian assistance by civil society, local people and volunteers
and: Greece gets two-week deadline for border plan (euobserver, link): “The commission requests that Greece provide the additional elements and clarifications by 26 April and offers its continuous support to Greece,” the EU executive’s statement said. If, however, deficiencies persist, the commission will present a proposal to allow member states to extend border controls beyond an initial six-month period"
See: Communication: Assessment of Greece's Action Plan to remedy the serious deficiencies identified in the 2015 evaluation on the application of the Schengen acquis in the field of management of the external border (COM 220-16, pdf)
Greece: She thought she'd seen the worst of the refugee camps. Then she went to Idomeni (upworthy.com, link)
Europe migrants: Austria builds Brenner border centre despite criticism (BBC News, link): "Austria says it has begun work to tighten immigration controls at a key north-south European crossing point."
Greek coast guard rescues 120 migrants off Lesvos, Samos (.ekathimerini.com, link): "Greek coast guard officers rescued 120 refugees and migrants in three separate incidents off Lesvos and Samos, authorities said on Wednesday morning. Officials said that between Tuesday and Wednesday morning there had been 101 arrivals on the Aegean islands. There are currently 3,644 people at the Lesvos hotspot, 1,827 in Chios and 516 on Samos, according to authorities."
Commission defends plan to deport Afghans to ‘safe’ regions (euracttiv, link): "EXCLUSIVE / The European Commission has confirmed the existence of a plan that would see 80,000 Afghans deported back to their homeland and stressed that it is still in line with the spirit of European migration policy.."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (12.4.16)
"As far as information about accommodation possibilities from the Hellenic Police to migrants who are not staying in a reception/registration or detention centre is concerned, Greece is requested to implement the measures without delay."
and Report: Second report on relocation and resettlement (COM 222-16, pdf):
"From 16 March until 11 April, only 208 additional people had been relocated, 46 from Greece (to Estonia, Portugal and Finland) and 162 from Italy (to Portugal, France, Finland and Romania), bringing the total number of persons relocated to 1,145 (615 from Greece and 530 from Italy)....
The total number of formal pledges by Member States of relocation amounts to 4,516 (1,573 to Italy and 2,943 to Greece) 2.82% of total. Austria, Croatia, Hungary and Slovakia have still not submitted any pledge. Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovenia have not yet delivered on their pledges
"Despite the positive points in the Metsola, Kyenge report on 'the situation in the Mediterranean and the need for a holistic EU approach to migration', voted in Parliament today, the lack of criticism concerning the recent EU-Turkey agreement was among the reasons why many members of the group were unable to back the report and abstained....
MEP Spinelli continues: "The main reason I recommended our group to abstain was, however, the complete absence of criticism of the recent EU-Turkey deal: a deal deemed illegal even by the UN secretary general’s special representative for international migration and development for two fundamental reasons: it promotes collective deportations and considers Turkey as a safe third country.""
An EU source told New Europe that the European Commission could consider a partial recovery of the €80 million of EU taxpayers’ money that was provided for the cause of developing reception places in Greece, “but would rather see the UNHCR deliver on its obligations.”
In December, the European Commission agreed to provide the UNHCR with the sum of €80 million to develop 20,000 additional reception places for asylum seekers and relocation candidates in Greece through subsidies for housing in the private sector.
The UNHCR committed to use have the places ready by January this year. By March 11th, significantly past the deadline, 1,387 of the 20,000 reception places had been used through the scheme. The UNHCR capacity is currently 3,242 places; 16,758 places short."
Daily Report (11.4.16): "Regarding the clashes of last Sunday, Achilleas Tzemos, of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), told Reuters that of more 30 of the 300 people treated had wounds caused by rubber bullets. A similar number had open wounds, and 200 others had respiratory problems resulting from exposure to teargas.
“Among those with breathing difficulties there were quite a few women and children,” he said."
The huge increase was discovered by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism during an investigation into the level of migration among unaccompanied children, defined as those under 18 years old, in Europe and the stark inconsistencies in the way they are treated.
From approaching 29 different governments for statistics, the investigators found that at least 95,070 applied for asylum in Europe in 2015, up from 23,572 in 2014."
And see: Revealed: Fourfold rise as 95,000 unaccompanied children claim asylum in Europe in 2015 (BIJ, link)
"An amateur video published on social media yesterday (11 April), showing the arrest of asylum seekers by vigilantes, sparked debates at political level and among the wider public about the role of so-called “patriots” in discouraging refugees from crossing through Bulgaria.The amateur shows vigilantes arresting three refugees, tying their hands behind their backs as they lie on the ground in a wood."
And: Bulgarian vigilantes filmed tying up migrants (BBC News, link) and Bulgaria Awards Vigilante Migrant-Hunters (Balkan Insight, link): "Police have given an award to one of the voluntary ‘border patrols’ which have been gaining popularity in Bulgaria, with groups of ordinary people detaining migrants and handing them to the authorities."
Tensions were still running high after Sunday's violence, which saw 250 migrants and refugees hurt at the flashpoint Idomeni crossing as they tried to force their way into FYROM. “Faced with people who were clearly not armed and constituted no serious threat, they attacked with chemicals, with tear gas and rubber bullets,” Tsipras told reporters, blaming FYROM police.
“This is a great shame for European culture and for countries who want to be part of it,” he said, calling on the EU and the UN refugee agency UNHCR to take a stand as Europe struggles cope with its worst migration crisis since World War II."
UNHCR Daily Report (12.4.16): "Speaking to public broadcaster ERT, Brigadier General Zacharoula Tsirigoti, head of Greece’s immigration police, stated that about 3,500 people are currently located at the detention facility in Moria on the island of Lesvos. Almost all those present have expressed interest in submitting an application to request asylum; applications are now being processed. Of those, about 700 persons with specific needs have been transferred to the municipality’s open accommodation centre in Kara Tepe. Tsirigoti also said the asylum service on Lesvos has been strengthened with an additional 46 staff and aims to examine 50 applications per day. She added that Syrian nationals who will be returned by plane to Turkey under the EU-Turkey agreement will be processed in Osmaniye Province (near Adana)." and
In Austria, UNHCR issued a press release to express concern regarding the intended amendment of the Asylum Act. The draft law foresees limited access for asylum-seekers to the asylum procedure. The majority of those seeking international protection could, on the basis of this legislation, be rejected at the border in a fasttrack procedure and be returned to Austria’s neighbouring countries unless having close family ties in Austria. UNHCR called for joint European solutions rather than unilateral measures. Furthermore, access to the territory and fair asylum procedures for all asylum-seekers, the respect for legal minimum standards, and special treatment for children and particularly vulnerable people were urged. UNHCR appeals to the Austrian Federal government to reconsider the proposed amendment and adopt measures in line with international and European refugee law." and see:
NGOs slam Austria's asylum law changes (The Local.at, link): "Austria’s biggest charities have joined forces to slam the government’s increasingly hardline approach to dealing with migrants and refugees, in what is arguably the biggest criticism of the strategy from the country’s NGO sector yet Caritas, Diakonie and the Austrian Red Cross - who all provide services to refugees as part of their work - spoke out at a press conference on Monday against a change to the country’s asylum law. As of mid-May, the government will only accept cases of refugees facing threats to their safety in a neighbouring transit country or whose relatives are already in Austria.."
Greece: Migrant inflows ease on islands of eastern Aegean (ekathimerini.com, link): "in the 24-hour period to 9 a.m. on Tuesday, a total of 80 people landed on Greece’s shores, a marked drop from the hundreds trying to enter the European Union daily before a deal with Turkey to curb inflows was put into effect at the start of the month. Of these 80, 75 landed on Lesvos, four on Chios and one on Samos. There were no Syrians among them, officials told the ANA-MPA."
Fifteen questioned as part of tighter policing of Idomeni refugee camp (ekathimerini.com, link): "Police on Tuesday remanded 13 foreign nationals and two Greeks at the makeshift refugee camp at Idomeni on Greece’s northern border with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).... Most of the suspects are foreign nationals – from Germany, Britain, the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Portugal and the Czech Republic. They were questioned in connection with reports that Sunday’s storming of the border, as well as several similar incidents in the past, may have been incited by anti-establishment groups."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (11.4.16)
Two extra mobile medical teams were added to the normal activities in Idomeni camp to assist the growing number of people in the camp.
"Today, frustration and a growing feeling of anger are spread among the refugees who have been stranded in Idomeni for over one month. What we see is the inevitable result of thousands being trapped in Greece, a country unable to respond to the humanitarian and protection needs of those in search of safety in Europe,” stated Jose Hulsenbek, MSF’s Head of Mission in Greece. "What people need is to be treated with dignity, not violence or unpredictable border closures and more uncertainty. This absurd humanitarian crisis created by European states’ policies is becoming more unbearable by the day.” "
And see: Macedonian police teargas, pepper spray refugees at Greek border: Who supplied the "crowd control" equipment? (Statewatch News Online)
"We believe that the building of walls and fences, the unilateral and uncoordinated implementation of measures or the unwillingness to participate in commonly agreed actions, such as resettlement and relocation schemes, undermine European solidarity as well as the humane and effective management of migrant flows.
Europe must remain open to hosting people in need of international protection, by replacing dangerous, irregular migration routes with legal processes of resettlement of refugees from countries neighboring Syria and by accelerating the relocation processes of refugees already in Greece and Italy. At the same time, the EU must enhance efforts to establish readmission agreements with the countries of origin of economic immigrants."
Since March 2014, Refugee Support Network (RSN) has been systematically monitoring what happens to former child asylum seekers who have been forcibly removed to Afghanistan after turning 18. After Return – published on 5th April at the Institute of Education – documents their experiences and, for the first time, fills a vital evidence gap in their education, employment, health and wellbeing outcomes."
See also: Deported to persecution: The Home Office's Eritrean programme (politics.co.uk, link): " It was roughly twelve months after 31-year-old Gebre Berhane (not his real name) escaped Eritrea that the letter came through from the Home Office. He'd already lost 13 years of his life to forced military service and faced the threat of a regime which he says kidnapped his father turning on him. Berhane was sure his request for asylum would be accepted and his nightmare would come to an end."
They wait to learn of their fate inside a fenced reception and removal centre in the town of Pehlivankoy. The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) says it has yet to gain access to the facility.
Migrants from Pakistan, Egypt, Afghanistan and Iraq call for freedom from behind the facility’s barred windows.
They were deported from Lesbos on Friday (April 8) under the controversial EU-Turkey deal to stem mass irregular migration to Europe."
EU-TURKEY: The First Migrants Deported Back to Turkey Under an E.U. Deal Face an Uncertain Future (Time, link): "The men stepping off the boat carried few belongings: a backpack, a blanket, a light jacket. Escorted by uniformed officials, they walked one by one down a gangplank lined on both sides by police officers, into the control of the Turkish immigration authorities.
They were among 45 Pakistani men sent by boat to Turkey from Greece on Friday morning, making them some of the first people deported under a Turkish-European agreement intended to halt the historic wave of migrants seeking to enter Europe by sea. A reported 124 people were scheduled to be deported on Friday from Greek islands under the agreement, which calls for migrants arriving in Greece via the informal sea route to be returned to Turkey. After surviving the potentially lethal crossing from Turkey to Greece across the Aegean Sea—a journey that took the lives of hundreds of migrants last year—all of them are now back in Turkey."
EU aid an ineffective tool to end the migration crisis (EurActiv, link): "Since the beginning of the refugee crisis, the EU has announced a host of measures aimed at bringing the situation under control. Europe’s development assistance budget, the largest international aid pot in the world, has so far made up a large share of the financial shortfall. But the results of similar action in the past have not always met expectations."
Fewer than 0.1% of Syrians in Turkey in line for work permits (The Guardian, link): "Fewer than 0.1% of Syrians in Turkey currently stand to gain the right to work under much-vaunted Turkish labour laws, undermining EU claims that the legislation excuses a recent decision to deport Syrian asylum-seekers back to Turkey.
Turkish employers have allowed roughly 2,000 – or 0.074% – of Turkey’s 2.7 million Syrians to apply for work permits under new legislation enacted two months ago, according to government figures provided to aid workers at a meeting in late March. The number of permits granted has not yet been disclosed."
Greek Politician Says Closing Borders Would Keep the 'Enemy' Inside (Sputnik News, link): "The migration crisis is a test that will show the level of Europe's stability, Greek government spokeswoman Olga Gerovasili told Sputnik Express Greek-language radio program.
"Europe today is being tested for stability. There are countries that have closed the borders, believing that by doing so, they will run away from the so-called enemy. The truth is that if an enemy, whatever enemy, exists they shut [the enemy] inside by closing the borders," Gerovasili said."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (9-10.4.16)
Idomeni: Children teargassed as FYROM goes against refugees in Greece (keeptalkinggreece.com, link) "There has never happened before: that police of one country fires teargas on the soil of another country. FYROM police made extensive use of teargas and sound flares against refugees and migrants who are on Greece’s soil."
Macedonian police use teargas on migrants at Greek border (Reuters, link): "Macedonian police used teargas to push back hundreds of migrants from a border fence on Sunday at a sprawling refugee camp on the Greek border, a Reuters witness said. Teargas was fired on a crowd of more than 500 people who had gathered at the frontier at the makeshift camp of Idomeni. A Greek police source said there was "tension" in the area but declined to comment further."
Macedonia police deploy tear gas on refugees at Idomeni (DW, link): " For the first couple of hours the protests were calm. After speaking with Greek police, five refugees even agreed to go to the border to negotiate with the Macedonian authorities. "We are not the ones who keep the borders closed," a Macedonian police officer said with the help of an English-speaking interpreter. "We are following Europe's orders. Please remain calm and peaceful and do not try to break the fence."
One of the representatives responded: "We understand, and we want to be peaceful. But behind me there are 10,000 people - refugees who are fleeing war - and they have been here for months now. We want a solution."" Ten minutes later the clashes broke out."
See: Leaked Skopje letter exposes ‘closed borders’ coalition (7.3.16, euractiv, link): "EXCLUSIVE / A list of requests to protect external borders recently sent to several member states by the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has exposed the weaknesses of the group of countries blocking an EU-wide solution of the refugee crisis... Balkan states met in Vienna on 24 February to discuss possible solutions to the refugee crisis in the Western Balkans region, including closing borders. Greece was not invited. Hosted by Austria’s EPP-affiliated foreign and interior ministries, the meeting, attended by Albania, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Kosovo, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia...
A week later (1 March), police chiefs from four Balkan countries — Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia — along with Austria, the Dutch presidency and Hungary, met in Belgrade...The former Yugoslav republic sent a detailed 12-page letter to several member states describing its needs, in order to have its southern border under full control....It also asks for equipment to be used for crowd control, and the monthly expenses for personnel, vehicles, and the technical capability of an army to be fully covered....In Annex No 3, “Equipment for crowd control”, Macedonia requests special bombs (shock, with rubber balls) pepper spray and crowd control dispensers."
See Annex 3: Equipment for crowd control (pdf) which countries suppled: "crows control dispenser" "pepper sprays", "Tasers", "rubber bullets", "acoustic device to break up mob", "Launcher (grenade with rubber balls"? (and see Footnote).
Note: The table contains individual and collective equipment for a platoon to deal with crowd"
See Electra (link)"We kindly request Médecins du Monde Greece, Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Save The Children, and volunteer doctors on Idomeni camp, once they finish treating people / referring them to hospitals, to communicate with me. A massive appeal for investigation, accountability and urgent respect to fundamental rights has been addressed to Greek and F.Y.R.O.M.'s authorities concerning today's events at Idomeni and the teargas bombing of vulnerable persons (among which thousands of children, and persons with compromised health and disabilities) in tents, who did not participate in any hostile act towards border's officials.
The report and urgent request to FYROM, submitted by me as authorized by - among others- 26 single refugee mothers with seventy children- is also being sent to the Office of the Special Representative of the European Union and the Delegation of the European Commission in Skopje, and to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe - OSCE in Skopje.
All those holding documentation (pictures, videos, testimonies etc.) concerning today's events are also invited to send us relative information, with a note that we can use it in front of national and supra-national authorities, in the email electrakoutra@yahoo.gr."See also: Migrants clash with police on Greece-FYROM border (ekathimerini.com, link): "Clashes continued into the afternoon, and the wind brought tear gas fumes into a nearby makeshift camp on the Greek side of the border holding over 11,000 stranded migrants. Many people, including small children, who were not involved in the clashes, were suffering from respiratory problems.
Volunteer doctors were treating several dozen migrants with respiratory problems, slight injuries from the plastic bullets and facial injuries from close quarter clashes when the fence was temporarily breached, Achilleas Tzemos, deputy field coordinator of Doctors Without Borders told The Associated Press. He said three were referred to hospitals."
Macedonian police use teargas on migrants at Greek border (Reuters, link): "Macedonian police used teargas to push back hundreds of migrants from a border fence on Sunday at a sprawling refugee camp on the Greek border, a Reuters witness said. Teargas was fired on a crowd of more than 500 people who had gathered at the frontier at the makeshift camp of Idomeni. A Greek police source said there was "tension" in the area but declined to comment further."
Macedonia police deploy tear gas on refugees at Idomeni (DW, link): " For the first couple of hours the protests were calm. After speaking with Greek police, five refugees even agreed to go to the border to negotiate with the Macedonian authorities. "We are not the ones who keep the borders closed," a Macedonian police officer said with the help of an English-speaking interpreter. "We are following Europe's orders. Please remain calm and peaceful and do not try to break the fence."
One of the representatives responded: "We understand, and we want to be peaceful. But behind me there are 10,000 people - refugees who are fleeing war - and they have been here for months now. We want a solution."" Ten minutes later the clashes broke out."
This Decision brings forward the starting date on the main Agreement adopted in 2014: AGREEMENT between the European Union and the Republic of Turkey on the readmission of persons residing without authorisation (pdf)
"“These plans are simply illegal”
Vehement criticism of the planned deal has already been voiced in the run-up to it. On 8 March Filippo Grandi, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees stated: “As a first reaction, I am deeply concerned about any arrangement that would involve the blanket return of anyone from one country to another without spelling out the refugee protection safeguards under international law.” The Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights found similarly clear words: “These plans are simply illegal”.,,,
European Commission: Turkey is not a “safe third country”
The European Commission tries to play down and obfuscate the legal obstacles of the EU-Turkey deal. According to law in the European Union a “safe third country” has to have signed the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees without reservations. The European Commission now merely talks of “equivalent protection” to the Convention. That amounts to admitting that Turkey does not meet the necessary conditions now. The required protection is not available in Turkey: The Convention does not apply to refugees from Syria, Iraq and other non-European countries.,,,,
We continue to say no to this dirty deal with Turkey! Together with our partner organizations in Europe we will advocate for protection applicants in the Aegean not to be mere objects of a European return mechanism."
"According to the Government sources, at 8AM today there were 52,953 refugees stranded in Greece. There were 6,750 people stranded on the islands - 3,873 on Lesvos, 712 on Samos, 1,703 on Chios, 323 on Leros, 15 on Kos, 79 on Rodos, 15 on Kalymnos and 30 on Kastellorizo. The Government reports 14,398 in Attica region of whom 4,569 in Piraeus port. Further, there is 2,528 people in Central Greece and 340 in Southern Greece (in Kyllini Andravidas). Finally, the Government reports 28,937 in Northern Greece of whom 11,269 in Idomeni. Number of new arrivals on the islands in 24h period until 07:30am was 120, of which 116 on Lesvos and 4 on Samos...
Massive protest occurred in front of the EU 's offices in Athens. Greeks and refugees have united in their struggle against the EU-Turkey deal in Athens, flooding the streets of Greek capital with tons of positive energy and determination. Riot police with gas masks on didn't have to intervene as many kids in the rally passed by them.."
2/04/2016: 75
3/04/2016: 173
4/04/2016: 187
5/04/2016: 0
6/04/2016: 0
7/04/2016: 43
8/04/2016: 116
Total 594UNHCR: Daily Report (8.4.16):
"Out of the approximately 6,000 people who arrived to the Greek Islands since the 20 March, following the the EU-Turkey, at least 2,870 expressed interest to apply for asylum. The Greek authorities confirmed that they will not be returned as their applications need to be filed and assessed. Consequently, returns will take place at a slower rate than envisaged." and
"Rising tension and distress have been reported across Greece. Over the past week, several protests took place at Eidomeni, Piraeus, on the Thessaloniki-Evzonoi national highway, as well as across the islands. On Chios, UNHCR reports observing noteworthy limitations of asylum claims being processed following registration of intent; both processes are experiencing significant backlog. Due to uncertainty and lack of clarity, tension on the island manifested when 800 people left the vastly overcrowded facility last week which ultimately led to a march into Chios town. Yesterday, on Samos, reports show that approximately 200 people left the hotspot and were moving towards the center of Samos where they congregated peacefully. No violence was reported."
"A year ago, Nina Coulson was a mum of six enjoying ordinary family life, until making Facebook friendships with rescuers hauling desperate refugees from the waters of the Greek island of Lesbos. The horror stories about what they've witnessed will move you and have changed Nina's life
Now, she runs a charity, UK Action for Refugees and has added remarkable teenage lifesaver Elleni Kempson to her brood. And she credits big-hearted Westcountry people for making a difference.
She says: 'I think this crisis has changed the face of charity in the UK. We're just people helping people.'
"ECRE and the International Commission of Jurists presented on 24 March 2016 a joint submission on the situation of the asylum procedure and reception conditions in Greece to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe.
The submission was presented in view of a meeting of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on the implementation by Greece of the European Court of Human Rights’ judgment in the case of M.S.S. v Belgium and Greece that will take place next June."
See Joint submission (pdf)
"It analyses the impact, on the Operation, of Security Council resolution No 2240 (2015), and the consequent Political and Security Committee Decision (CFSP) 2016/118 implementing the former. From a broader perspective, the insight briefly comments on the international politics behind the Operation and the role of the Union in this context. It also reflects on crucial legal issues raised by Council Decision (CFSP) 2015/778 like the place of persons captured and/or rescued on board ships participating in the Operation, the Council’s choice of the legal basis and the normative dimension of the Decision."
In an interview with Kathimerini’s Sunday edition, Robert Crepinko, the Slovenian director of Europol’s newly-launched European Migrant Smuggling Center (EMSC), said that 10 undercover officers are currently stationed on the Aegean islands of Lesvos, Samos, Chios and Leros, as well as the port of Piraeus, with the task of checking suspicious immigrants against Europol’s databases in the Netherlands.
“Together with the Greek authorities we are doing secondary security checks to assess the possibly dangerous migrants before they would enter the EU,” Crepinko said."
"Refugees and migrants are detained unlawfully in dire conditions according to Amnesty International which was granted a permit by the Greek government to access the hotspots of Aegean islands, Chios and Lesvos.
“On the edge of Europe, refugees are trapped with no light at the end of the tunnel. A setup that is so flawed, rushed and ill-prepared is ripe for mistakes, trampling the rights and well-being of some of the most vulnerable people,” said Gauri van Gulik, Deputy Director for Europe at Amnesty International.
“People detained on Lesvos and Chios have virtually no access to legal aid, limited access to services and support, and hardly any information about their current status or possible fate. The fear and desperation are palpable.”
The open reception centers are now closed detention centers, where migrants and asylum seekers are automatically detained in groups, which is by definition arbitrary and therefore unlawful. In fact among them, there is a large number of pregnant women, children and babies." [emphasis added]
Five migrants drawn off Samos after boat capsizes (ekathimerini.com, link): "Five migrants – four women and one child – drowned when their boat capsized off the Greek island of Samos close to Turkey’s coast, Greek coast guard officials said on Saturday. Five other migrants were rescued, the officials said, and coast guard vessels assisted by a helicopter were searching for more survivors.... Although flows have slowed, migrants continue to reach the Greek islands. Greek authorities said 149 had arrived on Lesvos, Samos and Chios in the 24 hours to Friday morning. "
Erdogan warns he will ditch refugee deal if EU breaks promises (euractiv, link): "Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned the European Union on Thursday (7 April) that Ankara would not implement a key deal on reducing the flow of refugees if Brussels fails to fulfil its side of the bargain"
Refugee crisis reaches Greece's western shores (DW, link): "The refugee crisis in Greece is making its impact felt even in areas far away from the islands of the Eastern Aegean and the country's northern borders. Pavlos Zafiropoulos reports from the Peloponnese."
Greece: Athens DNA lab helps trace those lost at sea on Aegean crossing (UNHCR, link): ""It is an obligation of our state and a mark of civilisation," said Miniati, who was promoted last month from head of the DNA service to oversee the entire criminology service. "If someone is not found and buried, the process of mourning cannot begin. It's as though the souls continue to hover." About 4,400 people have died in the Mediterranean since 2015. The refugee crisis has meant that the DNA lab, located in an Athens suburb, has gone from dealing with about 30 cases a year on average to as many as 70 in two days, as happened last summer after two major shipwrecks in as many days. From last year up to March 20 this year, Greek authorities reported 571 people dead or missing on the route from Turkey to Greece."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (8.4.16)
"Civil Liberties MEPs quizzed the Commission on the conditions in the Greek reception facilities, the number and background of staff carrying out asylum interviews, returns and conditions for refugees in Turkey during this morning's debate on the EU-Turkey migration deal. MEPs also stressed the need to respect international law and live up to EU standards."
The Commission’s proposal to extend the fingerprinting of short-stay visa applicants to children from the ages of 6 and up is part of a list of possible “enhanced functionalities” (i.e. expanded uses) of the Visa Information System (VIS). These “functionalities” will be examined as part of a larger process of trying to beef up EU and national databases and information systems.
And see: EU calls for the fingerprinting of 6-year-old children
A new report from Amnesty International discusses the situation in Greece, following visits by the organisation to two detention centres (which used to be "hotspots"). It says that thousands of people have been arbitrarily detained pending removal (unless they manage apply for asylum) in the effort to implement the EU-Turkey deal.
See: Greece: Refugees detained in dire conditions amid rush to implement EU-Turkey deal (Amnesty International, link)
The report says:
"In Moria detention centre on Lesvos, Greek army and police exercise strict control over who goes in and out. The camp, which now houses around 3,150 people, is closed off from the outside world by several layers of fencing topped with barbed wire.
In VIAL detention centre on Chios, which is built around an abandoned aluminium factory, access is also tightly controlled. Security concerns linger following fierce clashes that broke out between different nationalities inside the camp overnight on 1 April, prompting more than 400 refugees and migrants to escape.
The majority of those who fled are now sleeping rough in and around the main port in downtown Chios. There is little security and scant access to basic services there."
There have been ugly scenes at the port as right-wing mobs have gathered outside and police have attempted to evacuate protesting refugees to a nearby camp. See: Refugees in Greece warn of suicides over EU-Turkey deal (The Guardian, link) and Bit of video from eviction of Chios port last night and numerous other tweets by Oscar Webb (Twitter, link).
The Amnesty report continues:
Only two of the refugees and migrants Amnesty International spoke to were able to show their detention orders based on their individual circumstances. Automatic, group-based detention is by definition arbitrary and therefore unlawful." (emphasis added)
Gauri van Gulik, Amnesty's Deputy Director for Europe, said:
"No asylum seeker should be automatically detained, and these detention centres on Lesvos and Chios are not in any way fit for purpose for the many young children, people with disabilities, or people with urgent medical needs we've met. They must be released immediately."
The extra labour promised as part of the EU-Turkey deal has so far not materialised:
"On 6 April the asylum service official who is the lone case worker at VIAL told Amnesty International the surge in applications is beyond his capacity to process. Out of 833 that had been filed he had processed only 10 - slightly over 1% - one of which was successful. While these cases were still processed under the old Greek asylum process, they indicate the extent of the current staffing shortfalls." (emphasis added)
Member States are so far falling short on providing some of the officials required, most notably interpreters - as of 6 April, they had provided 46 of the 400 requested. See: Statistics: implementing the EU-Turkey deal: "boots on the ground"
The Amnesty report makes numerous recommendations:
- The Greek and EU authorities must immediately halt mass returns until the following are effectively guaranteed:
Detention is used as a measure of last resort, with alternatives to detention considered - All decisions to detain must be based on a detailed and individualised assessment of the necessity to detain in line with a legitimate purpose.
- All detainees must be given the opportunity to challenge the lawfulness of their detention with access to legal aid
- Access to asylum procedures must be realistic and effective, including that timeframes for lodging supporting materials are appropriate for someone in detention, and access to legal and linguistic assistance should be made available
- Capacity to process claims must be increased significantly
- Asylum seekers in detention are provided with accurate legal information about the asylum process and their rights
- Conditions in detention must be humane and dignified
- All children should be immediately released from detention
- The special circumstances and needs of particular asylum-seekers must be taken into account, including victims of trauma or torture, children, women, older people, and asylum-seekers with disabilities
- Develop clear and rights-compliant guidelines on how the safe third country rule will be applied. Ensure the individual circumstances as well as up to date, independent information on the treatment and status of asylum seekers in Turkey are fully taken into account
Thousands of state officials from across Europe are supposed to be sent to Greece to help implement the EU-Turkey deal on refugees and migrants. This page gathers the statistics made available by the Commission on the process.
The numbers "pledged" are those offered by Member States, the requesting institution is the European Asylum Support Office or Frontex, as indicated.
6 April 2016: Member States remain either far less keen or far less able to provide interpreters, while the number of asylum officials requested for the operation has increased from 400 to 472. Amnesty International reported that during their visits on the 5 and 6 April, the VIAL detention centre in Moria had one asylum case worker.
The Commision help pledged to Greece does not include the provision of legal aid, lawyers, to advice refugees - they are entitled to independent legal represenatation.
The fight against so-called illegal immigration represents a priority in the policy implemented by the European Union which presents this form of migration as a dangerous scourge which must be combated. This attitude by the European Union is constituted by focussing on the consequences without worrying about the root causes of the migration phenomenon. Thus, the reasons that push our fellow nationals to leave are well known, as they concern a lack of employment for young people, their difficult economic and professional conditions and, most of all, a lack of any prospects which affects their daily life.
The distinction or categorisation of migrants (between economic migrants and asylum seekers) by the EU is an incorrect reading of the situation which does not contribute to reducing the phenomenon of flows towards Europe."
"Since the November 13 attacks in Paris, which killed 130 people and injured 350, and the New Year’s Eve melee in Cologne, where the police recorded 379 allegations of sexual assault and robbery, it has become increasingly difficult to have a sensible discussion about the refugee question in Europe. Even though the perpetrators of the Paris attacks were almost all French and Belgian citizens, and the suspects in Cologne were mostly Moroccans and Algerians, politicians, commentators, and citizens throughout Europe have pointed to the events to justify the rejection of asylum seekers from Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East. They allege two things: a possible fifth column of terrorists traveling among the asylum seekers, and the impossibility of integrating these refugees into Western societies. What has been lost in the debate is the recognition that the recent influx of asylum seekers and the wave of anxiety it has generated have revealed the refugee question rather than having created it. Indeed, there is a long-standing distrust and hostility in Europe toward non-Europeans fleeing persecution and violence."
“If we can establish the same with Libya as what we’re working on with Turkey, as well as on our own borders: we have much to do,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel said after talks with French President Francois Hollande in Metz, France, on Thursday. “Huge numbers of refugees could make their way again to Malta, to Italy, tens of thousands of people,” Hollande said.
The EU last month reached an agreement with Turkey to stem the flow of migrants to Greece, raising the possibility that human traffickers will return to their previous favorite route from Libya across the Mediterranean Sea to Sicily. The United Nations brokered a unity government to end the chaos that swept Libya after the ouster of Moammar Qaddafi in 2011, but powerful factions, especially in the east, haven’t endorsed the plan."
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán justified his reluctance to accept Muslim migrants by arguing his country is already unduly burdened by its Roma population.
Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico played on familiar stereotypes about Roma as self-isolating and dependent upon welfare when he insisted “90 percent” of asylum seekers arriving in Europe last September were “economic migrants.”
On the campaign trail ahead of this month’s parliamentary election, Fico repeatedly insisted Muslims would be “impossible to integrate” while vowing to prevent the creation of a “compact community” of migrants."
1. The rights of the refugees are in jeopardy
2. Greece does not have the capacity to ensure fair asylum hearings
3. Asylum seekers are kept in detention
4. Europe is not taking its fair share of responsibility
5. The deal may push people towards more dangerous routes "
French, Germans & Italians overwhelmingly in favor of abandoning border-free Europe – poll (RT, link)
Nearly one-third of Turkey's wall along Syria complete - Out of 911-kilometer (559.2-mile) long rocket-resistant wall, 300 kilometers (186.4 miles) is complete, Turkish security sources say (aa.com.tr/en/turkey, link)
Frontex intercepts refugees travelling from Turkey to Greece (NRT, link): "CHIOS, Greece – People attempting to reach Greece from Turkey onboard smugglers boats were picked up by officers from the European Union's (EU) border agency Frontex early on Thursday (April 7) and brought to shore on the Greek island of Chios.Two Frontex vessels full of refugees docked at Chios port, with many children among the rescued. They were intercepted off the eastern shores of the island in dinghies, local authorities said, and would be taken to the "VIAL" holding center, where others have been held since March 20."
Questions mount over EU’s role in processing asylum requests (Irish Times, link): "Under the new regime created by the EU-Turkey agreement, asylum applications from island detainees must be processed within two weeks, in a fast-tracked time frame that includes the appeal process. Previously, the Greek asylum service took an average of three months to adjudicate on each application.
A key aspect sees the European Asylum Support Office (Easo), another EU agency, advise overburdened Greek asylum officials on the “admissibility” of each asylum seeker at the initial stage of processing. Easo spokesman Jean Pierre Schembri told the BBC: “This is a relatively short process involving our experts … accessing every applicant on his or her own merits. We then issue an opinion and the Greek authorities then issue the final decision.”
But human rights organisations fear the outcome of this truncated, two-step process, where Greek officials will essentially sign off on Easo recommendations, is predetermined to result in most applicants being returned to Turkey, a “safe third country” according to the agreement."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (7.4.16)
"The agreement of 17/18 March 2016 is a decision by the heads of state and of the governments of the EU which runs contrary to the European law that is in force. The violations which have been recorded are numerous, including the following,,," (read):
Signed by: Arci, Asgi, Federazione delle Chiese Evangeliche in Italia, Centro Astalli, FOCUS - Casa dei Diritti Sociali, Medici per i Diritti Umani, Consiglio Italiano per i rifugiati (CIR), SenzaConfine
"Over the last few weeks, dozens of people from Mali, Gambia, Pakistan, Somalia, Eritrea and Nigeria arrived in Palermo, as well as in Catania and other Sicilian cities, in possession of a deferred refusal of entry order which requires that they leave Italian territory from the border crossing in Rome’s Fiumicino [airport] within 7 days. They all come from Lampedusa, where they arrived after being intercepted at sea and taken onto the island.
These migrants have not been allowed to apply for international protection, although they had managed to contact UNHCR. They tell us that they were informed of the possibility of applying for asylum, without having any way to do so in practice.
Instead, they tell us they were forced to sign a form whose content they did not understand because they did not speak the language it was written in (while at the bottom of the order, absurdly, the phrase ‘the interested party refuses to sign’ is always present as these forms are prepared and pre-printed in bulk)...."
First signatories: Borderline Sicilia Onlus, Borderline-Europe, Centro salesiano Santa Chiara di Palermo, Circolo Arci Porco Rosso di Palermo, Ciss – Cooperazione Internazionale Sud Sud, Comitato Antirazzista Cobas (Palermo), Comitato NoMuos/NoSigonella, Forum Antirazzista di Palermo, La città Felice(Ct) – Le città vicine, L’Altro Diritto Sicilia, Laici Missionari Comboniani, Palermo Senza Frontiere, Rete Antirazzista Catanese
To sign up: forumantirazzistadipalermo@gmail.com
- Draft Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on a European travel document for the return of illegally staying third-country nationals (LIMITE doc no: 7172-16, pdf):
The EU hopes third countries will accept this, many have not in the past: It is defined as:
"The document shall be valid for a single journey to the third country of return."
On Wednesday the European Commission set out its plans to expand EU and national databases "to allow effective management of migration and to contribute to internal security." One of the myriad ways this could be done is by "collecting fingerprints of children between the age of 6 and 12 years old" who enter the EU on short-stay visas.See: page 9 of European Commission, Stronger and Smarter Information Systems for Borders and Security, COM(2016) 205 final, 6 April 2016
But Souaob Nouri from Kabul, who is held in the high-security camp in Chios, said: “If they deport us, we will kill ourselves. We will not go back.”A man next to him warned of “terrible scenes” if Greek authorities insisted on pursuing policies that have already caused alarm among human rights groups."
And on 7.4.16: "Nikos Xydakis, Greek junior foreign minister for European affairs, indicated there would likely be few people returned to Turkey over the next two weeks. The majority of persons present in the hotspots have lodged asylum claims which need to be processed before any further steps can be taken. Out of 3,097 refugees and migrants currently detained at Moria, Lesvos’ hotspot, an estimated 3,083 have expressed intention to apply for asylum."
Electra (link) Comments: "UNHCR participating as a PIVOTAL FACTOR in the procedure of Syrians' "trade" (one to come, one to go). All refugees having entered "irregularly" EU will not have a chance to enter it again "regularly". Eligible: will only be those having asked for temporary protection in Turkey BEFORE LAST DECEMBER. The population already here, if returned, has no chance to step on EU ground again."
"Officially, over the last 24 hours, 68 new arrivals were registered in Greece, 1 on Samos, 55 on Chios and 12 on Kos. According to the Government sources, at 8am there were 53,042 refugees stranded in Greece. There were 6,384 people stranded on the islands - 3,560 on Lesvos, 743 on Samos, 1,776 on Chios, 93 on Leros, 69 on Kos, 81 on Rodos, 15 on Kalymnos and 47 on Kastellorizo. The Government reports 14,797 in Attica of whom 4,720 in Piraeus, 2,566 people in Central Greece and 340 in Southern Greece (in KylliniAndravidas). Finally, the Government reports 28,955 in Northern Greece, including 11,269 in Idomeni.".
"While government authorities were trying to convince migrants and refugees stranded at Piraeus port to move to other shelters around the country Wednesday, harbor officials there lashed out at volunteers for allegedly encouraging refugees to demand the opening of European Union borders, despite last month’s deal between Brussels and Ankara to deport migrants back to Turkey....
In a statement issued Wednesday, the Piraeus Port Authority alleged that there are people there “that are obstructing the plan to transfer refugees and migrants to organized shelters” and urged judicial authorities to intervene so the law is upheld."
"The deal with Turkey has led to inhumane conditions for refugees and is in contravention with European and international law. The Geneva Convention, which was created in Europe, is being undermined. Under pressure from EU leaders, those seeking protection in Greece are being detained in inhumane conditions. These deportation centres are at odds with international obligations on the protection of refugees and European law.
"The democratic legitimacy of the agreement with Turkey is also highly questionable. Despite the fact that the European Parliament has full co-decision powers in the area of asylum and refugee policy, this deal was signed, sealed and implemented with no involvement of the parliament. The deal must be ended without delay.""
"Drones controlled by the EU will soon be flying across the continent under a European Commission plan to keep track of migrants arriving on Mediterranean shores.
The Commission says it needs its own fleet of remotely piloted aircraft systems to spot small refugee boats, as well as to enforce emissions standards and monitor ship safety elsewhere in Europe".
EU: No More Blanket Deportations of Migrants (Greek Reporter, limk): "As Turkey prepared to receive a second group of migrants deported from Greece this week, European Union officials pledged there would be “no automatic return” for the migrants before they are given a chance to apply for asylum. The announcement follows angry protests by international human rights activists who have accused the EU of denying migrants the basic rights of refugees to seek asylum as the deportations began from the Greek islands of Lesbos and Chios Monday."
Opinion: The illusion of a common EU asylum policy (DW, link): "The EU's current asylum system may not be enough in future, as the Commission has said. Yet their proposals for reform won't find a majority among the EU states, Christoph Hasselbach predicts."
Italy Rescues 300 on Boat from Egypt (Migrant Report, link): "The Italian Coastguard launched an overnight rescue on Thursday to rescue some 300 migrants from a vessel that left from Egypt." and Arrivals in Central Med up 300% in March (link)
Proposed new asylum rules elicit swift negative response from Prague (Radio Praha, link):"Amidst a deepening refugee crisis in Europe, the EC on Wednesday proposed new common asylum rules that would replace the so-called Dublin Regulation, under which people must claim asylum in the first EU state they enter. The two options proposed both envisage an automatic redistribution of migrants which the Czech Republic has consistently rejected."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (6.4.16)
" Overall, this is a very disappointing paper from the Commission. There are certainly abuses of the asylum system, but EU legislation already has many possibilities to address them, as regards fast-tracking decisions and appeals, reduced benefits and detention. There’s little evidence here of a balanced, rational and coherent response to the crisis. In fact, this looks rather more like panic.
Of course EU asylum law does not develop in a political vacuum. Member States had a key role agreeing these laws, and the main role implementing them and driving the reaction to the crisis. No criticism of the ‘EU response to the crisis’ should ignore what is ultimately driving that response: the neo-nationalist political parties which are in government in several Member States and form the main opposition in several more. But is endless concessions to these parties really the right strategy? They will always be able to outflank the political mainstream when it comes to anger, fear and ignorance. It’s always better to stand and fight for what you really believe in than to pretend to agree with your opponents’ fundamentally different views."
"I don’t want to forget the anguish in the voice of a mother who has lost her baby in the sea.
I don’t want to forget the feeling of numb fingers, frozen from picking up wet clothing off the ground.
I don’t want to forget the softness of a toddler’s arms on my shoulders as I dressed them.
I don’t want to forget the bright taste of fried cauliflower in lemon sauce, prepared so skillfully by a Syrian chef who helped us to cook for dozens of refugees before sitting down to feed his own family.I don’t want to forget the kick of sweetened chai tea on my tongue during a long afternoon.
I don’t want to forget the heat of a tightly bundled baby in my arms.
I don’t want to forget the smell of hundreds of bodies packed together into tents, families huddled together in groups, or the singular scent of clothing when it is the only set a person has.I don’t want to forget that there are people who need help, and there is a world worth fighting for.
I don’t want to forget that there are people in this world who will drop everything— careers, mortgages, degrees— to pour themselves into a crisis.I don’t want to forget the relief on the faces of those who made it here safely. I don’t want to forget the torment on the faces of those who left everyone they love behind. I don’t want to forget the terror and sadness of those who were turned away.
I don’t want to forget that this world is closer to my own than it is far away.
I don’t want to forget that I have the choice to go home, to choose a life for myself, and that is an unbelievable privilege.These are the things I will fight with all my might to remember. We all will."
- Commission presents options for reforming the Common European Asylum System and developing safe and legal pathways to Europe (Press release, pdf) and Communication: Towards a reform of the Common European Asylum System and enhancing legal avenues to Europe (COM 197, pdf)
- Stronger and Smarter Borders in the EU: Commission proposes to establish an Entry-Exit System (Press release, pdf): Communication (COM 194, pdf), Annexes 1-2 (pdf) and Staff Working Document: 114 (pdf)
- Regulation: amending Regulation (EU) 2016/399 as regards the use of the Entry/Exit System (COM 196, pdf) and COM 196: Annex 1 (pdf)
- Commission launches discussion on future framework for stronger and smarter information systems for border management and internal security (Press release, pdf) Communication: COM 205-16 (pdf) and Smart Borders Package: Questions & Answers (pdf)
- Security: EU strengthens response to hybrid threats (pdf): "The European Commission and the High Representative adopted today a Joint Framework to counter hybrid threats and foster the resilience of the EU, its Member States and partner countries while increasing cooperation with NATO on countering these threats. In recent years, the EU and its Member States have been increasingly exposed to hybrid threats that comprise hostile actions designed to destabilise a region or a state."
and see: Joint Framework on countering hybrid threats a European Union response (Commission and EEAS, pdf): Incliudes the need for a "EU Fusion Cell":
"While definitions of hybrid threats vary and need to remain flexible to respond to their evolving nature, the concept aims to capture the mixture of coercive and subversive activity, conventional and unconventional methods (i.e. diplomatic, military, economic, technological), which can be used in a coordinated manner by state or non-state actors to achieve specific objectives while remaining below the threshold of formally declared warfare.... Massive disinformation campaigns, using social media to control the political narrative or to radicalise, recruit and direct proxy actors can be vehicles for hybrid threats.,,,
Hybrid threats aim to exploit a country’s vulnerabilities and often seek to undermine fundamental democratic values and liberties." [emphasis added] Comment: . In the latter objective the EU itself is doing a pretty good job of doing this to itself.
"LESBOS, Greece — Through a barbed wire fence, 17-year-old Syrian refugee Asma attempted to tell us about her journey to Greece. We didn’t have much time to listen. Greek police officers were breathing down our necks, threatening to arrest us unless we left."
The trip by the pope, who will be accompanied by the head of the Eastern Orthodox Church, is likely to pile pressure on EU leaders already facing criticism over the controversial deal struck last month." and
Red Cross questions Turkey refugees deal (euractiv, link): "EXCLUSIVE / Francesco Rocca, the vice-president of the International Red Cross Federation, questioned the European Union’s controversial refugee repatriation agreement with Ankara on the first day refugees started being sent back to Turkey, EurActiv.com has learned.... Rocca expressed his views during a private meeting with the EU’s Regional Policy Commissioner Corina Cre?u on Monday (4 April). The rare broadside from the Red Cross, which usually refrains to criticise member states in which it operates..."
"This year is likely to be the most momentous for refugee protection and migration since the signing of the Geneva Convention in 1951. Depending on the choices we make, we will either help create more open societies, based on greater international cooperation, or we will abet authoritarian governments and their nationalist agendas. So we must treat this issue with exceptional urgency and seriousness of purpose. "
"Two deported refugees, Pakistanis who arrived yesterday in Turkey "inaugurating" the agreement between the European Union and Turkey attempted suicide when they arrived in current center for returnees. The reason for that was attempted and requested political asylum, for which their application was rejected immediately. One of them passed away later at a Turkish hospital."
"Pakistani refugees at Lesvos? told volunteers that police were arresting all Pakistani refugees, even those who claimed an asylum. Thus, refugees were protesting at Moria. At Chios, there are rumours about the deportations of refugees despite the fact that they claimed they wanted to claim asylum. Also, from several cases, volunteers got the impression that the deportations happen in a super-arbitrary way. Twice, volunteers claim, refugees almost got deported because they were standing "in the wrong crowd." Finally, Vincent Cochetel, director of UNHCR’s Europe bureau, said on Tuesday that 13 Afghans and Congolese asylum seekers who reached the Greek island of Chios after 20 March, and who were deported back to Turkey on Monday, had not been allowed to formally register their asylum claims due to administrative chaos on the island."
"Number of new arrivals on the islands in 24h period until 07:30am was 225, of which 187 on Lesvos, 20 on Samos and 18 on Kastellorizo. Significant free spaces according to official capacity: Leros 900, Elleniko Baseball 150, Ritsona 140, Thermopylae 110, Koutsochero 100, Diavata 230, Nea Kavala 460, Nea Karvali 250, Kozani 180, Nea Chrani 110, Doliana 200, Katsikas 380, Alexandria 890." [emphasis added]
"On 2 April, the Austrian Defense Minister, Hans Peter Doskozil, said that Austria will soon impose higher border controls along the Italian border and is likely to deploy military personnel in the area. According to the statement, the troops would help protect the border, administer aid as well as register and deport migrants. The EU Chief Spokesperson, Margaritis Schinas, said that Austria will not violate any Schengen rules if it imposes stricter border controls along the Italian border."
"UNHCR is concerned however, that 13 individuals (including some Afghans) among those returned from Chios had indicated to UNHCR their intention to apply for asylum, but may not have had the opportunity to formally register their intention with local authorities. Meanwhile, on the Aegean islands, many media reports are seen with persons complaining of not being given sufficient time and access to the asylum procedure. It is to be noted that about 4,000 migrants and refugees are being detained on Greek islands since the agreement came into effect March 20."
"The number of refugee arrivals in Italy this year is already 80% higher than in the same period in 2015. At the UN’s Geneva conference on Syrian refugees last Wednesday (30 March), Italy’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Paolo Gentiloni, announced that 3,700 people had been rescued over the previous five days alone. Gentiloni put the total number of asylum seekers having made the crossing in the first three months of 2016 at 18,234."
Greece sees two-week lag in migrant returns to Turkey, says official (ekathimerini.com): "A last-minute flurry of asylum applications by migrants desperate to avoid expulsion from Greece to Turkey will likely cause a two-week “lag” in an EU deportation plan slammed by rights groups, a Greek official said Wednesday.... Out of around 6,000 migrants who have arrived on the islands of Chios and Lesvos after the March 20 deadline, more than 2,300 have now applied for asylum. And many others had previously complained of not having had access to the asylum procedure."
Protesters clash with police at Italian-Austrian border (dailysabah.com, link): "talian demonstrators clashed with Austrian police on Sunday when they crossed the Brenner Pass border to protest against Austria's plans to enforce controls to limit the passage of migrants. Some 500 human rights activists marched on the border Sunday, lighting flares and spraying "Welcome" on a sign announcing the passage to Austria. Austrian police said they detained around 50 protests for throwing stones at officers, injuring five, and vandalizing property. Police used batons and pepper spray to drive back the protesters, according to reports in the Austrian media. An Austrian official was also quoted in the German media as saying that Austria will deploy soldiers to the borders to ensure that an expected influx through Italy won't make it north."
EU to set out proposals for overhaul of European asylum rules (Guardian, link):
"European commission will publish paper suggesting changes after migration crisis left current Dublin regulation unworkable... The European commission will propose two options, which still have to be agreed by EU member states. The widely trailed option of scrapping the Dublin rules remains: under this proposal the EU would have a mandatory redistribution system for asylum seekers based on a country’s wealth and ability to absorb newcomers.
A second option would preserve the existing Dublin rules, but add a “corrective fairness mechanism” so refugees could be redistributed around the bloc in times of crisis to take the pressure off frontline arrival states."
Migrant arrivals on Greek islands slow to a trickle (ekathimerini.com, link): "New arrivals on the Greek islands facing Turkey dropped to 68 in the 24 hours to Wednesday morning from 225 the previous day, data from the migration ministry showed." and Turkish coast guard intercepts dozens of migrants on Aegean (ekathimerini.com, link):"The Turkish coast guard has apprehended dozens of migrants on the Aegean Sea between Turkey and Greece. About 60 people, including some Syrians, were brought to a coast guard station in the western province of Izmir on Wednesday.:"
Greece: Tensions flare at Piraeus Port as migrants refuse to evacuate makeshift camp (ekathimerini.com, link)::"Tensions flared at the Port of Piraeus, south of Athens, on Wednesday after authorities informed migrants and refugees who have for weeks found temporary shelter outside a passenger terminal that they will be transported to purpose-built camps near the capital."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (5.4.16)
On Tuesday, EU officials repeatedly avoided saying whether they will investigate the allegation, which threatens the legitimacy of the deportation deal"
"Appeals against a negative decision will be examined and processed with a final decision within 7 days by newly established Appeal Committees (see art. 60, page 44)
The appeals process is made on the basis of file examination without the presence of the applicant, and Appeals Committee decides whether the applicant will be interviewed or not. The seeker can still request to be interviewed two days before the appeal process starts (see art. 62, page 45)".and see: Greece: asylum reform in the wake of the EU-Turkey deal (AIDA, link):
"Greek Law 4375/2016 was adopted under urgent procedure on Friday and entered into force yesterday, amid debate and speculation around the legal reforms needed for the implementation of the EU-Turkey deal of 18 March. The Law introduces a considerable number of changes to the institutional framework, the first reception procedures, the asylum procedure, the labour rights of beneficiaries of international protection, as well as the management of refugee flows in Greece.....
systematic detention of migrants and asylum seekers contravenes human rights standards and the EU asylum acquis, all the more so since the ground provided in Article 8(3)(c) of that Directive, relating to detention during a border procedure for the purpose of deciding on an applicant’s right to enter the territory, has not been transposed into Article 46 of Law 4375/2016."
"Giorgos Kosmopoulos, head of Amnesty International in Greece stated today that "This is the first day of a very difficult time for refugee rights. Despite the serious legal gaps and lack of adequate protection in Turkey, the EU is forging ahead with a dangerous deal. Turkey is not a safe third country for refugees. The EU and Greek authorities know this and have no excuse.""
"Number of new arrivals on the islands in 24h period until 07:30am was 339, of which 173 on Lesvos, 89 on Samos, 74 on Chios and 3 on Leros..."
"Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the EU remains utterly dependent on Turkey, where the security situation has deteriorated rapidly. The Turkish government has been notoriously bad at sticking to its end of the deal, leveraging an additional €3bn out of the EU by allowing refugees and migrants to continue crossing the Aegean after promising to halt the flows. The EU-Turkey deal says that visa liberalisation for Turkish citizens travelling to the EU will take place in June at the latest, “provided that all benchmarks have been met”. But if at any stage things don’t go Turkey’s way, it’s likely that the route across the Aegean will simply open up again.
Over the next few days, weeks and months, we will get a clearer sense of whether this is the beginning of the end for Europe’s migration crisis or the start of something new. The stakes are high not just for those in search of protection, but for the future of the European Union itself." [emphasis added]
"In a small valley covered with olive trees on the Greek island of Lesbos sits the Moria detention centre, where 2,800 asylum-seekers are locked inside a grim complex that has capacity for only 2,000 people. Behind grey concrete walls is first tall and rusty barbed-wire fencing, then newer fences topped with coiled razor wire. Riot police are gathered around a bus outside. I take some photos at the side of the camp – two policemen jump out of an ordinary car and tell me to delete them.
The EU clearly wants to show it is within the law in how it manages asylum claims, and that each individual will have a right of appeal. Whether this will happen in any genuine way is an open question for now, when the known intention is to declare almost all applications inadmissible. It will at best be lip service in terms of legality. I put this to regional UNHCR spokesman Babar Baloch. He said the whole strategy “will be a burden on the EU’s conscience”. The question remaining is, perhaps, whether the EU has a conscience any more." [emphasis added]
"The first refugees have been returned under the EU-Turkey deal, and there are already concerns about coercion and force being used.
As it turns out, more than 90% of people arriving in Greek islands since 20 March – when the EU-Turkey deal was enacted – have opted for asylum, thus complicating their return under the arrangement. It is no surprise then that no further dates have been announced for future deportations.....
In one case yesterday at a pre-removal centre in Chios, police faced angry protesters among those rounded up to be deported. Videos have emerged in which detainees appear to scream “no deport” and “shame on Europe”. It is unclear to what degree the deportees have been coerced to comply with operational procedures.
Such evidence is important in order to pose questions about the future of the deal. How much coercion and force will become necessary when people really start resisting deportations? How will the EU follow up the nasty details of the process when Frontex does not have a complaints mechanism to carry out inquiries into violations? What will be the limits for NGOs and international organisations before they become complicit?" [emphasis added]
Asylum rush hampers second wave of migrant expulsions from Greece (DJ, link): "A last-minute rush of asylum applications hampered operations Tuesday to return migrants from Greece to Turkey under an EU deal, as the UN watchdog voiced concern for 13 individuals sent back the day before.... Out of around 6,000 migrants who arrived on the islands after a deadline of March 20, more than 2,300 had applied for asylum, he said."
Greece pauses deportations as asylum claims mount (ekathimerini.com, link):
"Authorities in Greece have temporarily suspended deportations to Turkey and acknowledged that most migrants and refugees detained on Greek islands have applied for asylum.....
Maria Stavropoulou, director of Greece’s Asylum Service, told state TV that some 3,000 people held in deportation camps on the islands are seeking asylum, with the application process to formally start by the end of the week.
She says asylum applications typically take about three months to process, but would be “considerably faster” for those held in detention".
Austria: Protestors demand end to ‘fortress Europe’ as Austria ups border security (euractiv, link): "The closure of the so-called Balkan route means refugees are now looking for alternative ways to reach Germany. Central European countries now want to work together better in order to coordinate their respective policies."
How Europe built fences to keep people out (Reuters, link) : "In early March, Europe's migration chief Dimitris Avramopoulos squelched through a muddy refugee camp on Greece's border with Macedonia and peered through the barbed-wire topped fence that stands between tens of thousands of migrants in Greece and richer countries that lie to the north. "By building fences, by deploying barbed wire," he said, "it is not a solution.".... Greece's border fence was one of the first, and Avramopoulos still defends it. He says Greece built it to divert people towards official crossings where they could apply for asylum."
Greece: Pakistani Migrants In Lesbos Camp Protest (Sky News, link): "Dozens of Pakistani migrants at a detention camp on the Greek island of Lesbos have staged a protest amid fears they will be sent to Turkey in the coming days."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (2-4.4.16)
"UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Filippo Grandi invited representatives from 92 countries to a special summit in Geneva last week in order to address the ongoing crisis. EurActiv Germany spoke to Oxfam’s Robert Lindner, whose organisation presented an update on the current situation at the summit.
Oxfam has withdrawn from Lesbos, like other aid agencies have from other hotspots in Greece. Why?
The hotspots have been converted into detention centres because of the EU-Turkey agreement. Therefore, other aid agencies have withdrawn from Lesbos and Idomeni. We can no longer operate simply on humanitarian principles. These camps are now run by officials from the Greek Ministry of the Interior. It’s no longer about supplying these people with the basic necessities, it’s a matter of deporting them as soon as possible back to Turkey. We are not talking about humanitarian agencies here, but the police. Outside of these detention centres, we are of course still active."
On the day the EU-Turkey deal comes into force, over 130 people have been deported from Greece. They arrived in the port of Dikili this morning after being deported from the islands of Lesvos and Chios on boats staffed by Frontex officers, Turkish officials and Greek riot police. Those on board were "mostly Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Moroccans who were already being deported to Turkey before the deal's creation," according to a report in The Guardian, but there were also apparently two Syrians on board, "including a woman who had volunteered to return." The BBC reports that Sri Lankan nationals were also deported.
"The proposal significantly reinforces Frontex’s regulatory and operational tasks and provides the Agency with an additional supervisory role. The proposal does not amend the fundamental premise of operational cooperation at the external borders, reserving executive enforcement powers to the Member States. Nonetheless, the concept of shared responsibility in the absence of shared accountability increases existing fundamental rights concerns."
And see: Regulation on a European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Statewatch European Documentation Centre (SEMDOC) Full documentation of Commission, Council and EP documents.
Comment: Steve Peers: "Every other EU country except the UK has ratified the Fourth Protocol. And surely Greece is covered by the ban on collective expulsion where there is a link to EU law (as there is in asylum cases), due to the EU Charter."
"Returnwatch monitors risks that forced returnees from the European Union face upon arrival in Turkey. We are an initiative of volunteers and researchers who operate under the umbrella of the Post-Deportation Monitoring Network.
This website aims to be an accessible and practical tool for people to reach us after having been forcibly returned to Turkey. We seek to connect returnees to Turkey with lawyers and human rights NGOs in Turkey, as well as to document the procedures implemented by Turkish authorities.
Forced returns to Turkey are expected to start on the 4th of April from Greece and by the 1st of June 2016 from other European Union member states."
The operation that started at dawn, as migrants were escorted onto small ferries by officers from the EU border protection agency, Frontex, to nearby ports on the Turkish coast, under the program which has been strongly criticized by human rights groups.
"All of the migrants returned are from Pakistan except for two migrants from Syria who returned voluntarily," Giorgos Kyritsis, a spokesman for a government refugee crisis committee, told state TV....
""This is the first day of a very difficult time for refugee rights. Despite the serious legal gaps and lack of adequate protection in Turkey, the EU is forging ahead with a dangerous deal," Giorgos Kosmopoulos, head of Amnesty International in Greece, told the Associated Press from Lesvos.
"Turkey is not a safe third country for refugees. The EU and Greek authorities know this and have no excuse.""
See also: The final EU/Turkey refugee deal: a legal assessment (EU Law Analysis, link) and: Why Turkey is Not a “Safe Country” (pdf)
"The new law has passed last night. Mass deportation of 750 by tomorrow. 148 detained Pakistanees in Moria (although they are PRE-21 May arrivals).
They thought they were waiting in detention to be transfered to Germany. When some realized they were going to be returned to Turkey, they tried to ask for asylum but were anounced "it is forbidden". Local lawyer had to threaten with reporters to achieve some "expressions for wish to request asylum" registered. The local Asylum Office (reportedly functioning with 2 officers for registrations of asylum claims) is already "booked until the end of May".
People in wheelchair, children and adults, many sleeping on blankets they put on the floor, are all within the population to be deported. The authorities don't announce WHO of these persons will be among the first 750. Noone has been specifically notified that they are "leaving tomorrow".
Lesvos is currently an island. Not only in geophysical terms. It is a space where the rule of law, where respect for fundamental rights does not apply. We call Europe to stop this crime before it is too late." [emphasis added]
"The year 2015 has been marked as a turning point in Europe’s struggle to find adequate responses to the predicament of refugees. The unprecedented number of refugees and migrants arriving irregularly to the continent via the Mediterranean Sea, surpassing one million, and the piecemeal, reactive, often irrational response of Member States, led to coining the term “refugee crisis” as currently one of the most critical tests for the European Union (EU) and its broader region. Against this backdrop, one main issue of concern has been the ability – or lack thereof – of states to receive those seeking refuge in appropriate, dignified conditions as mandated by their protection obligations. "
"Operation to remove 202 people from Greece to Turkey passes unexpectedly calmly, but observers say these were easy cases...
Journalists and activists were caught off-guard by police deploying buses to collect detainees on Lesbos and Chios at the crack of dawn, several hours earlier than announced.
“It is absolutely mind-boggling that neither the media nor human rights organisations had access to the detention facilities to monitor the asylum procedures,” said a Human Rights Watch spokesman, Wenzel Michalski, at the main port on Lesbos where, hours earlier, 136 “non asylum seekers” had been put on boats and expelled to Turkey. “What do they have to hide?” he asked....
Monitors with Amnesty International on Lesbos said the test would come in the weeks ahead when the eyes of the global media were no longer on Lesbos or Dikili across the sea.
“The most important thing now is what happens to those in Moria who have applied for asylum and fear that they are next,” said Gauri van Gulik, Amnesty’s deputy Europe director. “It’s what happens when the media is not looking that will matter most.”
"Slovenia is subject to criticism over the handling of refugees in a report by the UN Human Rights Committee (UNHRC). The human rights body took issue in particular with the erection of the razor wire fence, expansion of army powers, and tighter rules for asylum seekers. In its periodic report on Slovenia's implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, UNHRC recommended that Slovenia "regularly review the necessity and proportionality of the measures adopted". The Committee also stated that the Slovenian government should ensure it does not discriminate against any asylum applicants solely on the basis of country of origin and safeguard individual processing of asylum applications."
However, there have been arrivals in the past few days and volunteers report that the Moria camp is so overcrowded that even families with children and pregnant women now sleep on the ground outside the compound, while Pakistani are being separated and taken away. Volunteers on Lesvos are asking for tents to accommodate them.
Lesvos Solidarity Camp (Pikpa) is a unique volunteer and refugee run camp, which was created in 2012 and is now under threat of closure. It has shelter to the most vulnerable refugees and supported the humanitarian needs of refugees all over the island and other parts of Greece. Following the EU Turkey Deal, the Mayor of Lesvos announced the closure of the camp, along with other solidarity built structures. Refugees will instead be held in closed detention centres run by the army and police. The camp hosts vulnerable refugees, including people with disabilities, lone women and children, and the families of shipwreck survivors. Over the past six months, around 2000 people have been sheltered at the camp. There are currently not enough reception facilities in Greece to look after fit and healthy refugees, let alone those in need of immediate care.
For this reason, volunteers have started a petition to save the Pikpa camp. If you would like to find out more and sign the petition, please visit: http://bit.ly/1ZVGG4
Migrant crisis: Greece starts deportations to Turkey( BBC link)
British judge says trial of Channel Tunnel refugee will go ahead (BBC, link): "A judge refused on Friday to halt the criminal damage trial of a refugee from Darfur who walked through the Channel Tunnel in one of the most dramatic attempts to reach Britain since Europe's migration crisis began.
Abdul Haroun's case has prompted debate in Britain between critics who want him prosecuted to deter others from attempting the 50-km walk through the railway tunnel from France, and supporters who say he should be free to start a new life."
EU refugee expulsion plan under fire from UN (FT, link): “Across Greece numerous aspects of the systems for receiving and dealing with people who may need international protection are either not working or absent,” the UN told reporters in Geneva."
Dispatches: Asylum Seekers Stuck Outside Transit Zones in Hungary (HRW, link): “The [Hungarian] police haven’t given us information, they [authorities] haven’t even spoken to us but the UN has told us to be patient…there is no system for admission, they just pick people at random.”
As temperatures rise, so too will the refugee death toll (independent.ie, link): " This is the time of year when the bodies begin to wash up on the sandy beaches of western Libya. During winter, rough weather conditions make the Mediterranean crossing from Libya more difficult for those desperate for a new life in Europe. The flow never stops completely, and with the approach of better spring weather and calmer seas, more rickety boats crammed with migrants will set off. "
Greece begins migrant deportations to Turkey (euobserver, link): "Greece has returned the first migrants to Turkey under an EU deal to ease the flow of people into Europe. According to the vice-mayor of Lesbos, 136 people left the island on Monday (4 April). He said they were mostly from Pakistan, according to the BBC. nother ferry from the island of Chios is also expected to leave later."
Greece and Turkey ready first refugee returns under EU deal (euractiv, link): "Greece is making final preparations to return hundreds of asylum seekers to Turkey, the first to be sent back under a landmark EU deal that has been slammed by human rights watchdogs."
EU to announce overhaul of ‘Dublin rules’ for asylum seekers (euractiv, link): "The EU will unveil plans to overhaul its asylum system this week following a controversial migrant deal with Turkey. But the proposals look set to trigger fresh rows in a bloc already deeply divided by the refugee crisis."
EU-Turkey refugee deal: staff shortages and rights concerns pose twin threat (Guardian, linkl): "Greece calls for 20-fold increase in asylum officials as campaigners accuse Turkey of expelling refugees back to Syria"
Greece insists refugee deportations will begin despite doubts over EU-Turkey deal (Guardian, link): "Operation due to begin on Monday on islands of Lesbos and Chios, but questions remain as to how it will be implemented,,,, Opposition to the accord was underscored by Peter Sutherland, the UN secretary general’s special representative for international migration and development, who said on Saturday that collective deportations would automatically be deemed illegal if asylum applications weren’t properly considered."A Syrian Refugee’s Message to the European Union (The New York Times, link): "WHEN we first got here we had money to buy a little food. Now it’s gone. We stand in line for hours for a sandwich. My husband told a journalist recently: “People are fed up. Maybe tomorrow they will break down the gate and flood across the border.” The journalist said, “How many weapons do you have?” If we knew how to carry weapons or wanted to carry weapons we would not have fled Syria. We want peace. We are sick of killing.
We fled a war, and now the European Union is making war against us, a psychological war. When we hear rumors that we’ll be let into Europe, we celebrate. These leaders give us new hope, then they extinguish it. Why did you open the door to refugees? Why did you welcome people? If they had stopped it before, we would not have come. We would not have risked death, me and my children, and thousands of others, to make the crossing."
Bulgaria's vigilante migrant 'hunter' (BBC News, link): "A Bulgarian trader in spare parts for buses has become a national celebrity after starting to patrol the Turkish border "hunting" for migrants. Many Bulgarians applaud his vigilante initiative, though others are deeply troubled.
"Bulgaria needs people like me, dignified Bulgarians, willing to defend their homeland," says Dinko Valev, sipping a fresh-squeezed orange juice in a flashy cafe in his hometown, Yambol, 50km (30 miles) from Bulgaria's border with Turkey."
Profile: 500 years of Venice's Jewish ghetto (The National, link): "A POIGNANT plea on behalf of the mostly Muslim refugees seeking safety in Europe has been made by Jews marking the 500th anniversary of the world’s first ghetto on Tuesday march 29.
The remarkable call for patience and integration comes as preparations are finalised for a series of cultural events to commemorate those who lived in the ghetto, which was created in Venice on March 29, 1516, to keep the Jews separate from the mainly Christian population.
While there is no doubt the early inhabitants suffered from the segregation, over time they became integrated into the Italian community, contributing greatly to the cultural life of the country.
Now the Jews of Venice believe their history has lessons for Europe as it shows that minorities can integrate while still preserving their identity."
The refugee crisis through the eyes of refugees (Al Jazeera, link): "In December 2015, photographer Kevin McElvaney started the #RefugeeCameras project, which would allow refugees to document their own journey with single-use cameras, giving them the opportunity to tell the world their own story. McElvaney travelled along the refugee track from Izmir to Lesbos, Athens and Idomeni. At all these stations he met refugees, collected their stories and handed out cameras, some of which were returned in a pre-paid envelope. McElvaney received seven of 15 cameras back with images that show a rare glimpse into the refugee route."
EU-Turkey refugee deal: Amnesty team to visit Greek islands as returns begin (AI, link): " Amnesty International will send a delegation to Lesvos and Chios in the coming days to monitor the situation as the EU-Turkey refugee deal is set to be implemented, including the expected mass returns of those who attempt to cross the Aegean Sea. Amnesty has called the deal “a historic blow to human rights” and has researched and campaigned extensively on its broad human rights implications in both Greece and Turkey. The returns in particular are a flagrant violation of EU and international law, making a mockery of the global Refugee Convention."
Teenage refugee killed in lorry crash while attempting to reach family in UK (Guardian, link): "Mohammed Hussain, 18, becomes first casualty of crisis in Britain this year while fleeing Dunkirk camp en route to Manchester."
Turkish coastguard halts migrants as preparations for EU deal begin (Reuters, link): "Turkey's coastguard stopped nearly 200 people trying to reach Greece on Saturday, underlining the challenge security forces face in convincing migrants contemplating the voyage that they will not be allowed to enter the EU. A controversial European Union deal to return refugees and migrants who landed on the Greek islands in the last fortnight to Turkey is due to take force on Monday."
Refugee crisis: latest news from across Europe (1.4.16)
A camp for 5,000 people is reportedly being built in western Turkey as the country apparently prepares to receive 72,000 migrants to be returned from Greece on Monday 4 April as part of the EU-Turkey deal.
Turkish Red Crescent to build first migrant readmission camp in western Turkey (Hurriyet Daily News, link): "A camp with a capacity of 5,000 people will be built in the western province of Manisa to accommodate migrants readmitted to Turkey, Turkish Red Crescent Deputy Chair Kerem Kinik has said.
“We are conducting work for the construction of a camp with a capacity of 5,000 people to host the refugees in our country under humanitarian conditions and to provide for their needs,” Kinik told Anadolu Agency."
And: Turkey prepares to receive 72,000 immigrants from Greece (Middle East Monitor, link): "Turkey is preparing to receive 72,000 illegal immigrants who have been deported from Greece. Turkish Akhbar Turkiya newspaper reported that the Immigration Department will construct a centre for the refugees in the Delek region in Izmir during the next ten days.
The immigrants will be relocated inside camps in the Greek island of Medley before being transferred to Delek from 4 April, the paper reported.
Sources in the Turkish Refugees Department said the immigrants will be offered identity cards and will have their fingerprints taken within 24 hours of their arrival, they will then be able to stay in the camps or join their relatives in Turkey."
The European Commission foresees returns from Greece to Turkey under the controversial "one-for-one" plan starting on Monday 4 April, if changes to Greek and Turkish legislation can be rushed through by then. The credibility of claims that Turkey is a safe third country has been challenged yet again, this time with evidence gathered by Amnesty International that refugees have been forcibly returned from Turkey to Syria. Yesterday, press reports claimed that the Turkish military were shooting dead people attempting to enter Turkey from Syria.
Returns to Turkey from Greece through EU’s 1:1 scheme to commence April 4th (New Europe, link): "The European Commission has said that returns from Greece to Turkey will commence on April 4. Greece has tabled the draft bill which will allow for the implementation of the 1:1 bilateral return scheme between Greece and Turkey. Monday remains a reachable target date for the “new deal” implementation kick-start, said the European Commission’s spokesperson for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship, Natasha Bertaud. However, if national legislation does not change until Monday, the deal won’t be implemented on Monday.
In terms of the necessary legislation changes in Turkey, EU sources point at a meeting of the Turkish side with the Greek side under the EU coordinator of the EU-Turkey statement, Maarten Verwey, that took place on Wednesday. “The changes will be made in time”, added the EU source, repeating that for the time being, the 1:1 scheme is only applied to Syrians under the need of international protection. Turkey seems to be under pressure by the European Commission, in order to expand temporary protection that covers Syrians, to other nationalities, such as Afghans that originate from conflict zones."
Meanwhile: Turkey: Illegal mass returns of Syrian refugees expose fatal flaws in EU-Turkey deal (Amnesty International, link): "New research carried out by the organization in Turkey’s southern border provinces suggests that Turkish authorities have been rounding up and expelling groups of around 100 Syrian men, women and children to Syria on a near-daily basis since mid-January. Over three days last week, Amnesty International researchers gathered multiple testimonies of large-scale returns from Hatay province, confirming a practice that is an open secret in the region." And see: Amnesty says Turkey illegally sending Syrians back to war zone (EurActiv, link)
A brief overview of the proposed new Greek asylum law can be found here: Greek Parliament Prepares New Law on Asylum (News That Moves, link): "Greece is preparing legal amendments needed to implement the EU-Turkey Agreement of March 19.
A new law “Common procedures for granting and withdrawing international protection” was tabled on Wednesday night in the Greek parliament.
The law is expected to be discussed today [31 March] and voted tomorrow [1 April] by the Greek parliament."
The UN has called for "immediate safeguards" to be put in place before any returns take place. See: UNHCR urges immediate safeguards to be in place before any returns begin under EU-Turkey deal (UNHCR, link)
And: reports that Turkish military are killing refugees as they try to cross the Syrian-Turkish border: Turkey shoots dead Syrian refugees crossing the border as they flee civil war (Mirror, link)
AUSTRIA: 25 attacks on refugee facilities last year in Austria (The Local, link): "Asylum facilities in Austria came under attack 25 times last year, including being set on fire and refugees being shot at with an air gun.
The number of attacks was revealed following a data request made to the Interior Ministry by the Green party justice spokesperson Albert Steinhauser.
Incidents took place in all but one of the country’s provinces, with Burgenland witnessing no attacks and Carinthia seeing the most with seven."
Austrian etiquette explained to refugees (The Local, link): " Newly arrived asylum seekers in Austria are being given a helping hand to navigate their new home by a pocket book explaining the do's and don'ts of Austrian life.
The book - which was produced by the Red Cross with the support of state broadcaster ORF - explains some of the etiquettes and cultural habits of Austrians."
Greek island stabbings raise UN fears over EU migrant deportation deal (The Telegraph, link): "Three migrants were stabbed on the Greek islands of Lesbos and Samos on Thursday night, deepening UN concerns over the viability of the controversial EU-Turkey to deport thousands of illegal immigrants back to Turkey.
The United Nations repeated its demands for legal safeguards to be put in place before refugees are returned to Turkey warning that conditions in Greece - where more than 5,000 refugees are now corralled in holding camps on the Greek islands - are rapidly deteriorating."
Hungary FM: Unchecked Migration Increases Risk of Terror (Foreign Policy, link): "Last September, as tens of thousands of desperate migrants and refugees flooded into Hungary from Serbia, Hungarian police who were deployed to the border refused to let many of them in, greeting them instead with tear gas and water cannons to push them back from where they had come.
That use of force was widely criticized: Human rights groups condemned it as a violation of Budapest’s international obligations to asylum-seekers, and neighboring Austria likened Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s policies to Nazism.
But seven months and two terrorist attacks on European soil later, Hungarian officials feel vindicated by their tough stance on migration. Now, they say, Budapest was wrongly chastised for sounding the alarm bell on the dangers of unregulated mass migration months ago.
In an exclusive interview with Foreign Policy in Washington on Thursday, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó said Hungary was right to look with suspicion at the masses of people demanding entry from Serbia — especially in the wake of this month’s terrorist attacks in Brussels."
Poland will examine refugee requests: Foreign Minister (Radio Poland, link): "Poland will closely examine the applications of refugees interested in staying in Poland, said the country's Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski.
Minister Waszczykowski added that the country will thoroughly check the identity of asylum seekers and try to ascertain that applicants are not a threat to national security.
Speaking to national broadcaster TVP, Waszczykowski said: “We declared that we will closely select refugees. International law applies to us and we reiterate that we will closely observe it.
"If we find refugees who will document their identity, and local authorities are able to document that they do not threaten Poland, and [the refugees] want to come to Poland, then we will consider their applications to stay in the country.”"
SWEDEN: 'We must take our country back': On patrol with Nationell Framtid, the PIRATE migrant hunters who patrol the North Sea in a SPEEDBOAT to stop refugees getting into Sweden through the 'back door' (Daily Mail, link): "Dennis Ljung, 31, leads the patrol – his far right group the Nationell Framtid - translated as National Future - emerged in April last year during the migrant crisis.
‘We need to take our country back. Our aim is to cleanse our nation free of all immigrants. What we do out on the ocean is just a small step to stop more the mass immigration we have faced for decades,’ he told MailOnline.
While he is heavily in debt and unemployed, Dennis is one of the few members of the group without a criminal record according to local media reports. At least 11 members have reportedly been convicted for weapons offences and several violent crimes.
He dismisses allegations the organisation has neo-Nazi sympathies despite also admitting that ‘of course’ they are in touch with the Soldiers of Odin – a gang of violent white supremacist vigilantes patrolling Finland's streets to ‘prevent migrant sex attacks’."
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