What would you expect from the European asylum ‘welcome’?
And I say ‘welcome’ because while protection and care must be guaranteed to asylum seekers…the reality is very different.
Would you have expected what is currently happening in Greece refugee camps?
The situation in Lesbos and Samos (islands on the Aegean sea) is of extreme urgency due to overpopulation, life in uninhabitable spaces, lack of sanitary resources, garbage that surrounds the camp, dreadful hygienic conditions, insecurity, etc.
Moria’s camp was the result of the EU negligence. When I was collaborating with an NGO Home for all distributing food around the camp I realized that life inside was extremely tough. And not only because of the deplorable conditions. Tension grows, legal procedures for asylum are extremely long (increasing uncertainty and stress), children totally unprotected, and constant violations of human rights (for example, the restriction of movement until the end of the asylum procedure).
A fire broke out in Moria camp on Tuesday 8 September 2020 and completely destroyed the camp, displacing 12.000 residents. It’s impossible to understand where the situation will lead. Nevertheless, the lack of responses just keeps thousands of people sleeping right now in the streets with a total lack of basic needs. This situation is unacceptable. They need safe accommodation – but not in Moria, not in Lesbos. If governments do not completely change the asylum process and the tough living conditions of people who request international protection, this situation will continue to be unsustainable.
Vathy’s camp living conditions are also dreadful. During my stay in Samos, I met a good friend from Cameroun. He told me that what really still worries him is his ‘illegal’ status. He told me ‘I just want to have regular papers’. Then I realized that I am a European citizen, I have rights and legal protection. But, my friend lost protection and stability. He lost the basic inherent right to be treated as a citizen and to be legally recognized. We cannot accept this situation any longer.
Nevertheless, the European community is not responding.
No rights, no freedom of movement, no equality, no right to work, no security…And instead of that, arbitrary arrest or detention, discrimination, forced labor etc.
The EU has to face the situation properly and collaborate with the Greek government to find a common solution.
But time goes by…and life in refugee camps remains unsustainable.
- UNCERTAINTY: Asylum procedures are excessively long. The processing duration could take years creating a situation of legal limbo. EU asylum procedure has to guarantee the right to be tried without undue delay. In other words, the right to each individual to have her/his case finished within a reasonable time (article 12.(e) Directive 2013/32/EU).
- ELECTRONIC PROCEDURE – COVID 19: All administrative asylum services to the public were suspended in March 2020 (registrations, interviews, appeal submissions etc.). On May 18th the Asylum Service reopened and applications are submitted online. My question now is…Do asylum centers provide assistance and resources to do online applications? Difficult access to computers or other electronic devices, lack of internet connection and technology knowledge should be taken into account. Otherwise, the right to apply for asylum will be limited.
- Restriction to the right of FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT and COVID-19: Moria camp is a transit place where people are forced to stay during the asylum procedure. ‘According to the latest Decision of the Director of the Asylum Service,522 any asylum seeker who enters the Greek territory from Lesvos, Rhodes, Samos, Leros, Chios and Kos is subject to a geographical restriction on said island, with the exception of applicants falling within the family provisions of the Dublin Regulation or applicants identified as vulnerable.’ Currently, mobility restrictions are stronger due to COVID-19. The Greek government announced measures on March 17 to prevent an outbreak on the Aegean island RIC. The measures are the following: strict limitations on leaving the camps unless it is for buying necessities, to suspend activities (including informal schools), and to prohibit access to visitors and NGOs except those providing essential services.
- VULNERABILITY and COVID-19: Unsanitary, unhygienic conditions and lack of basic services such as water and food all together make life in the camp under the minimum living standards. People living in RIC have limited ways of protecting themselves from the coronavirus and social distancing is obviously very difficult to tackle, I would even say impossible. If the virus does reach the camps, the severe overcrowding and the absence of proper sanitation mean that it will spread rapidly.
- INACTIVITY: The Greek Government had published a bill on ‘International Protection’ (on 15 October 2019 ) reforming asylum legislation. Access to employment for registered asylum seekers is no longer granted immediately but only after 6 months, undermining the existing precarious economic situation and the lack of a worthy income. The RSA, a non-profit organization on monitoring human rights violations, states that ‘access to the labour market should be granted upon lodging of the asylum application. This facilitates asylum seekers’ self-sufficiency and reduces prolonged dependency on the already strained and insufficient capacity of the reception system.’
Can you really believe that a better response from EU institutions and member states could not be provided?