/global-development

  • Le #nouveau_camp de #Lesbos, #Grèce (#septembre_2020) :


    –-> photo : #Giorgos_Moutafis
    https://twitter.com/AneIrazabal/status/1305225485769740288
    #Kara_Tepe

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    Un nouveau camp pour réfugiés sur l’île de Lesbos après les incendies

    Environ 500 demandeurs d’asile ont été installés dans un nouveau camp sur l’île grecque de Lesbos qui doit accueillir des milliers de #sans-abri après la destruction du grand centre de Moria. De nombreux migrants manifestent toutefois pour quitter l’île.

    « Dans cinq jours l’opération sera achevée. Tout le monde sera installé dans le nouveau camp », a assuré le ministre des Migrations, Notis Mitarachi, en visite à Lesbos depuis deux jours pour coordonner les travaux du nouveau camp. Situé à trois kilomètres du port de Mytilène, chef-lieu de l’île, ce camp « sera fermé pendant la nuit pour des raisons de sécurité », selon un communiqué ministériel.

    « Tout est parti en fumée à Moria. On ne peut plus rester dans la rue, dans le camp ce sera mieux », a indiqué à l’AFP une Somalienne qui attendait son tour devant l’entrée du camp pour être enregistrée.
    Migrants contaminés

    Notis Mitarachi a estimé que « 200 personnes » parmi les demandeurs d’asile pourraient être contaminées par le Covid-19 et que des restrictions strictes sont prévues pour les sorties des migrants du nouveau camp.

    Des milliers de familles vivent sur le bitume, sur les trottoirs ou dans les champs à Lesbos depuis les gigantesques incendies de mardi et mercredi qui ont détruit le centre d’enregistrement et d’identification de Moria, sans faire de victimes.

    Mis en place en 2015 pour limiter le nombre de migrants venant de la Turquie voisine à destination de l’Europe, ce centre abritait plus de 12’000 personnes dont 4000 enfants, soit quatre fois plus que sa capacité initiale.

    Refus d’entrer

    Des migrants ont à nouveau manifesté dans le calme dimanche en fin matinée, réclamant leur transfert vers la Grèce continentale, selon des journalistes de l’AFP. De nombreux demandeurs d’asile refusent d’entrer dans le nouveau camp, disant leur ras-le-bol après avoir attendu dans celui de Moria durant des mois, certains des années, d’être transférés dans des structures en Grèce continentale.

    Mais le ministre des Migrations, Notis Mitarachi, a souligné que « toute personne qui est dans la rue sera transférée dans le nouveau camp ». « Ceux qui rêvent quitter l’île, il faut qu’ils l’oublient », a-t-il affirmé.

    https://www.rts.ch/info/monde/11600300-un-nouveau-camp-pour-refugies-sur-lile-de-lesbos-apres-les-incendies.ht

    #asile #migrations #réfugiés #camps_de_réfugiés #tentes #HCR #SDF

    Sur l’incendie du mois de septembre 2020 :
    https://seenthis.net/messages/875743

    #comme_en_Afrique...

    –----

    Fil de discussion sur le dernier incendie :
    https://seenthis.net/messages/875743

    ping @isskein @karine4

    • Just 800 of Greek island’s 12,500 homeless migrants rehoused

      Just over 6% of the 12,500 people left homeless last week by the fire that destroyed Greece’s biggest camp for refugees and migrants have been rehoused in a new temporary facility under construction on the island of Lesvos, authorities said Monday.

      By Monday afternoon, about 800 people had entered the new tent city, hastily set up by the sea a few kilometers from the gutted Moria camp, migration ministry officials said.

      Thousands remained camped out for a sixth day along a road leading from Moria to the island capital of Mytilene, with police blocking the way into town to prevent asylum-seekers trying to board ferries for the Greek mainland instead of entering the new camp.

      Authorities say the blazes last Tuesday and Wednesday in Moria, where thousands of people arrive every year after crossing illegally from nearby Turkey, were started by camp residents angry at quarantine orders imposed after 35 people in the facility tested positive for Covid-19.

      Migration Minister Notis Mitarakis said there’s space for about 5,000 people so far in the new camp, on a former military firing range at Kara Tepe near Mytilene. He also said everyone left homeless by the Moria fire will be able to relocate to Kara Tepe within the next few days.

      Officials said the gap between available spaces and residents in the new camp is largely due to the unwillingness of many asylum-seekers to settle in. Many had hoped that with Moria destroyed they would be allowed to head for the Greek mainland, or even other European Union countries.

      Several hundred women and children held a protest march along the Moria-to-Mytilene road Monday, chanting: “No camp, freedom.”

      But government officials said the only way for former Moria camp residents to leave Lesbos would be to move to the new facility and successfully apply there for asylum.

      “Moving to the new camp is not optional, it’s obligatory,” Mitarakis said in an interview with Parapolitika Radio.

      Under EU rules, people reaching Greece’s eastern Aegean islands from Turkey must stay in camps at their points of arrival pending examination of their asylum bids. This led to overcrowding and squalid living conditions for camp residents that were repeatedly criticised by human rights organizations. It also triggered resentment among Lesbos’ Greek population.

      Asylum-seekers entering Kara Tepe are tested for Covid-19 as part of the registration process, and 15 infected people have been recorded so far. All were moved to isolation facilities.

      Greece’s minister responsible for public order, Michalis Chryssohoidis, said Monday he hoped a continued reduction in migration flows from nearby Turkey and a speedy processing of asylum applications should mean the last of the refugees and migrants currently on Lesbos would have left by spring.

      Greek authorities plan to build a new facility for future arrivals that will replace Moria.

      https://www.ekathimerini.com/256958/article/ekathimerini/news/just-800-of-greek-islands-12500-homeless-migrants-rehoused

    • 2,9 εκατομμύρια για νοίκια στον Καρά Τεπέ μέχρι το… 2025, στην κατά τα άλλα προσωρινή δομή !
      142.051 για τους τέσσερις μήνες του 2020 και από 550.000 το χρόνο, για τα έτη 2021 έως 2025, προκειμένου να νοικιαστούν οι εκτάσεις του Καρά Τεπέ από το Υπουργείο Μετανάστευσης και Ασύλου

      « Λεφτά με το τσουβάλι » αλλά και απόδειξη ότι η προσωρινή δομή του Καρά Τεπέ κάθε άλλο παρά προσωρινή είναι. Το « Ν » αποκαλύπτει σήμερα, δημοσιοποιώντας τα σχετικά έγγραφα, ότι για την περίοδο Σεπτέμβριος 2020 έως 31 Δεκεμβρίου 2025, το Υπουργείο μετανάστευσης και ασύλου δίνει το αστρονομικό ποσό των 2.9 εκατομμυρίων ευρώ μόνο για την ενοικίαση εκτάσεων ξερής και εγκαταλειμμένης γης στον Καρά Τεπέ. Προκειμένου να δημιουργήσει ένα νέο μόνιμο ΚΥΤ.

      Συγκεκριμένα με δυο χθεσινές (14.9.2020) αποφάσεις του Υπουργείου Μετανάστευσης και Ασύλου που αναρτήθηκαν στο « Διαύγεια » δεσμεύονται τα παρακάτω ποσά :

      – 142.051 ευρώ για την ενοικίαση γεωτεμαχίων για τη λειτουργία προσωρινής δομής φιλοξενίας προσφύγων και μεταναστών έως τις 31.12.2020.

      – Επίσης δεσμεύονται άλλα 2.750.000 ευρώ (550.000 ευρώ το χρόνο) για τη μίσθωση των ίδιων γεωτεμαχίων στην περιοχή Καρά Τεπέ !

      Ας σημειώσουμε ότι στις εκτάσεις αυτές που ανήκουν εξ αδιαιρέτως σε απογόνους γνωστής οικογένειας της παλιάς Μυτιλήνης, έχουν αρχίσει ήδη να πραγματοποιούνται χωματουργικές εργασίες, σε κάποια δε τμήματα στήνονται και σκηνές. Εκτείνονται δε πέραν του οικοπέδου του πεδίου βολής ιδιοκτησίας του υπουργείου Εθνικής Άμυνας και φτάνει μέχρι και πίσω από το σούπερ μάρκετ Lidl, Σε επαφή δηλαδή από τη μια μεριά με επιχειρήσεις κατά μήκος του δρόμου από την παλιά ΕΦΑΜ μέχρι και το πεδίο βολής και από την άλλη μεριά, μέχρι τη θάλασσα.

      Η ενοικίαση του συγκεκριμένου χώρου αποδεικνύει προφανώς ότι η νέα, κατ’ ευφημισμό αποκαλούμενη « προσωρινή », δομή στον Καρά Τεπέ είναι ο χώρος όπου θα αναπτυχθεί το μόνιμο ΚΥΤ που εξήγγειλε ο Πρωθυπουργός Κυριάκος Μητσοτάκης από τη Θεσσαλονίκη.

      Το μέγεθος δε της όλης έκτασης, πολλές εκατοντάδες στρέμματα, συμπεριλαμβανομένης και της έκτασης του υπουργείου Εθνικής Άμυνας, δείχνει ότι θα είναι ένα τεράστιο ΚΥΤ πολύ μεγαλύτερο αυτό της Μόριας, το μεγαλύτερο στην Ελλάδα αλλά και σε όλη την Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, σε άμεση επαφή με κατοικημένες περιοχές και πολλές δεκάδες επιχειρήσεις, λίγες εκατοντάδες μέτρα από το χωριό Παναγιύδα.

      Ας σημειωθεί ότι όπως λέχθηκε από ανθρώπους της κτηματαγοράς στη Μυτιλήνη, το ύψος του ενοικίου είναι ίσως μεγαλύτερο και από το ύψος του ποσού που απαιτείτο μέχρι πρότινος για την αγορά της έκτασης.
      https://www.stonisi.gr/post/11449/29-ekatommyria-gia-noikia-ston-kara-tepe-mexri-to-2025-sthn-kata-ta-alla-pro

      –—

      Commentaire et traduction de quelques extraits par Vicky Skoumbi :

      Voici quelques extraits de l’article du média locale sto nisi qui révèle les véritables intentions du gouvernement, qui loin de programmer l’évacuation des îles d’ici Pâques, prévoit la création du plus grand hot-spot de l’Europe à Kara-Tepe à Lesbos, beaucoup plus grand que Moria !
      Si en plus, on tient compte les intentions affichés du gouvernement de créer non pas un RIC fonctionnant comme avant, mais un centre de réception et d’identification fermé sous surveillance policière 24h sur 24h, on voit que le pire est devant nous et les déclaration sur le départ de tout réfugié d’ici Päques n’est que poudre aux yeux de la population locale et de la communauté internationale

      2,9 millions prévus pour la location de terrains à Kara Tepe jusqu’en… 2025, tout ça pour une structure censément provisoire !

      142051 pour les quatre mois de 2020 et de 550000 par an, de 2021 à 2025, afin de louer les terrains de Kara Tepe par le ministère de l’Immigration et de l’Asile.

      La location de ces terrains prouve évidemment que la nouvelle structure à Kara Tepe appelée par euphémisme « temporaire » est l’endroit où sera installé le RIC (Reception Identification Center), le hot-spot permanent annoncé par le Premier ministre Kyriakos Mitsotakis à Thessalonique.

      L’étendue de l’ensemble de la zone, plusieurs centaines d’hectares, y compris la zone du ministère de la Défense nationale, montre qu’il s’agira d’un hot-spot énorme, beaucoup plus grand que celui de Moria, le plus grand de Grèce et de toute l’Union européenne, en contact direct avec des zones résidentielles et de très nombreuses d’entreprises, à quelques centaines de mètres du village de Panagouda.

      Il est à noter que comme l’ont dit les gens du marché immobilier à Mytilène, le montant du loyer est probablement supérieur du montant requis pour l’achat même du terrain.

    • Lesbos : les migrants à la rue évacués par la police vers un nouveau camp « provisoire »

      La police grecque a commencé jeudi à évacuer une partie des milliers de réfugiés jetés à la rue par l’incendie de Moria vers un nouveau camp, « provisoire » selon l’ONU et les autorités grecques. Ces dernières ont évoqué Pâques comme date butoir pour transférer les exilés de l’île de Lesbos.

      La police grecque a commencé jeudi 17 septembre à évacuer une partie des milliers de réfugiés jetés à la rue par l’incendie de Moria vers un nouveau camp.

      Vers 7h locales (4h GMT), la police faisait le tour des tentes, dans le calme. Progressivement ils ont entrepris de vider le secteur de ses sans-abri et les emmener vers le nouveau camp érigé à la hâte après l’incendie, il y a une semaine.

      https://twitter.com/rspaegean/status/1306301897368797187?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E13

      Sous un soleil déjà chaud, et sur fond de pleurs d’enfants, plusieurs réfugiés, dont des femmes et des enfants, pliaient leurs couvertures, apportaient des sacs contenant leurs affaires sauvées des flammes la semaine dernière, ou se mettaient à démonter les tentes de bric et de broc installées sur l’asphalte, selon des informations de l’AFP. Ces transferts s’ajoutent aux plusieurs centaines de migrants, déjà arrivés dans le camp mardi et mercredi, selon des humanitaires. D’après les derniers chiffres des autorités grecques, mardi, 1 200 personnes y étaient logées.

      Mercredi soir, 1 000 tentes, pouvant chacune accueillir 8 à 10 personnes, y étaient érigées. Des tentes médicales doivent encore être dressées, et deux zones de quarantaine sont prévues alors que quelque dizaines de cas de coronavirus ont été détectés - mais pour l’heure sans gravité.

      « L’objectif est de protéger la santé publique »

      Depuis l’incendie du camp de Moria, le plus grand d’Europe où vivaient près de 13 000 réfugiés dans des conditions dramatiques, les migrants se sont entassés sous des abris de fortune sur un coin de route et des parkings de supermarché fermés, dans une précarité extrême.

      Dans ce contexte, toute distanciation sociale pour se protéger du Covid-19 semble impossible et, surtout, l’urgence est ailleurs, ont observé des journalistes d’InfoMigrants sur place. « La plus grande préoccupation de ces personnes actuellement, c’est d’avoir accès à de la nourriture et de l’eau », a expliqué Dimitra Chasioti, psychologue pour Médecins sans frontières (MSF) présente sur les lieux.

      « L’objectif est de protéger la santé publique », a déclaré à l’AFP Theodoros Chronopoulos, porte-parole de la police. Il a confirmé une « opération en cours » qui « répond à des fins humanitaires ».

      MSF, qui a ouvert une clinique d’urgence dans cette zone, s’est vu interdire l’accès dans la nuit, alors que des rumeurs d’évacuation couraient, a indiqué l’ONG à l’AFP. À 7h30 (4h30 GMT), ses membres ne pouvaient toujours pas rejoindre leur clinique.

      https://twitter.com/MSF_Sea/status/1306455464071356416?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E13

      « Une opération de police est en cours pour emmener les réfugiés vers le nouveau camp. Cela ne devrait pas empêcher l’aide médicale », a twitté l’ONG. La zone a également été restreinte aux médias.

      https://twitter.com/MortazaBehboudi/status/1306468926830903296?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E13

      Objectif : « quitter l’île pour Athènes »

      Ce nouveau camp, qui crée de nombreuses réticences parmi la population migrante angoissée à l’idée de se retrouver à nouveau enfermée, sera seulement « provisoire » ont promis l’ONU et les autorités grecques.

      Construit depuis samedi, il a pour objectif que les réfugiés « puissent progressivement, et dans le calme, quitter l’île pour Athènes » ou « être réinstallés ailleurs », a indiqué mercredi le représentant en Grèce du Haut commissariat de l’ONU aux réfugiés (HCR) en Grèce, Philippe Leclerc. « Le HCR pousse les autorités (grecques) à accélérer le processus (de demande d’asile) pour que les gens ne restent pas trop longtemps » ici, a-t-il ajouté.

      Le ministre grec de la Protection civile Michalis Chrysochoidis a pour sa part estimé que « la moitié » des exilés pourrait quitter Lesbos « d’ici Noël » et « les autres d’ici Pâques ».

      https://www.infomigrants.net/fr/post/27338/lesbos-les-migrants-a-la-rue-evacues-par-la-police-vers-un-nouveau-cam

    • "It is a terrible, inhuman situation". #Marisa_Matias visits Kara Tepe refugee camp

      Marisa Matias says that more than three thousand people have arrived in Kara Tepe and another six thousand are yet to arrive. In this refugee camp, people who test positive for Covid-6 are placed “in spaces surrounded by barbed wire where they have no water,” said the MEP.

      Presidential candidate Marisa Matias visited Kara Tepe in Greece this Friday, who is receiving refugees from the Moria camp, which suffered from a fire on the night of September XNUMX.

      “It is a terrible, inhuman situation”, guaranteed Marisa Matias in a video published on her Facebook page. “It is welcoming the people of Moria, after the fire, it is an immense extension”, said the MEP, pointing out the high number of people passing by around her.

      https://jornaleconomico.sapo.pt/en/news/It-is-a-terrible-inhumane-situation-Marisa-Matias-visits-the-re
      #paywall

    • After Moria, EU to try closed asylum camps on Greek islands

      A “closed camp” for displaced people is being set up on Samos as part of the EU’s strategy for fortifying its external borders. Neither residents of the island nor the people who will be held there want the camp.

      The site of what is to be one of the first new EU camps for displaced people is surrounded by a 6-meter (20-foot) barbed-wire fence. The heat of the day gathers in the valley, which is served so far only by a gravel road. The location of the future camp is over 5 kilometers (4 miles) from Samos, the main town on the island of the same name. When the camp is built, residents will be able to enter it through turnstiles at the gates by means of microchipped armbands. At night, the gates will remain locked.

      By the end of 2020, Samos is meant to be the first Greek island to host a “closed camp.” The announcement was made by the Greek migration minister, Notis Mitarachi, when he visited the island at the end of August. The European Commission has given Greece almost €130 million ($152 million) to build multipurpose reception-and-identification centers, which are meant to provide a higher standard of accommodation than previous camps had, with portable cabins, running water, separated areas and, above all, more security.

      The concept of the closed camps is part of a new strategy to better fortify regions at the European Union’s external borders. Overfilled camps in such regions have become a chronic problem since large numbers of displaced people began arriving in Europe from 2015 on. At the start of the year, the Greek islands near the border to Turkey were hosting more than 40,000 asylum applicants. In the town of Samos, the number of asylum applicants exceeded the number of people who lived there permanently. Almost 5,000 people are currently living in the existing camp on the island — although it was first meant to house only 650.

      Residents have built tents made from sleeping bags, sticks and tarpaulins. Water pipes stick out from the ground. The doors of the portable toilet cabins are banging open and shut with the wind. There is a smell of fried fish and urine.
      ’Send us back’

      Omar, who asked that his real name not be used, was sitting on a pallet, drinking tea with his wife and children near the tent that the family — eight members in all — shares. At night, the rats are so loud that they can’t sleep, the 58-year-old Omar said. After seven months of waiting since the family came from Idlib, Syria, he has had enough. “It’s better to send us back to our country,” he said: It would be better to be in danger in a civil war than to be provided indefinite refuge at this camp.

      Skin infections are proliferating, Omar said, and most people are without showers. Each person receives one bottle of water and two meals a day — which the members of the family take turns standing in line for up to three hours to get.

      A son, Mohammed, who had studied in university back in Syria, fanned out the meal vouchers for the following days. Whereas at the start each person had received about €90 per month, this lump sum has now been reduced to €75. Omar had heard that the money saved was being used to improve the general living conditions. But, he said, nothing has changed for him. On the contrary: Since restrictions were placed on movement, he said, the situation has become even more tense. He said the situation often got worse at night — when there is neither electricity nor light.
      Are NGOs permitted?

      After the first two cases of coronavirus infection were discovered in the camp earlier in September, the Greek authorities imposed a lockdown that is to last until the end of the month. Over the past week — including as recently as Sunday evening — fires broke out in the camp. It remains unclear what caused the fires. But Greek politicians are warning of copycat effects following fires at the Moria camp on Lesbos, and even excusing the camp residents of engaging in arson to escape the miserable conditions.

      In the future, 2,100 will be held at the camp — 900 of them in a closed-off area where they will wait for decisions on their cases, according to Jonathan Vigneron, project coordinator for Doctors Without Borders (MSF) on Samos. The numbers are taken from a map that the migration minister handed out during his visit. Vigneron said the whole thing reminded him of a prison.

      “It’s a very scary thing to see,” Vigneron said. He added that issues that international organizations had asked for clarity on included whether NGOs such as MSF would even be permitted to work in the new camp. The registration procedure for NGOs makes access almost impossible, he said. In an open letter, 68 organizations wrote that conditions in the camp could create “a worrying situation with regard to human dignity.”

      Displaced people might have a better standard of accommodation and more security at the closed camp, Vigneron said, but they would have nothing to do and no freedom of movement. “The camp is 5 kilometers away from any place,” Vigneron said. “It’s not marginalizing people: This is segregation by definition.”

      https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/27510/after-moria-eu-to-try-closed-asylum-camps-on-greek-islands

    • #Moria_2.0': refugees who escaped fire now living in ’worse’ conditions

      More than 7,500 people living in tents on squalid settlement, with two other camps on Lesbos set to close

      Thousands of people who fled the fire that destroyed the infamous Moria refugee camp in Lesbos, Greece, last month are living in dire and unsanitary conditions in a temporary settlement with little access to water or basic sanitation.

      Just over 7,500 people are now living in tents among the rubble and dust of a former shooting range in an informal settlement that has become known as “Moria 2.0”.

      The camp, located at the edge of the sea, is exposed to the elements. Residents are allowed to leave the camp between 8am–8pm every day apart from Sunday. People wash their clothes and bodies in the sea because there is not enough running water. In the past week more than 1,600 recognised refugees have been moved to less crowded camps and hotels on the mainland, where they have said conditions are better.

      Semin, a 23-year-old economics graduate from a Kabul university, said she cried when she found out she wouldn’t be moving to the mainland.

      “My mother tries not to eat a lot of food because she doesn’t want to go to the toilet,” she said, and explained that some people were walking to a nearby town to use toilets in cafes instead of using camp toilets.

      “This camp is not good for children or old people,” she added. She said that the electricity, which is powered by generators, didn’t always work.

      A spokesperson for the Greek ministry of migration said that there were 400 toilets in the camp and that these were cleaned every day.

      Shad Mohammed, a refugee from Afghanistan, said he was having to find ways to cook his own food using salvaged pots and pans from Moria because his children could not eat the food in the new camp.

      Two other remaining camps on the island, Pikpa and Kara Tepe, which are both for vulnerable people, are now facing closure. Kara Tepe, which has a capacity for around 1,000 people, will be closed by the end of the year. Pikpa, a small brightly-coloured camp with notably good conditions, faces closure by authorities next week.

      Carmen Dupont from Lesvos Solidarity, an NGO operating in Pikpa, said she had been shocked to hear news of the closures. “At a time when we hear from the European Union: ‘no more Moria’, a new Moria has been built and the conditions – as far as we hear from the people inside – are worse than at the previous camp.”

      Dupont said the situation for those stuck on Lesbos and other Greek islands seemed to be deteriorating. “There seems to be a very clear agenda linked to the migration pact and the European Union’s direction, which is of containment. Keeping people trapped and locked in inhumane camps in hellish conditions and at the same time, erasing and closing the dignified shelters that exist.

      “It is a very clear agenda that we are resisting because Pikpa is much more than a place. We are defending the idea and values of solidarity, equality, dignity and connection.”

      Médecins Sans Frontières have also expressed concerns about the new camp. “We know that the camp has very minimal services,” said Marco Sandrone, the MSF project coordinator on Lesbos. “[The closure of Kara Tepe and Pikpa] is extremely concerning, because the lack of appropriate accommodation for vulnerable categories has always been an issue.”

      Meanwhile, as residents at “Moria 2.0” tried to make the best of the situation, the community at Pikpa were planning to spend their final days lobbying to save the space. Last week a group of children from the camp spent the day painting a mural reading: “Save Pikpa. Love you Pikpa.”

      A spokesperson for the ministry of migration said residents of Pikpa and Kara Tepe would have their asylum claims “accelerated”. A successful asylum claim would mean they would be moved to the mainland while a rejection would result in them being detained and – pending appeal – deported.

      https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/oct/07/moria-20-refugees-who-escaped-fire-now-living-in-worse-conditions?CMP=s

    • Un mois après les incendies à Moria, le HCR lance une mise en garde contre une dégradation des conditions à l’arrivée de l’hiver

      Quatre semaines après les incendies qui ont détruit le centre d’accueil et d’identification de Moria à Lesbos, le HCR, l’Agence des Nations Unies pour les réfugiés, réitère son appel pour que des mesures et des améliorations urgentes soient prises afin d’éviter une nouvelle détérioration des conditions de vie d’environ 7800 réfugiés et demandeurs d’asile actuellement hébergés dans le site d’urgence de Kara Tepe.

      Le froid et l’arrivée de l’hiver ne feront qu’aggraver les difficultés endurées par cette population. Il existe des lacunes critiques en matière de drainage, d’eau, d’installations d’assainissement et d’hygiène, et de services de santé, auxquelles il faut remédier sans délai.

      Les fortes pluies du 8 octobre dernier ont aggravé la situation des résidents du site d’urgence. Des tentes ont été inondées. Le HCR a effectué des visites de suivi en matière de protection pour évaluer la situation sur ce site suite aux fortes pluies et a donné la priorité aux bâches pour les personnes dont les tentes ont été affectées par les fortes pluies. Les réfugiés eux-mêmes ont également trouvé d’autres solutions provisoires, comme le creusement de canaux et de tranchées pour évacuer l’eau autour de leurs tentes et éviter les inondations, car le drainage fait défaut à travers tout le site.

      Le centre d’accueil et d’identification de Moria a été dévasté par des incendies le 9 septembre dernier, forçant quelque 12 000 hommes, femmes et enfants à vivre dans la rue. Les autorités grecques avaient rapidement mobilisé l’armée grecque et les partenaires humanitaires pour ouvrir un centre d’accueil d’urgence. Des efforts importants ont été déployés par les autorités nationales et les organismes d’aide travaillant à Lesbos. Toutefois, les conditions de vie dans le site d’urgence doivent encore être améliorées de toute urgence.

      Le HCR et d’autres partenaires humanitaires ont alerté les autorités grecques sur les dangers et les risques liés à la sécurité sur le site d’urgence, exigeant une action immédiate de leur part. La zone est sujette aux inondations et le site actuel sous tente n’est pas équipé pour fournir la protection nécessaire contre les éléments et les basses températures.

      A la demande des autorités grecques et en soutien aux efforts d’aide humanitaire menés par le gouvernement, le HCR fournit du gravier pour aider à réduire le risque d’inondation dans les zones de tentes et les parties communes. Comme le temps se refroidit et devient plus humide, nous fournissons des kits d’isolation et des planchers composés de palettes et de plaques de contreplaqué pour les tentes familiales.

      Toutefois, il ne s’agit là que d’interventions à court terme qui ne peuvent être considérées comme adéquates ou suffisantes pour résister à l’hiver. Nous avons souligné auprès des autorités que des efforts à grande échelle sont nécessaires, notamment pour assurer rapidement un drainage efficace sur l’ensemble du site et garantir de meilleures solutions d’hébergement pour les personnes les plus vulnérables et leurs familles. Parallèlement, nous continuons à demander davantage de transferts vers le continent dans des logements décents.

      Avec l’arrivée de nouvelles précipitations et d’autres conditions climatiques difficiles, le HCR exhorte à une action immédiate sur toutes les îles grecques de la mer Égée. A Samos, où près de 4500 personnes continuent de séjourner dans des conditions précaires et surpeuplées, la plupart d’entre elles dorment dans des tentes d’été ou des abris de fortune dans les bois, en périphérie du centre d’accueil prévu pour accueillir seulement 650 personnes. La souffrance de ces personnes peut être évitée, grâce à des préparatifs contre les conditions hivernales et à des transferts plus nombreux vers des logements décents.

      Parallèlement, le HCR est encouragé par les efforts menés durant le dernier mois pour décongestionner les sites surpeuplés à travers les îles de la mer Égée, par le biais de transferts vers le continent des demandeurs d’asile les plus vulnérables et des personnes ayant obtenu le statut de réfugié de la part des autorités grecques. Nous continuons à apporter notre appui et à encourager l’accélération de ces efforts.

      A un moment où les besoins en termes de logements appropriés pour les demandeurs d’asile en Grèce sont accrus, le HCR est particulièrement préoccupé par la fermeture annoncée des installations sur l’île de Lesbos, qui avaient été consacrées à l’hébergement de centaines de familles, de femmes et d’enfants parmi les plus vulnérables.

      Il s’agit notamment du centre d’hébergement communautaire de Kara Tepe et de PIKPA, un espace de solidarité autogéré. L’un des fondateurs de cet espace avait reçu la distinction Nansen du HCR pour les réfugiés en 2016. L’activiste grecque Efi Latsoudi a travaillé sans relâche pour aider des milliers de réfugiés arrivant sur les côtes grecques, en offrant un refuge aux plus vulnérables après leur arrivée.

      En attendant des solutions plus complètes et plus dignes, le HCR appelle les autorités grecques à veiller à ce que de telles initiatives continuent d’exister pour assurer la protection et répondre aux besoins spécifiques des réfugiés particulièrement vulnérables.

      https://www.unhcr.org/fr/news/briefing/2020/10/5f8057a5a/mois-apres-incendies-moria-hcr-lance-mise-garde-contre-degradation-conditions

    • “No more Moria”? Rainfall floods dozens of tents in Kara Tepe camp

      Dozens of tents were flooded and large parts of Kara Tepe refugee camp on the island of Lesvos came under water after a strong rainfall on Thursday, an expected development as many people warned about from the very first moment the camp was set up.

      the European Commission slogan “No More Moria” turned into “flooded Kara Tepe” instead.

      The rainfall destroyed 80 out of 1,100 tents and left families with children and elderly again without a roof over their heads.


      https://twitter.com/InfoMigrants/status/1314500743685189632

      3 out of 15 demarcated areas in the camp stand under water.

      For the Migration and Asylum Ministry reason for the floods is the heavy rainfall and the hastily way the camp was set up due to the fire in Moria hotspot.


      https://twitter.com/Malichudis/status/1314242613675995137

      “It is obvious that a temporary structure that was built in a few days will face problems, however, the problems have been addressed immediately,” Ministry sources said according to local media.

      The sources said that the services of the Migration Ministry that operate in the field, in collaboration with Civil Society volunteers, have already proceeded to:

      Transfer of residents to flooded tents, to common areas (rub halls) , where they will remain until further notice.
      Restoration or removal of the approximately 80 tents affected, as 2,500 residents have already left the temporary structure in Kara Tepe and additional 1,300 will leave for relocation abroad.
      Distribution of waterproof covers in order to strengthen the roofs of the tents.

      Drainage works are expected to be concluded in a week.

      “After all, winterization projects are in progress from the first moment,” the sources said..

      They added “the effectiveness of the first infrastructure and protection projects is proven by the fact that the overwhelming percentage of the structure was not affected by the rainfall.”

      The Migration Ministry submitted a relevant Technical Bulletin totaling 5,580,000 euros to the Ministry of Development and Investment, which has already been approved and the projects will be implemented immediately. The projects are funded by the European Union “.

      The sources stressed that the damages in Kara Tepe demonstrate the need for the immediate implementation of the project of the new closed / controlled structure, a structure that will offer better living conditions, modern facilities and more security.”

      PS all in all the Greek Migration Ministry is satisfied with its accomplishments then “only 80 tents were flooded.” Thank goodness, the rain did not come from the other side flooding another 80.

      And it is still autumn…

      The United Nations High Commissioner for Refuges warns of worsening conditions ahead of the winter.

      https://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2020/10/09/kara-tepe-camp-lesvos-flooded
      #inondations

    • UNHCR calls for action after migrant camp floods

      A month after fire razed the sprawling Moria reception center on the Aegean island of Lesvos, the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, has called for “urgent action” after heavy rain flooded tents at a new facility set up to replace the camp.

      “Urgent action and improvements are needed to avoid further deterioration of living conditions for some 7,800 refugees and asylum-seekers currently sheltered in the emergency site in Kara Tepe,” the UNHCR said in a statement on Friday.

      It said some “interim solutions” were found in the wake of the flooding caused by Thursday’s rainfall but warned that, “colder weather and the onset of winter will only bring more hardship for the people there.”

      Migration Minister Notis Mitarakis said that the majority of the facility had not been affected by the flooding and that those migrants whose tents were flooded were temporarily moved to “common areas.”

      https://www.ekathimerini.com/257929/article/ekathimerini/news/unhcr-calls-for-action-after-migrant-camp-floods

    • Moria 2.0: The new Lesbos refugee camp

      A month ago, on September 12, the Greek government opened a new migrant camp on Lesbos, after Moria was destroyed by fire. The new camp is home to about 10,000. InfoMigrants went to meet some of them last week.

      The last warmth of autumn is fading on Lesbos, the Greek island that will be remembered as the site of Europe’s largest migrant camp, Moria, which burned to the ground a month ago.

      After the fire, some of the most vulnerable migrants were taken to facilities on the Greek mainland or to other European countries. Those remaining, around 10,000 people including babies, the elderly and ill, moved into the new temporary tent facility on a former military site. Before moving there, they had spent up to ten days sleeping by the roadside in the open.

      Access to the camp is restricted and the Greek authorities do not welcome visitors. There is a large police presence in and around the camp to ensure that the violence of Moria is not repeated. Asylum seekers are searched for drugs and weapons every time they re-enter the facility. This also means waiting in line to receive a rapid antigen test for COVID-19 .

      The Greek Ministry of Migration and Asylum promised that people would have decent living conditions, medical treatment and supplies including running water, electricity and wifi. Once a day, the residents receive a food package containing three meals, but many supplement these rations by cooking their own food over small fires along the sea shore.

      As there are no showers in the camp, people have to wash with a hose-pipe or in the sea. Many people InfoMigrants spoke to said this was causing serious problems for women who needed privacy.

      Children and adults wait in line to fill their containers with cold water from a hose. There is no physical distancing or any other protection against virus transmission.

      Camp residents who are ill with coronavirus are in a fenced-off area.

      Without insulation the tents can become too hot to stay inside even when the outside temperature is less than 28 degrees Celsius. In winter, when it drops to around six degrees, they will offer little protection against cold.

      The camp went up quickly before drains were dug, and the first rain a day after this photo was taken on October 7, flooded the tents. A number of migrants complained that they were living “worse than animals.”

      https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/27851/moria-2-0-the-new-lesbos-refugee-camp

    • Lesbos: Is another Moria in the making?

      Rains have flooded a camp set up to replace the burned-down Moria camp for displaced people and migrants on the Greek island of Lesbos. People seeking to make a new life for themselves are instead mired in mud.

      There are huge puddles in front of the tents at the Kara Tepe camp on the Greek island of Lesbos. A woman holding a newborn baby in a thick pink blanket watches children splash through the water, barefoot or in flip-flops. People are using shovels in often vain efforts to remove the murky water from inside the tents. The rainwater has even seeped underneath the plastic groundsheets, causing them to bulge in places.

      The videos and photos circulating on Twitter and other internet platforms give the world an idea of how helpless the people on Lesbos must have felt after the massive rains this week. “The water came into our tent and everything was flooded,” Ahmad Shuaib Abawi told DW. The 26-year-old Afghan and his family of nine live in one of the approximately 1,100 tents in what the Greek authorities refer to as a “temporary camp.”

      Conditions were supposed to be different there — more orderly, safer — after the controversial and completely overcrowded Moria refugee camp burned down about a month ago.

      80 tents destroyed by water

      Even before the heavy rainfalls, critics called the new camp, which is being called Moria 2 by some, “inhumane.” The rains have now destroyed about 80 of the 1,100 tents. According to the Greek Immigration Ministry, the authorities immediately started to fix the problem, arguing that it is normal for “temporary accommodation built within just a few days” to face challenges.

      The ministry said only a small part of the camp was affected by the floods and that some of the refugees had been temporarily relocated. According to the Greek government, almost 10,000 people currently live at the Kara Tepe camp.

      Waiting all day long

      “It’s really horrible,” said Marion MacGregor, who has been on the ground in Lesbos for the InfoMigrants online portal for the past few days. The refugees are not doing well and the psychological strain, in particular, is enormous, she said. “They do not want to lose years of their lives waiting around in these conditions; they just want to have their asylum application interviews and get on with it” she said. Instead, many face a long wait in the camp, knowing that winter is coming, there are no showers and there is not enough food.

      In good weather, the location of the camp could even be described as idyllic. It is situated right on the coast and the morning sun occasionally bathes the tents in soft orange light. But in reality, Kara Tepe has little of the idyll about it.

      “People wash in the ocean,” MacGregor said, adding that this is a problem in particular for the women, as they have no privacy. Portable toilets have been set up — altogether 345 of them, camp residents have told workers from the aid organization Doctors Without Borders (MSF).

      Food packages are not enough

      “Once a day, they are handed a packet of food, but that’s not enough,” MacGregor said — which is why some refugees try to sell bottles or handkerchiefs in the city to buy extra food. But thanks to solar panels, many people in the camp at least have electricity.

      Is the situation in the new camp better than in Moria, despite the many privations? Residents of the camp are divided in their opinion. MacGregor has heard that there is less violence, at least, thanks to the enormous police presence in front of and inside the camp.

      Ahmad Shuaib Abawi also had a relatively positive view — of the camp, at least. “We are not doing badly here, but we are wasting time; the children could go to school and we could study,” he said, adding that he wants to get on with his life rather than get stuck.

      Seven square meters for two families

      “The conditions in the new camp remind us a lot of Moria, while we hear from our patients that in reality, the situation is even worse,” said Marco Sandrone, director of operations for MSF on Lesbos, adding it appears that some tents have no groundsheet at all. “Before the rains, people slept on rocky or dusty ground, which has since become muddy,” he said. Many families have to share tents; they cook, eat and sleep on about 7 square meters (75 square feet), he added.

      https://twitter.com/MSF_Sea/status/1314245456189415424

      The local aid organizations agree the living conditions are not humane despite promises by the Greek Immigration Ministry to provide “decent conditions,” medical care and sufficient food. “Enough is enough!” several aid organizations, including MSF, say in a joint statement. “We reaffirm our call to move these people to safe and decent housing. Other European countries must also accept those seeking protection in order to relieve the situation on the Greek islands.”

      Appeal to EU

      About 2,500 refugees housed at the Kara Tepe camp have been transferred to other accommodation within the EU since September, and 1,300 are expected to leave the camp soon, according to the Greek Migration Ministry. Germany agreed to take in 1,500 refugees from Greece; France expects 900.

      The aid organizations argue that is not enough. They call on EU leaders and member state to stop sealing off the Greek islands and reinforcing the bloc’s external borders. For the time being, however, nothing is likely to change at the Kara Tepe camp. The waiting continues, along with hopes that the next rain will not flood everything again.

      https://www.dw.com/en/lesbos-is-another-moria-in-the-making/a-55249863

    • Deutsche Welle publie un article sur les dénonciations de la situation inhumaine au camp de Kara Tepe à Lesbos et sur l’appel dit ‘Appel de Noël’ de 240 parlementaires du Bundestag de tout bord qui demandent d’accueillir plus de réfugiés venant des îles grecques

      Γερμανική κριτική για την κατάσταση στο Καρά Τεπέ
      https://www.dw.com/el/%CE%B3%CE%B5%CF%81%CE%BC%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AE-%CE%BA%CF%81%CE%B9%CF%84%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AE-%CE%B3%CE%B9%CE%B1-%CF%84%CE%B7%CE%BD-%CE%BA%CE%B1%CF%84%CE%AC%CF%83%CF%84%CE%B1%CF%83%CE%B7-%CF%83%CF%84%CE%BF-%CE%BA%CE%B1%CF%81%CE%AC-%CF%84%CE%B5%CF%80%CE%AD/a-55973267

      17.12.2020

      La situation à Kara Tepe vivement critiquée en Allemagne

      La situation est pire que dans les camps en Afrique, dit le ministre Gerd Müller. Fin décembre, tous les mineurs isolés ou malades seront transférés des îles grecques. Appel de 240 parlementaires allemands.

      Le ministre allemand du Développement économique, Gerd Müller, a vivement critiqué la situation dans le camp de réfugiés de Kara Tepe. S’exprimant sur RTL / ntv ce matin, il a souligné que « c’est en effet un grand scandale pour l’UE que jusqu’à présent nous n’ayons pas pu, malgré l’incendie de Moria il y a quelques mois, créer une situation qui serait vraiment humaine ». M. Müller, le ministre chargé de la coopération avec les pays en développement, a déclaré que la situation à Lesbos était pire que dans les camps de réfugiés en Afrique.

      Gerd Müller : L’UE est coresponsable de la situation à Kara Tepe

      Le politicien de l’Union chrétienne-sociale (CSU) a évoqué à plusieurs reprises la situation dans les camps des îles grecques et a exhorté le gouvernement allemand à accepter des réfugiés de Grèce. Plusieurs fois il s’est opposé au ministre de l’Intérieur Horst Seehofer, qui appartient également à la CSU. Contrairement à Gerd Müller, Seehofer rejette les initiatives uniquement allemandes sur la question migratoire et insiste sur une ligne européenne unique. Mais un porte-parole du ministère allemand de l’Intérieur a déclaré ces dernières semaines que les efforts de la présidence allemande de l’UE au cours des six derniers mois pour réformer la politique d’asile européenne avaient échoué.

      L’Allemagne continue d’accepter des réfugiés de Grèce

      S’exprimant hier après-midi au parlement allemand sur la question de l’accueil des réfugiés de Grèce, le vice-ministre de l’Intérieur Volkmar Vogel a annoncé que le 3 décembre, les derniers mineurs isolés que l’Allemagne avait promis d’accepter sont arrivés des îles grecques. Quant aux 243 autres enfants réfugiés malades, ainsi que leurs familles, que le gouvernement allemand s’est également engagé à accueillir, M. Vogel a exprimé l’espoir que d’ici la fin du mois, ils seraient tous arrivés. Cependant, en raison de la pandémie de coronavirus, les procédures d’accueil des 1553 réfugiés des îles grecques, que l’Allemagne avait annoncé vouloir accueillir après l’incendie de Moria, elles vont s’étaler sur plusieurs mois.

      M. Vogel a clairement indiqué qu’à l’heure actuelle, l’Allemagne n’avait pas l’intention d’accepter d’autres réfugiés de Grèce et que la question concernait l’UE dans son ensemble. Le principal objectif du gouvernement allemand est d’améliorer la situation des réfugiés en Grèce. Evoquant les camps de réfugiés sur les îles grecques et en particulier à Lesbos, Volkmar Vogel a déclaré que le gouvernement allemand « regrette la situation » là-bas et qu’il tente « dans la mesure de ses capacités » d’aider sur le terrain.

      Appel de plus de 240 députés

      Les législateurs allemands demandent au gouvernement allemand d’accepter plus de réfugiés de Grèce

      Selon l’agence de presse epd [Evangelischer Pressedienst, epd], plus de 240 députés allemands signent un « appel de Noël », demandant au gouvernement allemand d’ accepter davantage de réfugiés de Grèce et de redoubler d’efforts pour trouver une solution au niveau de l’UE. L’appel est signé par les députés de tous des partis autres que l’AfD, Alternative nationaliste et xénophobe pour l’Allemagne. Parmi eux se trouvent les présidents des sociaux-démocrates, Saskia Esken et des Verts, Annalena Baerbock, la vice-présidente de la Chambre, le libéral, Wolfgang Kubicki, l’ancien président des chrétiens-démocrates, Volker Kauder et la parlementaire Ulla Jelpke du Die Linke.

      Panagiotis Kouparanis, Berlin

      –—

      Voir l’article de SDZ (en allemand)

      Migration und Asyl:Abgeordnete verlangen mehr Hilfe für Flüchtlinge
      https://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/migration-und-asyl-abgeordnete-verlangen-mehr-hilfe-fuer-fluechtlinge-1

      17. Dezember 2020, 18:50 Uhr

      In einem « Weihnachtsappell » fordern 240 Parlamentarier fast aller Fraktionen fordern die Bundesregierung auf, mehr für Schutzsuchende in Griechenland zu tun.

      Von Constanze von Bullion, Berlin, dit le ministre Gerd Müller. Fin décembre, tous les mineurs isolés ou malades seront transférés des îles grecques. Appel de 240 membres allemands.

      Le ministre allemand du Développement économique, Gerd Müller, a vivement critiqué la situation dans le camp de réfugiés de Kara Tepe. S’exprimant sur RTL / ntv ce matin, il a souligné que « c’est en effet un grand scandale pour l’UE que jusqu’à présent nous n’ayons pas pu, malgré l’incendie de Moria il y a quelques mois, créer une situation qui serait vraiment humaine ». M. Müller, le ministre chargé de la coopération avec les pays en développement, a déclaré que la situation à Lesbos était pire que dans les camps de réfugiés en Afrique.

      Gerd Müller : L’UE est coresponsable de la situation à Kara Tepe

      Le politicien de l’Union chrétienne-sociale (CSU) a évoqué à plusieurs reprises la situation dans les camps des îles grecques et a exhorté le gouvernement allemand à accepter des réfugiés de Grèce. Plusieurs fois il s’est opposé au ministre de l’Intérieur Horst Seehofer, qui appartient également à la CSU. Contrairement à Gerd Müller, Seehofer rejette les initiatives uniquement allemandes sur la question migratoire et insiste sur une ligne européenne unique. Mais un porte-parole du ministère allemand de l’Intérieur a déclaré ces dernières semaines que les efforts de la présidence allemande de l’UE au cours des six derniers mois pour réformer la politique d’asile européenne avaient échoué.

      L’Allemagne continue d’accepter des réfugiés de Grèce

      S’exprimant hier après-midi au parlement allemand sur la question de l’accueil des réfugiés de Grèce, le vice-ministre de l’Intérieur Volkmar Vogel a annoncé que le 3 décembre, les derniers mineurs isolés que l’Allemagne avait promis d’accepter sont arrivés des îles grecques. Quant aux 243 autres enfants réfugiés malades, ainsi que leurs familles, que le gouvernement allemand s’est également engagé à accueillir, M. Vogel a exprimé l’espoir que d’ici la fin du mois, ils seraient tous arrivés. Cependant, en raison de la pandémie de coronavirus, les procédures d’accueil des 1553 réfugiés des îles grecques, que l’Allemagne avait annoncé vouloir accueillir après l’incendie de Moria, elles vont s’étaler sur plusieurs mois.

      M. Vogel a clairement indiqué qu’à l’heure actuelle, l’Allemagne n’avait pas l’intention d’accepter d’autres réfugiés de Grèce et que la question concernait l’UE dans son ensemble. Le principal objectif du gouvernement allemand est d’améliorer la situation des réfugiés en Grèce. Evoquant les camps de réfugiés sur les îles grecques et en particulier à Lesbos, Volkmar Vogel a déclaré que le gouvernement allemand « regrette la situation » là-bas et qu’il tente « dans la mesure de ses capacités » d’aider sur le terrain.

      Appel de plus de 240 députés

      Les législateurs allemands demandent au gouvernement allemand d’accepter plus de réfugiés de Grèce

      Selon l’agence de presse epd [Evangelischer Pressedienst, epd], plus de 240 députés allemands signent un « appel de Noël », appelant le gouvernement allemand à accepter davantage de réfugiés de Grèce et à redoubler d’efforts pour trouver une solution au niveau de l’UE. L’appel est signé par les députés de tous des partis autres que l’AfD, Alternative nationaliste et xénophobe pour l’Allemagne. Parmi eux se trouvent les présidents des sociaux-démocrates, Saskia Esken et des Verts, Annalena Baerbock, la vice-présidente de la Chambre, le libéral, Wolfgang Kubicki, l’ancien président des chrétiens-démocrates, Volker Kauder et la parlementaire Ulla Jelpke du Die Linke.

      Panagiotis Kouparanis, Berlin

      Voir l’article de SDZ (en allemand)

      https://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/migration-und-asyl-abgeordnete-verlangen-mehr-hilfe-fuer-fluechtlinge-1

      17. Dezember 2020, 18:50 Uhr

      Migration und Asyl:Abgeordnete verlangen mehr Hilfe für Flüchtlinge

      In einem « Weihnachtsappell » fordern 240 Parlamentarier fast aller Fraktionen fordern die Bundesregierung auf, mehr für Schutzsuchende in Griechenland zu tun.

      Von Constanze von Bullion, Berlin dit le ministre Gerd Müller. Fin décembre, tous les mineurs isolés ou malades seront transférés des îles grecques. Appel de 240 membres allemands.

      Le ministre allemand du Développement économique, Gerd Müller, a vivement critiqué la situation dans le camp de réfugiés de Kara Tepe. S’exprimant sur RTL / ntv ce matin, il a souligné que « c’est en effet un grand scandale pour l’UE que jusqu’à présent nous n’ayons pas pu, malgré l’incendie de Moria il y a quelques mois, créer une situation qui serait vraiment humaine ». M. Müller, le ministre chargé de la coopération avec les pays en développement, a déclaré que la situation à Lesbos était pire que dans les camps de réfugiés en Afrique.

      Gerd Müller : L’UE est coresponsable de la situation à Kara Tepe

      Le politicien de l’Union chrétienne-sociale (CSU) a évoqué à plusieurs reprises la situation dans les camps des îles grecques et a exhorté le gouvernement allemand à accepter des réfugiés de Grèce. Plusieurs fois il s’est opposé au ministre de l’Intérieur Horst Seehofer, qui appartient également à la CSU. Contrairement à Gerd Müller, Seehofer rejette les initiatives uniquement allemandes sur la question migratoire et insiste sur une ligne européenne unique. Mais un porte-parole du ministère allemand de l’Intérieur a déclaré ces dernières semaines que les efforts de la présidence allemande de l’UE au cours des six derniers mois pour réformer la politique d’asile européenne avaient échoué.

      L’Allemagne continue d’accepter des réfugiés de Grèce

      S’exprimant hier après-midi au parlement allemand sur la question de l’accueil des réfugiés de Grèce, le vice-ministre de l’Intérieur Volkmar Vogel a annoncé que le 3 décembre, les derniers mineurs isolés que l’Allemagne avait promis d’accepter sont arrivés des îles grecques. Quant aux 243 autres enfants réfugiés malades, ainsi que leurs familles, que le gouvernement allemand s’est également engagé à accueillir, M. Vogel a exprimé l’espoir que d’ici la fin du mois, ils seraient tous arrivés. Cependant, en raison de la pandémie de coronavirus, les procédures d’accueil des 1553 réfugiés des îles grecques, que l’Allemagne avait annoncé vouloir accueillir après l’incendie de Moria, elles vont s’étaler sur plusieurs mois.

      M. Vogel a clairement indiqué qu’à l’heure actuelle, l’Allemagne n’avait pas l’intention d’accepter d’autres réfugiés de Grèce et que la question concernait l’UE dans son ensemble. Le principal objectif du gouvernement allemand est d’améliorer la situation des réfugiés en Grèce. Evoquant les camps de réfugiés sur les îles grecques et en particulier à Lesbos, Volkmar Vogel a déclaré que le gouvernement allemand « regrette la situation » là-bas et qu’il tente « dans la mesure de ses capacités » d’aider sur le terrain.

      Appel de plus de 240 députés

      Les législateurs allemands demandent au gouvernement allemand d’accepter plus de réfugiés de Grèce

      Selon l’agence de presse epd [Evangelischer Pressedienst, epd], plus de 240 députés allemands signent un « appel de Noël », appelant le gouvernement allemand à accepter davantage de réfugiés de Grèce et à redoubler d’efforts pour trouver une solution au niveau de l’UE. L’appel est signé par les députés de tous des partis autres que l’AfD, Alternative nationaliste et xénophobe pour l’Allemagne. Parmi eux se trouvent les présidents des sociaux-démocrates, Saskia Esken et des Verts, Annalena Baerbock, la vice-présidente de la Chambre, le libéral, Wolfgang Kubicki, l’ancien président des chrétiens-démocrates, Volker Kauder et la parlementaire Ulla Jelpke du Die Linke.

      Panagiotis Kouparanis, Berlin

      Voir l’article de SDZ (en allemand)

      https://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/migration-und-asyl-abgeordnete-verlangen-mehr-hilfe-fuer-fluechtlinge-1

      17. Dezember 2020, 18:50 Uhr

      Migration und Asyl:Abgeordnete verlangen mehr Hilfe für Flüchtlinge

      In einem « Weihnachtsappell » fordern 240 Parlamentarier fast aller Fraktionen fordern die Bundesregierung auf, mehr für Schutzsuchende in Griechenland zu tun.

      Von Constanze von Bullion, Berlin

    • Après le froid glacial le camp de Kara Tepe sous la neige
      Μετά το τσουχτερό κρύο ήρθε και το χιόνι στο καταυλισμό του Καρά Τεπέ

      Σήμερα το πρωί και αργότερα το μεσημέρι, ο χιονιάς έφτασε και στη πόλη της Μυτιλήνης καλύπτοντας τα πάντα και ασφαλώς τον καταυλισμό με τους 7.500 ανθρώπους που εξακολουθούν να διαμένουν σε σκηνές, πολλές από αυτές χωρίς να διαθέτουν πάτωμα.

      Επιπλέον, ο καταυλισμός εξακολουθεί να λειτουργεί με ανεπαρκή ρευματοδότηση με αποτέλεσμα πλέον εκεί να κινδυνεύουν ζωές.
      Συγκεκριμένα, η παροχή ρεύματος γίνεται ανά πτέρυγα και μόνο για μισή ώρα προκειμένου σταδιακά να πάρουν ολες οι σκηνές. Αποτέλεσμα όμως είναι υπό αυτές τις συνθήκες οι πρόσφυγες να περνούν δραματικές ώρες και άνθρωποι που είναι σε θέση να γνωρίζουν εκφράζουν φόβους για μεγάλο αριθμό ασθενών που θα χρειαστούν νοσηλεία το επόμενο διάστημα.

      Αντί όμως οι υπεύθυνοι όλο το προηγούμενο διάστημα να προετοιμαστούν κατάλληλα, άφησαν τον καταυλισμό με την ελάχιστη δυνατότητα ρευματοδότησης.
      Χαρακτηριστικό είναι ότι και ορισμένες γεννήτριες που είχε δωρίσει γνωστή ΜΚΟ και γλίτωσαν από την καταστροφή της Μόριας, σταμάτησαν να λειτουργούν το προηγούμενο διάστημα, αφού καταστράφηκαν από τις πλημμύρες που είχαν προηγηθεί.

      Από την πλευρά του ο διοικητής του καμπ Νίκος Μπαμπάκος, σε τηλεφωνική επικοινωνία με την ΕΦ.ΣΥΝ., δήλωσε ότι « οι γεννήτριες που υπάρχουν τώρα μπορούν να καλύψουν τις ανάγκες του καταυλισμού για 16 ώρες την ημέρα. Είμαστε όμως υποχρεωμένοι να τις κλείνουμε το πρωί, ενώ μία από αυτές δυστυχώς έπαθε βλάβη.

      Προχωράμε στη διαδικασία της αντικατάστασης της και αναμένουμε μία εφεδρική από την Αθήνα » σημείωσε.

      Όπως μάλιστα τόνισε το πρόβλημα ξεκινά από το γεγονός ότι ο καταυλισμός δεν έχει ακόμη σύνδεση με το κεντρικό δίκτυο της ΔΕΗ, παρά το γεγονός ότι βρίσκεται πολύ κοντά στο εργοστάσιο.

      « Δυστυχώς η γραφειοκρατία ακόμα δεν μας έχει επιτρέψει τη σύνδεση » είπε, χαρακτηριζοντας την κατάσταση δύσκολη αλλά αντιμετωπίσημη.

      https://www.efsyn.gr/node/277445

      #neige #froid

  • Incendie dans le hotspot de Lesbos (septembre 2020)

    12.500 demandeurs d’asile fuient les flammes et errent dans la nuit tandis que le feu pourrait réduire le camp entier en cendres, voir les vidéos sur le site d’efsyn :

    Πύρινη κόλαση στο ΚΥΤ της Μόριας - Εκκενώθηκε ο καταυλισμός

    Στις φλόγες για ακόμα μια φορά ο προσφυγικός καταυλισμός. Επεισόδια μετά την ανακοίνωση των 35 θετικών κρουσμάτων κορονοϊού. Χιλιάδες πρόσφυγες και μετανάστες σε αναζήτηση στέγης.

    Μεγάλες φωτιές καίνε από τα μεσάνυχτα όλο τον προσφυγικό καταυλισμό της Μόριας. Χιλιάδες πρόσφυγες και μετανάστες βρίσκονται αυτή την ώρα άστεγοι, κυριολεκτικά μέσα στους δρόμους.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bc-mFZTobB0&feature=emb_logo

    Περίπου 12.500 κόσμος που διέμεναν στη Μόρια εγκατέλειψαν τη δομή και αρχικά κινήθηκαν προς τον οικισμό της Παναγιούδας, ενώ μέρος τους κινήθηκε και προς άλλες κατευθύνσεις. Την ίδια ώρα διμοιρίες ΜΑΤ με κλούβες δημιούργησαν φραγμό στο ύψος του Καρά Τεπέ αποτρέποντας τους από το να μπουν στην πόλη.

    Η Πυροσβεστική Υπηρεσία προς ώρας επιβεβαιώνει ότι δεν υπάρχουν αναφορές για θύματα.

    Πώς ξεκίνησε η φωτιά
    Σύμφωνα με τις πρώτες πληροφορίες, της φωτιάς προηγήθηκαν επεισόδια που ξεκίνησαν γύρω στις έντεκα το βράδυ. Η ένταση προκλήθηκε μετά την ανακοίνωση των 35 θετικών κρουσμάτων κορονοϊού στον καταυλισμό και την άρνηση κάποιων εξ αυτών να μπουν σε καραντίνα.


    https://twitter.com/Eva_Cosse/status/1303471253802582024

    Γρήγορα οι αρνητές της καραντίνας ήρθαν σε σύγκρουση με άλλους που επεσήμαναν το κίνδυνο για όλο το καμπ ενώ ομάδες προσφύγων προσπάθησαν να διαφύγουν μέσα από το ΚΥΤ φοβούμενοι την μετάδοση του ιού.

    Γύρω στις 11.00 έκαναν την εμφάνιση τους οι πρώτες φλόγες περιμετρικά του ΚΥΤ και προς τη πλευρά του Ελαιώνα.

    Γρήγορα η φωτιά πέρασε μέσα στο ΚΥΤ και εκεί ομάδα αιτούντων παρεμπόδισε την Πυροσβεστική Υπηρεσία να εισέλθει. Τότε επενέβησαν τα ΜΑΤ που με τη χρήση δακρυγόνων και κρότου-λάμψης διέλυσαν το συγκεντρωμένο πλήθος, αλλά η φωτιά είχε αρχίσει να καίει όλες τις κρίσιμες εγκαταστάσεις όπως τα γραφεία της Ευρωπαϊκής Υπηρεσίας Ασύλου κ.α

    Φόβοι εκφράζονται και για την νέα δομή υγείας που δώρισε η Ολλανδική κυβέρνηση μιας και οι φλόγες βγήκαν έξω από το ΚΥΤ και κινήθηκαν προς όλες τις κατευθύνσεις.

    Αξίζει να σημειωθεί ότι την ώρα που ξέσπασε η πυρκαγιά, όλες οι πυροσβεστικές δυνάμεις της Λέσβου ήταν σε απόσταση 70 χιλιομέτρων προσπαθώντας να ελέγξουν το διπλό πύρινο μέτωπο που είχε ξεσπάσει νωρίτερα στην Άντισσα και την Βατούσσα αφήνοντας περί τα δέκα οχήματα στο ΚΥΤ που ήταν αδύνατον να ανταπεξέλθουν.

    https://www.efsyn.gr/ellada/koinonia/258965_pyrini-kolasi-sto-kyt-tis-morias-ekkenothike-o-kataylismos

    #Moria #feu #incendie #hotspot #asile #migrations #réfugiés #camps_de_réfugiés #Lesbos #Grèce

    (incendie qui a eu lieu le 9 septembre 2020, je suis en retard sur cet événement, j’essaie de mettre les nouvelles arrivées ensuite, notamment sur la mailing-list Migreurop, dans les prochains jours sur ce fil de discussion)

    –—

    Ajouté à la métaliste sur les incendies qui ont eu lieu en Grèce dans des camps de réfugiés :
    https://seenthis.net/messages/851143

    ping @karine4 @isskein

    • Moria 09/09/20

      OFFICIEL : Lesbos est en état d’urgence depuis 4 mois
      09/09/2020 12:24:00 Société, Lesbos, Immigrants, Incendie, EKTAKTO

      Par arrêté du vice-ministre de la Protection civile et de la gestion des crises, Nikos Hardalia et décision du secrétaire général de la protection civile, Vassilios Papageorgiou, l’unité régionale de Lesbos est déclarée en état d’urgence de la protection civile, pour des raisons de santé publique.

      Cette déclaration est valable à partir d’aujourd’hui 09-09-2020 et pendant quatre (4) mois.

      Les ministres de l’Intérieur T. Theodorikakos, de l’Immigration et de l’Asile N. Mitarakis et le président d’EODY Pan. Arkoumaneas se rend à Lesbos, afin d’être informé de la situation à Moria, comme l’a déclaré le porte-parole du gouvernement St. Petsas, après la fin de la réunion gouvernementale au Palais Maximos.

      Pendant ce temps, des renforts d’Athènes ont été envoyés par la police à Lesbos, afin de faire face au problème qui s’est créé depuis la nuit après les incendies qui se sont déclarés à Moria et ont détruit une très grande partie du KYT. En particulier, trois escouades MAT ont quitté Elefsina à 7 heures du matin sur un avion militaire C-130 et devraient arriver sur l’île à 9 heures.

      Comme il est devenu connu du siège de EL.AS. Il y a déjà des forces fortes sur l’île, cependant tous les étrangers qui étaient dans le KYT après les incendies sont concentrés à l’extérieur de la structure, où ils sont gardés et cherchent des solutions pour leur logement.

      La lumière du jour montre l’ampleur de la destruction du camp - « ville » de 13 000 réfugiés et migrants à Moria. La totalité de la partie extérieure du KYT a été complètement détruite, tandis qu’une grande partie à l’intérieur du camp KYT qui continue de brûler a également été détruite. Les informations indiquent que les infrastructures d’administration et d’identification n’ont pas été incendiées, mais que le service d’asile et son équipement ont été complètement incendiés. En outre, des dommages ont été causés dans la zone de l’unité de soins intensifs et de l’unité de soins intensifs et dans la climatisation de l’unité de santé qui a été faite grâce à un don du gouvernement néerlandais.

      Une grande partie de la population de Moria a fui vers les domaines environnants, tandis qu’une autre partie s’est déplacée vers la ville de Mytilène où à la hauteur de Kara Tepe, juste avant l’usine PPC, une force de police forte a été alignée qui ne leur permet pas d’entrer dans la ville.

      L’incendie s’est déclaré vers minuit, lorsque les réfugiés et les migrants qui avaient été testés positifs pour le coronavirus ou avaient été détectés comme cas de contact ont refusé d’être isolés. Des affrontements se sont ensuivis avec d’autres réfugiés et migrants qui les ont poussés hors du camp. Ce conflit a pris à un moment donné un caractère tribal avec le résultat que des incendies ont éclaté, qui bientôt, en raison du vent fort, ont pris des dimensions.

      Il est à noter que, comme indiqué, les forces des pompiers, arrivées au camp pour tenter, ont été attaquées par des groupes de demandeurs d’asile qui ont entravé leur travail. En ce moment, les pompiers opèrent dans le camp avec le renforcement des moyens aériens, afin d’éteindre complètement le feu puis de contrôler la zone.

      Source : skai.gr

      https://www.lesvospost.com/2020/09/blog-post_50.html

      On craint une propagation du coronavirus dans tout Mytilène si les quelque 12000 réfugiés et immigrants ne sont pas expulsés immédiatement et dans une zone éloignée du tissu urbain après l’incendie qui s’est déclaré peu avant minuit mardi à Moria, exprime le maire de Mytilene S.

      « Les quelque 12 000 réfugiés ne peuvent pas rester un deuxième jour à ce moment-là. Dix ans nous ont laissés seuls sur la question des réfugiés. Les immigrants doivent être expulsés ici et maintenant. "Sinon, il y aura une propagation du virus dans toute la région", a déclaré le maire de Mytilène, Stratis Kytelis, à ethnos.gr.

      12000 réfugiés et migrants restent sur la route nationale

      Les réfugiés et les migrants restent sur la route nationale à la hauteur de Panagouda et se trouve à seulement six kilomètres de Mytilène tandis que les forces de police ont créé un barrage pour les empêcher de s’y déplacer. Trois escouades MAT avec une force totale de 60 personnes sont déjà parties du Pirée à Lesbos les forces de l’île. Il est à noter qu’à partir du contrôle des échantillons de liquide pharyngien reçus les trois jours de jeudi, vendredi et samedi par les équipes d’EODY parmi 1900 résidents de l’hôpital de Moria et 100 employés, un total de 35 cas positifs pour le virus ont été trouvés, au total des réfugiés et autres demandeurs d’asile. . Il est à noter qu’en plus des 35 réfugiés en quarantaine, 100 autres personnes étaient entrées en contact avec eux.

      Reçu via la mailing-list Migreurop, le 09.09.2020

    • Moria : “Time bomb” exploded, burned down Hotspot & “European values”


      It was short before Tuesday midnight when fires broke out in several parts in- and outside the Moria camp. The powerful winds quickly spread the flames around, through containers and tents. Total destruction. 13,000 people on the streets. The island of Lesvos has declared in “state of emergency.” Authorities investigate arson. Alarm for the 35 confirmed coronavirus cases that authorities do not know their whereabouts. No reports of fatalities or injuries.

      https://twitter.com/f_grillmeier/status/1303478067348803584

      The worst scenario happened – and while there was a scenario, plans to deal with it equaled to zero.

      https://twitter.com/th1an1/status/1303452650663370752

      A large part of the refugees and asylum seekers fled to the surrounding areas, while another part has moved to the city of Mytilene. However, strong police forces have been lined up in the area of Kara Tepe and do not allow them to enter the city.

      https://twitter.com/veramagalik/status/1303571532992712704

      Others entered the camp in the morning apparently seeking to save some of their belongings.

      https://twitter.com/KallergisK/status/1303554698083995650

      The entire camp outside the camp including thousands of olive trees have been destroyed, also a large part inside the hotspot.

      According to information the administration and identification infrastructures were not burned, but the Asylum Service and its equipment were completely burned.

      Damaged are also the area of ​​the Intensive Care Unit as wells as the new health Care unit recently donated by the Dutch Government.

      According to local media stonisi, that speaks of “uprising and fire“, clashes erupted in the camp after 35 people were confirmed positive to coronavirus on Tuesday. They, their families and their contacts refused to go in isolation in a warehouse just outside the camp. Others started to leave out of fear to contract the virus.

      The clashes “soon led to fires initially around the camp that burned all the tents outside and around the KYT and containers inside,” notes the local news website.

      https://twitter.com/SEENOTRETTUNG/status/1303445925524910086

      Three squads of riot police have been reportedly deployed from Athens to Moria.

      Authorities seek accommodation solutions for the thousands of people.

      Residents of overcrowded Moria camp have been in lockdown for several months due to the coronavirus.

      Chief of Fire Service, Konstantinos Theofilopoulos, told state broadcaster ERT on Wednesday morning, that several fires started around 10:30 at night and that they were initially hindered with thrown stones.

      He added that the fire has been largely extinguished except from the containers that are still burning inside.

      Citing sources of the National Intelligence Service, ERT reported that initially the tents outside the camp were set on fire.

      Quick are the far-right conspiracy theorists who see in the blaze “act of asymmetric warfare” against Greece and blame “Erdogan’s soldiers” for the fire.

      Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakisis currently chair an emergency meeting with the ministers of Citizen Protection, Migration Policy and Asylum and Interior, the chiefs of National Intelligence and the General Staff of Armed Forces, and the head of the Civil Protection.

      The vice president of the European Commission and Commissioner for the Promotion of the European way of Life, Margaritis Schinas, expressed the Commission’s intention to assist Greece at all levels.

      EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, said that she had agreed to fund the immediate transfer and accommodation on the Greek mainland of the 400 unaccompanied migrant children and teenagers.

      PS The fire in Moria burned down not only the camp but also the “European values”…

      https://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2020/09/09/moria-fire-camp-burned-down-pictures-videos

    • Grèce : un important incendie ravage le camp de Moria, des milliers de personnes à évacuer

      Un énorme incendie a ravagé dans la nuit de mardi à mercredi le camp de Moria sur l’île grecque de Lesbos. Le site, qui héberge plus de 12 000 personnes, a été « détruit à 99% » selon les pompiers. La tension est à son comble sur l’île : des migrants ont empêché les pompiers de rentrer dans le camp et des membres de l’extrême droite ont « attaqué » les ONG qui tentaient de venir en aide aux exilés.

      Le camp de Moria où s’entassent plus de 12 000 migrants a pris feu dans la nuit du mardi 8 au mercredi 9 septembre. Selon les pompiers, le site a été presque entièrement détruit. « La quasi-totalité du camp est en feu, aussi bien à l’intérieur que les tentes qui se trouvent à l’extérieur dans l’oliveraie », a observé un photographe de l’AFP présent sur place. « Tout brûle », a déclaré sur Twitter une association d’aide aux migrants, Stand by me Lesvos.

      Plusieurs heures après le début de l’incendie, une fumée noire continuait à s’élever au dessus du camp. Le président du syndicat des pompiers de Lesbos, Yorgos Ntinos, a indiqué mercredi matin que le camp « a brûlé à 99% et le feu continue ».

      https://twitter.com/iwatnew/status/1303488090716205056

      Des centaines de demandeurs d’asile fuyaient à pied dans la nuit vers le port de Mytilène mais ont été bloqués par les véhicules des forces de l’ordre, raconte à InfoMigrants Alpha*, un migrant vivant dans un conteneur du camp de Moria. « On n’a pas dormi de la nuit et personne ne nous a donné à manger ou à boire. Il y a beaucoup de femmes et d’enfants », précise-t-il.

      D’autres personnes se sont abritées dans les collines environnant le camp. « Certains témoignages rapportent que des locaux bloquent le passage (des migrants) dans le village voisin », rapporte encore Stand by me Lesvos.

      Le site d’information locale Lesvospost explique que plus de 3 000 tentes, des milliers de conteneurs, des bureaux de l’administration et une clinique au sein du camp ont également été brûlés.

      https://twitter.com/dfherman/status/1303491672685318149

      Pour l’heure, les pompiers précisent qu’"il n’y a pas de victimes, mais quelques blessés légers avec des problèmes respiratoires dus à la fumée". Des rumeurs annonçaient mercredi matin le décès d’au moins cinq personnes - une information que n’a pas pu vérifier InfoMigrants."Je pense que d’autres morts seront à déplorer car Moria est à terre", souffle Alpha.
      État d’urgence déclaré

      La tension est à son comble sur l’île. Les pompiers affirment dans leur communiqué avoir « été empêchés d’entrer dans le camp pour intervenir » par certains groupes de réfugiés, et avoir fait appel aux forces de l’ordre pour pouvoir poursuivre l’opération de secours. Plusieurs associations racontent avoir été « attaquées » par des membres de l’extrême droite alors qu’elles tentaient de venir en aide aux migrants.

      « L’île de Lesbos est déclarée en état d’urgence » a affirmé sur la chaîne de télévision publique ERT, le porte-parole du gouvernement grec, Stelios Petsas. Une réunion gouvernementale, avec le Premier ministre et le chef de l’état-major, doit se tenir mercredi matin « pour examiner la situation à Moria et les mesures qui vont être prises ».

      https://twitter.com/f_grillmeier/status/1303446446734274565

      D’après l’agence de presse grecque ANA, les feux auraient été déclenchés à la suite de la révolte de certains demandeurs d’asile qui devaient être placés en isolement, ayant été testés positifs au coronavirus ou proches d’une personne détectée positive. « Il y a 35 cas positifs et ils doivent être isolés (...) pour empêcher la propagation » du virus, a déclaré Selios Petsas à la chaîne publique TV ERT. Tous les réfugiés du camp ont l’interdiction de quitter l’île, a-t-il ajouté.

      Selon Alpha, « des Afghans ont refusé que des agents procèdent à des tests de coronavirus ». La situation a rapidement dégénéré et « les forces de l’ordre ont lancé des gaz lacrymogènes ». « J’étais dans mon conteneur quand j’ai entendu du bruit à l’extérieur. Je n’ai pas voulu sortir. Mais des flammes ont commencé à entrer dans mon habitation alors je me suis enfui en courant. Le feu était juste à côté de moi, j’ai eu très peur », continue le jeune homme.

      « La zone paie le prix de l’indifférence et de l’abandon », estime sur Facebook Facebook l’association des habitants de Moria et des autres villages environnants qui appelle les autorités à agir rapidement pour trouver une solution pour les demandeurs d’asile qui se retrouvent sans abri.

      La semaine dernière, les autorités ont détecté un premier cas de coronavirus à Moria et ont mis le camp en quarantaine pour quinze jours. Après la réalisation de 2 000 tests de dépistage, 35 personnes ont été détectées positives au Covid-19 à Moria et mises à l’isolement.

      De strictes mesures de circulation ont été imposées dans les camps de migrants depuis la mi-mars. Le gouvernement n’a jamais levé ces restrictions malgré les critiques des ONG de droits de l’homme jugeant ces mesures « discriminatoires » alors que la décision a été prise de déconfiner le pays début mai. « Depuis des mois, on est bloqués à l’intérieur du camp, on ne peut pas en sortir. Cela fait un moment que la tension est palpable, les gens ont en marre d’être privés de leur liberté », dit encore Alpha.

      *Le prénom a été modifié

      https://www.infomigrants.net/fr/post/27131/grece-un-important-incendie-ravage-le-camp-de-moria-des-milliers-de-pe

    • Après l’incendie de Moria, la Commissaire appelle les autorités grecques à venir en aide à tous les sinistrés

      « Dans la nuit de mardi à mercredi, le feu a détruit en grande partie le centre d’enregistrement et d’identification de Moria et les campements informels qui l’entourent, sur l’île grecque de Lesbos. Cet incendie a considérablement dégradé les conditions de vie des plus de 12 000 demandeurs d’asile et migrants, dont plus de 4 000 enfants, qui sont retenus dans un centre d’une capacité inférieure à 2 800 places », a déclaré la Commissaire.

      « L’intervention rapide des autorités locales et des pompiers a permis d’éviter une tragédie. Toutefois, la situation reste tendue, en ce qui concerne à la fois les migrants et la population locale qui vit à proximité du camp.

      J’appelle les autorités grecques à fournir d’urgence un hébergement à toutes les personnes privées d’#abri à la suite de l’incendie, en veillant à ce qu’elles aient accès à des soins, à des installations sanitaires, à un soutien psychologique et à de la nourriture. Il faudrait accorder une attention particulière aux personnes contaminées par le coronavirus et leur dispenser les soins nécessaires.

      Il importe également que les autorités grecques de tous niveaux protègent les demandeurs d’asile et les migrants contre les agressions et s’abstiennent de tenir des propos qui pourraient attiser les tensions.

      La situation sur les autres îles grecques où sont hébergés des réfugiés, des demandeurs d’asile et des migrants n’est guère différente de celle qui prévaut à Lesbos ; sur ces autres îles aussi, les difficultés pourraient s’aggraver. Comme beaucoup, je ne cesse de répéter qu’une aggravation de la situation semble inévitable si la Grèce et les autres États membres du Conseil de l’Europe ne changent pas de stratégie. Certes, la priorité est actuellement de répondre aux besoins humanitaires des sinistrés, mais l’incendie de Moria montre l’urgence de repenser entièrement la stratégie appliquée ces dernières années, qui a conduit à la création de camps surpeuplés, caractérisés par des conditions de vie inhumaines et intenables, à Moria et sur d’autres îles de la mer Égée. Il n’est tout simplement pas possible d’héberger les demandeurs d’asile et les migrants sur des bateaux, ou de recourir à d’autres formes d’hébergement d’urgence, en attendant que le camp de Moria soit remis en état, puis de continuer comme avant.

      Les autorités grecques n’ont toujours pas réglé une série de problèmes majeurs, comme le cantonnement des demandeurs d’asile et des migrants sur les îles de la mer Égée, le manque de structures d’accueil, sur les îles et sur le continent, et les insuffisances des politiques d’intégration et d’asile. La situation catastrophique dénoncée depuis des années par de nombreuses instances nationales et internationales est cependant aussi imputable à l’attitude des autres États membres, qui n’aident guère la Grèce en matière de relocalisation, et plus largement au manque de solidarité européenne. Ce n’est pas seulement un problème grec, c’est aussi un problème européen.

      Il n’y a plus de temps à perdre. La Grèce a besoin d’une aide concrète et de grande ampleur de la part des autres États membres du Conseil de l’Europe. Si de nombreuses collectivités locales se sont déclarées prêtes à apporter leur contribution, les autorités nationales, en revanche, se montrent trop frileuses. Je me réjouis que certains États membres semblent vouloir intensifier leurs efforts de relocalisation, mais il est urgent qu’ils agissent et que d’autres gouvernements européens suivent cette voie.

      La Grèce et ses partenaires doivent enfin se décider à régler les problèmes structurels d’une politique migratoire qui a déjà causé tant de souffrances inutiles. Attendre encore, c’est prendre le risque que d’autres drames se produisent. »

      https://www.coe.int/fr/web/commissioner/-/commissioner-calls-on-the-greek-authorities-to-provide-adequate-support-to-all-

      #sans-abri #SDF

    • ’Catastrophe’ warning as thousands left homeless by Lesbos refugee camp fire

      NGOs accuse police of blocking access to hospital for families and vulnerable migrants injured in Moria blaze.

      NGOs in Lesbos have warned that a humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding on the roads around the still burning Moria camp, where thousands of migrants are allegedly being held by police without shelter or adequate medical help.

      Annie Petros, head coordinator of of the charity Becky’s Bathhouse, said she was blocked by police from taking injured people to hospital as she drove them away from the fire.

      “When we saw there was a fire we drove as fast as we could with water to the camp, intending to take sick people to hospital. I can’t describe properly the scene we saw. There were streams of people, thousands of them, walking away from the camp. They were totally silent, terrified and traumatised, walking through thick smoke and the awful smell of burning plastic,” she said.

      “We picked up some pregnant women who needed urgent help and a teenage boy with a broken leg. When we neared the town of Mytilene there were riot police blocking the way to stop anyone reaching the town. I begged the police but their commander wouldn’t let us through. We called an ambulance and it refused to come to the roadblock.”

      Petros said she was sent along back roads, that brought them into contact with a group of anti-migrant protesters.

      She learned later that some people were attacked.

      She said the people she took to the hospital were the only ones who managed to make it through. “There are many people who need help with burns, with smoke inhalation.”

      Other aid organisations in the area said urgent work was needed to get people shelter before night fell.

      Omar Alshakal, a former refugee and founder of Refugees4Refugees, said: “The situation is out of control. We were looking after minors here and the safe place for them was lost in the fire. We lost 30 children. We are looking for them now.”

      Alshakal said the Greek government was making some effort, but the situation was severe. “We now have 12,000 people with no shelter, homeless on the main road. I have been called just now by the army, they want to get food to people and masks, sanitisation.”

      He said he was concerned that the isolation unit for Covid-19 patients was now abandoned. “We had 19 positive cases all in isolation, now they have left the camp. We have the fear they will spread the virus further.”

      The cause of the fire is unclear. Alshakal believes it was started by refugees in protest at conditions.

      The overcrowded camp is known to be a dangerous space, with small fires being lit to cook and no safe distancing between ramshackle tarpaulins used as tents.

      Moira was opened at the height of the refugee crisis in 2015. It was originally intended to hold 3,000 people. The charity MSF has been pushing the Greek authorities to improve conditions at the camp for years.

      Amir, a 19-year-old migrant from Afghanistan who teaches English in the School of Peace in the camp, said: “At about 11 last night I saw people starting fires deliberately. It was refugees who were very, very angry about the situation in this camp. We have been a long time in quarantine, you know we are under a lockdown while there are no such rules or laws for Greek people. It is racist, they are treating people like we are animals. We have needs, but we can’t leave this camp to get medicine or food.”

      He added: “The situation will now be worse for refugees. Our school is completely burned down. We had started to have hope that we could continue our learning but all that is gone now.”

      Aid groups are meeting on Wednesday evening to discuss an urgent response. They want people moved from the roadside immediately.

      Philippa Kempson of the Hope Project, said a government-ordered 3.5-mile (6km) cordon around the camp meant she couldn’t get to her supplies.

      “We have a building full of aid, nappies, water, very near Moria,” she said. “People can’t reach the city, they are out on an exposed road in 32C with children and babies. These people left the camp with what they had. We are 10km away and I had an asthma attack this morning due to the toxic smoke. Everything in there is plastic: the tents, the temporary housing blocks. And fires are still breaking out, the fire helicopter is still overhead.”

      She said the only light in the dark situation was that in two months the camp was due to be completely locked down. “Can you imagine if the fire had started in a couple of months when they had fenced it in with razor wire as they were planning to do? You would have had 12,000 people trapped in an inferno.”

      The UNHCR is working with the authorities to move people to safety. The agency said the authorities have blocked the road to stop uncontrolled movement but that vulnerable groups were being prioritised for shelter across the island and in accommodation in Mytilene, the island’s capital.

      Ylva Johansson, EU commissioner for home affairs, tweeted she had “agreed to finance the immediate transfer and accommodation on the mainland of the remaining 400 unaccompanied children and teenagers. The safety and shelter of all people in Moria is the priority.”

      The police have been approached for comment.


      https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/sep/09/catastrophe-warning-as-thousands-left-homeless-by-lesbos-refugee-camp-f

    • FIRE DESTROYS MUCH OF MORIA CAMP, FOLLOWING FOUR YEARS’ EUROPEAN TOLERANCE OF FATAL RISKS TO MIGRANTS

      In the early hours of this morning, a large fire broke out in Moria Refugee Camp, which has left much of the camp destroyed, and many of the approximately 13, 000 residents displaced.

      This comes a week after the first person tested positive for COVID-19 in the camp, which was immediately followed by the government’s official initiation of works to transform Moria refugee camp to a closed controlled centre. In the days that followed, at least 30 other people have tested positive for COVID-19 – in a camp that is currently at four times’ its stated capacity, where basic preventative measures are a practical impossibility and where there was no functioning COVID-19 isolation clinic.

      The dehumanisation of migrants at the European border and apparent indifference to the impact of this protracted, unsustainable situation on the local population have had repeatedly devastating consequences. Migrants have been consistently confined to overcrowded, insecure and fundamentally inhuman conditions, where fires – often fatal – are a regular occurrence. This was not the first fire in Moria camp; it was not even the first fire in the camp this year. Such fatal risks to – and loss of – migrant lives are instead tolerated as part of the European border regime.

      Following the near destruction of Moria Camp, this morning the Greek government placed the island of Lesvos under a four month state of emergency. The police and army have been on the streets around Moria camp since the fire broke out, and three riot police squads (known as the Units for the Reinstatement of Order) were flown in from Athens this morning. As far as we know, no additional medical capacity or humanitarian aid has been mobilised or provided. The government’s immediate dispatch of security forces, before or without humanitarian assistance, continues their policy of framing migrants as a question of public order – and prioritising their securitisation as opposed to the provision of urgent assistance.

      The Greek authorities’ main priority so far seems to be the prevention of migrants’ access to Mytiline: a police blockade was established next to Kara Tepe camp in the early hours of this morning, to prevent migrants who had fled the fire from reaching the city, and it remains there to this point. Police units have also blocked the main access road to Moria camp. People who had been living in the camp are spread out on the roads around Moria camp, in the surrounding forests, and in the car park of a nearby supermarket. From what migrants have told us, there have been no state provisions – whether of essentials such as food or water, or other necessities such as hygiene facilities – in those locations.

      There has never been an evacuation plan for Moria Camp residents, and when the fire broke out last night, people were left to flee on their own – including those who had been held in the pre-removal detention centre inside Moria Camp (PRO.KE.KA.). Some of those living in the sections for vulnerable people (including unaccompanied children and single women) were woken up by police, but given no instruction of where they could or should go. At present, there remains a profound lack of information regarding the safeguarding or protection response for such groups. When we spoke with vulnerable individuals supported by Legal Centre Lesvos in the early hours of this morning, they were scattered in the forests and roads surrounding the camp, without any state support.

      There is still no official confirmation of casualties, or even hospitalisations.

      Those who have returned to Moria camp this morning have sent photos of the destroyed camp, including the remains of their tents and shelters. Residents have emphasised that the many of the facilities – including toilets and sanitation spaces – have been burnt. The already-inadequate provisions to prevent or slow the spread of COVID-19 among the camp’s population have now been destroyed, and given that over thirty residents of the camp have tested positive for the virus in recent days, a failure to implement a rapid and health-oriented response for displaced residents will no doubt increase the number of cases – and will likely overwhelm the stretched public healthcare system.

      “This fire is a visceral manifestation of European policies, which have for years tolerated the containment of migrants in dangerous, overcrowded and insecure conditions,” said Amelia Cooper, of the Legal Centre Lesvos. “Repeated fatal incidents – including the death of a seven-year-old child in a fire in Moria camp, just six months ago – have not been enough to prompt the evacuation of Moria refugee camp; neither has been the outbreak of a global pandemic, nor the detection of positive cases, nor the Greek government’s instrumentalisation of these facts to impose mass detention on camp residents. Residents of Moria camp, and migrants in hotspots across Europe, are in situations of manufactured and state-sanctioned vulnerability. This fire was not an accident, it was an inevitability.”

      https://legalcentrelesvos.org/2020/09/09/fire-destroys-much-of-moria-camp-following-four-years-european-to

    • Joint statement of 31 NGOs regarding the fire at the Registration and Identification Centre at Moria

      Greece: Transfer Refugees and Asylum seekers to Safety on Mainland

      Respect for Human Rights should Prevail over Use of Force

      Following yesterday’s fire in Moria, on Lesvos, which destroyed the Reception and Identification Centre, 31 civil society organizations call on the Greek Government to immediately provide assistance to people who lost their shelter. Those affected, among them many children and at-risk groups, must be carefully transferred to safety on the mainland.

      The transfer of at-risk groups, including unaccompanied children, pregnant women, people with disabilities, people with medical and mental health conditions, and older people should be prioritized. People who tested positive for Covid-19 should be given safe housing for the quarantine period, healthcare, and hospitalization if necessary.

      Moving people from Lesvos to mainland Greece requires finding urgent solutions to address the fact that many current housing facilities for refugees and asylum seekers are at full capacity. We urge the Greek authorities to work on a coherent plan that maximises all available resources including those from the EU and we renew our call to European leaders to share the responsibility for the reception and support of asylum seekers now more than ever.

      In these difficult times, it is of outmost importance that respect for human rights is at the centre of the response to the fire at Moria, and that authorities do not resort to use of force or inflammatory language, but take appropriate steps to de-escalate any risk of violence.

      ActionAid Hellas

      Amnesty International

      Boat Refugee Foundation

      CRWI Diotima

      ECHO100PLUS

      ELIX

      Equal Rights Beyond Borders

      Fenix - Humanitarian Legal Aid

      Greek Council for Refugees (GCR)

      Hellenic League for Human Rights

      Hellenic Platform for Development (Ελληνική Πλατφόρμα για την Ανάπτυξη)

      Help Refugees

      Hias Greece

      HumanRights360

      Humanitarian Legal Aid

      Human Rights Watch

      International Rescue Committee (IRC)

      INTERSOS Hellas

      Legal Centre Lesvos

      Médecins Sans Frontières

      Melissa

      Network for Children’s Rights

      Omnes

      Refugee Legal Support (RLS)

      Refugee Rights Europe (RRE)

      Refugee Support Aegean (RSA)

      Refugee Trauma Initiative

      Solidarity Now

      Symbiosis-School of Political Studies in Greece

      Terre des hommes Hellas

      The HOME Project

      https://www.gcr.gr/en/news/press-releases-announcements/item/1499-joint-statement-of-31-ngos-regarding-moria-refugee-camp-fire

    • New fire breaks out in Moria camp on Wed evening

      A new large fire broke out at the Reception and Identification Center in Moria early Wednesday evening, just hours after the overcrowded hotspot on the island of Lesvos was largely destroyed by the fire the previous night.

      The fire is reportedly burning in the area of ​​Eleonas, the olive grove, outside the camp, where thousands of people of who do fit in live in tents.

      https://twitter.com/g_christides/status/1303744178053165056

      Media report that the fire started in some of the 200 tents that were not burned down on Tuesday night. Explosion sounds were heard, and they probably came form the cooking devices the refugees used.

      https://twitter.com/th_voulgarakis/status/1303738169729441795

      Hundreds of people among them many families with children, were leaving the area.

      https://twitter.com/g_christides/status/1303737094704070657

      Firefighters have rushed to the scene but the blaze went out of control due to the strong winds.

      https://twitter.com/News247gr/status/1303739366179835906

      STAR TV reported from the spot that the firefighters are now trying to protect the nearby forest.

      Thousands left the camp that hosted 12,800 people.

      It remains unclear whether it is a new fire or a resurgence of the one that already destroyed much of the Moria hotspot the other night.

      https://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2020/09/09/moria-new-fire-wednesday-evening

    • All people in Moria camp must be evacuated to safety in wake of destructive fire

      Nearly 12,000 men, women and children have been forced to evacuate Moria refugee camp, on the island of Lesbos, Greece, after a fire tore through the camp during the night of 8 September. While the fire is not believed to have caused any deaths, the camp was almost completely burned down, and people are now on the streets, with nowhere to stay. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) urges Greek and EU authorities to immediately evacuate people off the island to safety.

      “Our teams saw the fire spread across Moria and rage all night long. The whole place was engulfed in flames, we saw an exodus of people from a burning hell with no direction,” says Marco Sandrone, MSF field coordinator in Lesbos. “Children were scared, and parents are in shock. We are relieved that there seem to be no victims and we are working now to address the immediate needs of the people.”

      All medical services available for the refugees and asylum seekers have been interrupted, including services at the MSF paediatric clinic.

      Almost five years of trapping people in dire conditions has led to tensions and despair. This has only increased over the last five months due to restricted movements in the camp, hastily justified as a public health measure amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Following the recent confirmation of positive cases of COVID-19 among the camp’s residents, the increasing restrictions on people have made the situation unbearable.

      MSF has been pushing the Greek health and migration authorities to set up an adequate COVID-19 response plan for Moria, that counts on people’s collaboration and which offers dignity to the sick and to those who are infectious.

      “The Greek authorities have failed to put such a response in place, and the EU and other EU member states have disclaimed responsibility and have done close to nothing to resolve this situation,” says Aurelie Ponthieu, MSF Humanitarian Advisor on Displacement. “The years-long orchestration of human suffering and violence produced by European and Greek migration policies are to blame for the fire, and we can only hope that the same system of inhumane containment will not be reborn from the ashes in Moria.”

      MSF calls on the Greek authorities to immediately adopt an emergency response plan and to evacuate all these people to a safe place on the mainland or to other European countries. We are ready to provide the support that is needed during the emergency response.

      https://www.msf.org/refugees-moria-must-be-evacuated-wake-destructive-fire

      #MSF

    • Incendie à Moria - Evacuer MAINTENANT !

      Incendie à Moria - Evacuer MAINTENANT !

      La nuit dernière, un incendie a détruit le camp de réfugié.e.s surpeuplé de Moria. Près de 13 000 personnes vivaient dans le camp dont la capacité officielle n’est que de 2 757 personnes. Suite à ces incendies, aucune évacuation n’a été organisée. Par ailleurs, il n’y a jamais eu de plan d’évacuation pour l’ensemble du camp malgré les dangers et les conditions inhumaines. Au printemps 2020, l’Europe et la Suisse n’ont pas réussi à réaliser l’évacuation des camps et la redistribution des personnes entre les différents États européens, alors que la situation l’exigeait et malgré les mobilisations.

      Le 2 septembre, une première personne a été testée positive au Covid-19 à Moria. Au lieu d’identifier de manière systématique les possibilités d’infection, le camp entier a été mis en quarantaine. Toutes les personnes ont donc été fortement exposées au risque d’infection. La seule réponse a été leur enfermement aux frontières de l’Europe.

      Le 23 juin 2020, plus de 50 000 personnes ont demandé au Conseil fédéral de participer à des opérations d’accueil humanitaire pour évacuer les camps des îles grecques. Le 16 juin 2020, le Conseil national a approuvé la motion visant à accepter des réfugiés de Grèce et les huit plus grandes villes de Suisse ont accepté d’accueillir des réfugié.e.s directement de Grèce. Nous demandons une nouvelle fois au Conseil fédéral, à Karin Keller-Sutter en tant que cheffe du département du DFJP et au SEM d’accueillir les réfugié.e.s de Grèce et de fournir une aide d’urgence immédiate sur le terrain.

      https://www.sosf.ch/fr/sujets/schengen-europe/informations-articles/incendie-a-moria.html?zur=41

    • Thousands Moria refugees on the streets, locals set blockades, new fires

      The situation on the island of Lesvos remain tense on Thursday, with thousands of refugees and asylum-seekers to have spent the night on roadsides, fields and even cemeteries, waiting for aid and a provisional shelter. Led by the Mayor of Mytilene, locals have set blockades to hinder the government from repairing fire damages in the Moria camp or embark the vulnerable among the homeless on a ferry.

      “People that lost their shelters in #MoriaCamp due to the fires are finding shade and temporary resting ground between graves in a Greek orthodox cemetery.” via @daphnetolis.

      At the same time, new fires broke out in the camp also early Thursday afternoon to burn down what was not damage din the last two days.

      While signs hind to an “arson plan,” so far, no perpetrators have been captured, no report by the Fire Service has been issued.

      The government desperate tries to find solutions to the crisis that has emerged on the island but it is extremely difficult without the support by the local authorities and the people.

      Refugees and locals seem to agree on one point: This is “hell on earth” for both sides.

      The island has been declared a state of emergency for four months.

      New fires show “arson plan”

      Fires broke out again inside the camp early Thursday afternoon. According to state news agency amna, the fire broke οut simultaneously in three different points of the hotspot.

      The fires broke in a camp section that was not damaged by the fires on Tuesday and Wednesday, and where refugees were still living.

      The latest fire shows that despite the fact that the government has deployed several squads of police there, there is not policing in the area, which is an arson crime scene, after all, as the government says.

      According to local media stonisi, “the new fires today now prove the existence of an organized arson plan by unknown centers and for reasons currently unknown. A plan that the Police seems to not be able to deal with.”

      Refugees for a second time

      Over 12,000 people spend the second night on the streets, slept next to garbage bins and police buses. Some found no other place to spend the night other than between graves of a cemetery.

      Helpless without shelter and food, after the fire damage, they grabbed their children, helped their elderly, packed whatever they could save and left again for the Unknown and a new nightmare.

      Tear gas against children

      Riot police does not allow the refugees to reach the island capital Mytiline and set blockades at the road to Kara Tepe, where another camp operates.

      In the early morning hours of Thursday, the crowd threw stones at the police forces that responded with tear gas.

      Among the tear gas target are also children that scream in fear.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYUwNV-0oJw&feature=emb_logo

      Locals set up blockades

      At the same time, residents and members of local authorities are opposing the government’s attempt to repair the damage in the camp and make it available again for the refugees and asylum seekers.

      Local authorities of East Lesvos had repeatedly called for de-congestion of the camp. They belive that the new situation that emerged after the fire will have them relocate to the mainland.

      They reject any government proposals to have the refugees accommodated in two military camps or in the area surrounding the Moria camp.

      Trucks and other machinery deployed by the municipality hinders the cleaning of Moria by the Armed forces, while the mayor reportedly keeps calling on locals to strengthen the blockades.

      Mayor of Mytilene, Stratis Kytelis has been reiterating that he does not accept the reopening of Moria, the establishment creation of any other accommodation structure, even a temporary one.

      He demands “the immediate refugees’ and migrants’ departure from the island in any way.”

      “We have been insisting for a long time that there should be an immediate and massive de-congestion of the camp. It is not possible for a structure designed for 2,800 people to accommodate 12,000 people,” he repeated.

      406 minors relocated to northern Greece

      With three separate flights, 406 unaccompanied refugee children were transferred from the destroyed Moria center to Thessaloniki over night.

      The children are temporary accommodated in hotels. Some of them will be transferred to other structures and some will be relocated to European countries in accordance with the relevant program.

      Before their departure form Lesvos, all minors were tested for Covid-19. For precautionary reasons, they ill stay in quarantine for 10 days. facilities in which they will be housed will be quarantined for 10 days.

      The flights were organized by the International Organization for Migration, funded by the European Commission and coordinated by the Special Secretariat for Unaccompanied Minors at the Ministry of Migration.

      Gov’t housing plan about to fail

      The ferry donated by the shipping company Blue Star Ferries for the accommodation of some 1,000 vulnerable groups docked at the port of Sigri and not at the port of Mytilene on Thursday morning. Immediately locals called for a blockade of the road.

      The two Navy landing ships for the temporary accommodation of another 1,000 vulnerable people may never come. The Defense ministry has allegedly refused to deploy them amid a Greek standoff with Turkey.

      The government is in an extreme difficult situation and is looking for other solutions.

      The Migration Ministry said in a statement on Thursday that “all the necessary actions for the immediate housing of vulnerable people and families of the Moria hotspot in specially designed areas will be carried out within the day.”, a migration and asylum ministry announcement said on Thursday.

      “The primary concern of the government is the safety of all concerned,” the announcement added, and concluded that “Behavior aiming to blackmail will not be tolerated.”

      https://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2020/09/10/moria-greece-refugees-locals-new-fires-housing

    • Incendies à Lesbos : « Nous créons une zone de guerre au milieu de l’Europe »

      #Efi_Latsoudi s’insurge contre le gouvernement grec, la situation dans le camp de Moria étant prévisible selon elle. L’humanitaire appelle à une réaction de la communauté internationale.

      Le camp de Moria, à Lesbos, a été en grande partie détruit par un incendie dans la nuit de mardi à mercredi. Efi Latsoudi, figure de proue de l’aide humanitaire sur l’île et lauréate du prix humanitaire Nansen Refugee Award 2016 du Haut-Commissariat des Nations unies pour les réfugiés (HCR), craint que la situation des 13 000 candidats à l’asile qui y vivaient se dégrade.
      L’incendie qui ravage Moria était-il prévisible ?

      Il fallait s’y attendre. Politiquement, on se dirigeait vers ça. On opérait sans plan d’action depuis des mois. Le gouvernement grec présente la situation migratoire dans les camps comme une réussite depuis que les chiffres d’arrivées sur les îles sont en baisse. Mais les conditions de vie des migrants sont toujours aussi désastreuses. Elles ne sont que les conséquences des politiques mises en place par Athènes.
      Vous êtes actuellement à Lesbos. Que s’est-il passé hier soir ?

      C’était la guerre. Il y a eu des manifestations de migrants dans le camp en réaction au confinement total, la police a usé de gaz lacrymogène. On s’attendait à de tels mouvements de contestation : voilà six mois que les forces de l’ordre ont enfermé ces gens dans ce camp. C’est de la discrimination ! Pour essayer de protéger les mineurs face aux manifestations, ils ont été placés dans une partie isolée du camp. Et quand le feu s’est déclaré [les causes de l’incendie ne sont pas encore clairement connues, ndlr], personne n’arrivait à les sortir de là. La porte a dû être défoncée pour les évacuer.
      Comment se présente la situation au lendemain du drame ?

      Les migrants sont encerclés par les policiers sur la route qui va de Moria à la ville. Ils sont dehors, sans rien. Les autorités sont en train d’acheminer trois troupes de policiers antiémeutes d’Athènes en bateau. Le ministre a parlé des émeutes, on craint que ces événements le poussent à créer des camps totalement fermés. Il y a aussi beaucoup de réactions de la part des groupes fascistes, qui pensent que Moria est une « bombe sanitaire » [35 cas de Covid-19 ont officiellement été déclarés à Moria, ndlr] alors qu’il y a plus de contaminations au sein de la population locale que chez les migrants. Certains médias enveniment la situation. Nous sommes en train de créer une zone de guerre au milieu de l’Europe.
      Comment imaginez-vous les prochains jours ?

      Tout le monde va envoyer de l’argent et des ressources sans aucune organisation. La situation ne va pas s’améliorer et tout cela ira alimenter la rhétorique des fascistes. Nous ferons au mieux pour aider les migrants. S’il n’y a pas de réaction de la part de la communauté internationale, la population locale et les groupes xénophobes vont nous tomber dessus.

      A lire aussiLesbos, le confinement sans fin

      Le gouvernement ne considère à aucun instant que la situation puisse être le résultat de sa politique. Il a pointé du doigt les ONG internationales : c’est hypocrite. Toute l’organisation des camps comme celui de Moria ne tient que grâce aux humanitaires. Les vrais victimes de ces drames à répétition, ce sont les migrants psychologiquement traumatisés et qui ne se sentent plus humains.

      https://www.liberation.fr/planete/2020/09/09/incendies-a-lesbos-nous-creons-une-zone-de-guerre-au-milieu-de-l-europe_1

    • Four face criminal charges over Moria blaze, two minors to return to Lesvos

      Four Afghan migrants linked to the catastrophic fires that razed the Moria reception center on Lesvos last week were charged on Wednesday with arson and membership of a criminal organization and given until Saturday to prepare their defense before an investigating magistrate.

      Another two Afghans implicated in the same incident, both unaccompanied minors who were transferred to the mainland the day after the first blaze, are to return to Lesvos where they are to face a magistrate on Monday.

      The six suspects were identified on video footage of the fires that circulated on social media.

      Meanwhile most of the 13 suspects detained in connection with a fire that broke out late on Tuesday near a migrant reception center on Samos have been released due to a lack of evidence linking them to the blaze, which was extinguished before it could affect the camp.

      On Wednesday, 20 officers who are to form part of a special police service on Lesvos for a temporary camp that has been set up there arrived on the island. Although the new camp has the capacity to host up to 8,000 people, only around 1,200 had moved in by Wednesday night.

      Thousands of former Moria residents continued to sleep on the streets and in olive groves on Wednesday.

      https://www.ekathimerini.com/257058/article/ekathimerini/news/four-face-criminal-charges-over-moria-blaze-two-minors-to-return-to-le

    • Communique from the Working Group mobilisation on 45th Session of the PPT

      MORIA burns, again. This documented horror in the heart of Europe, has been denounced from its beginning (2015) by dozens of reports from human rights, humanitarian and other non-governmental organisations. Almost 20,000 (at peak last February) and at the time of the fire, 13,000 human beings were parked in a prison of mud, rubbish and violence, behind barbed wire. MORIA is a planned limbo, where refugees are being denied their right to asylum, freedom and dignity, unable to perform even the most basic daily activities, such as sleeping, eating or communicating. It was a place where health care and education were denied to 4,000 children – left without dreams; adolescents whom the abnormal rates of suicide attempts should have been an alert of the level of despair in the camp (MSF); women terrorized by daily rapes, lack of hygiene and rampant violence. Hundreds of testimonies revealing the levels of unbearable “non-life” in MORIA, were kept unheard for years.

      Now the fenced camp, which was about to be closed, has burned to the ground. But how could this construction – the abandonment of human beings reduced to “numbers and bodies” – re-emerge as an island-lager in the heart of 20th Century Europe? How has this apartheid andsuffering as planned management of the “other”, of the “migrant” been accepted and tolerated in the long silence of 5 years? This inhumane “containment” had been erected as a model for migration policies by the European Commission and the EU Member States. MORIA has been the essence of the deterrence model aimed at discouraging the flight of potential asylum seekers from countries at war and to push them back to the ruins, sealed by the EU-Turkey agreement in 2016. It is documented that on Greek islands, the Geneva Convention was being constantly violated on a daily basis. Has it been buried in Lesbos?

      The most disturbing reality of all is that MORIA is not exceptional – but part of a chain of Camps and Hotspots across Europe constructed as sites “without rights” and a systematic planned annihilation of the “other”, psychically destroyed in camps, where they could have even burned alive. The EU borders, as well as the maritime routes have also become sites of death where thousands have drowned. This situation is indicative of the overall policy of necropolitics practiced by the European Union and its member states towards migrant and refugee peoples and is combined with the policy of militarised externalisation of borders. And inside the Fortress Europe – as is graphically shown in this time of COVID-19 – the migrant workers who make up a big part of the “essential workers’ in agriculture, care and domestic work – are also denied fundamental rights, subjected to daily racism and deprived of the conditions to live a decent human life.

      As part of that Europe that still recognizes itself first of all as “human”, and joining all the movements that in these hours are making their voice heard, we, the signatories, who have been witnessing for years the tragic fate of the migrant and refugee peoples, denounce even more the fire of MORIA as a symbolic and highly visible expression of the silent, permanent, planned crime against humanity for which the European Commission the European States are responsible, as highlighted by the Permanent People’s Tribunal sentence (Hearings 2017-2019). The humanitarian interventions of these hours – already minimal in itself – can only appear as a saving face operation. Once again these pronouncements refer to a time without deadlines, and therefore confirm the existing genocidal policy – as the European Commission, and the EU governments, opt for an identity that declares itself exempt from the obligations of the civilization of law. These obligations were meant to be consistent with the ‘never again’ commitment against the extermination camps and had made Europe a place of welcome and an indicator of its own development project.

      We therefore call on the EC and all the European States:

      To urgently evacuate the island and re-locate to safety and dignity the MORIA migrant and refugee peoples.
      To end the criminalisation of migrants and refugees and the criminalisation of solidarity.

      It is Not a Crime to Migrate or to seek Asylum! It is a Human Right!

      September 14, 2020
      The movements & oganisations convening the 45th PPT Migrant & Refugee Session

      https://transnationalmigrantplatform.net/campaigns-advocacy

    • Questions arise as Greece vows to “empty Lesvos of all refugees by Easter”

      Questions arise as Greece’s Citizens Protection Minister has vowed to empty the island of Lesvos of all refugees by Easter.One main question is, of course, that if all 12,000 refugees leave in the next 6 months, why does Greece build a permanent camp on the island, expected to be in operation until 2025 and it looks as if it is going to be “the largest in Greece” if not in the whole European Union? Where will these 12,000 people stay when they leave Lesvos? How about the refugees and asylum-seekers in overcrowded camps on other islands? At the same time, it looks as if the hastily set up temporary camp in Kara Tepe, hastily due to the Moria fires, is violating rules of constructions and other issues.

      In an exclusive interview with UK’s daily The Guardian, Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis said following the fires that destroyed the overcrowded Moria camp last week, that plans would be accelerated to decongest the outpost.
      Minister: Lesvos will be empty of all refugees by Easter”

      “They will all leave,” Citizens protection Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis told UK’s daily the Guardian on Tuesday. “Of the roughly 12,000 refugees here currently, I foresee 6,000 being transferred to the mainland by Christmas and the rest by Easter. The people of this island have gone through a lot. They’ve been very patient.”

      About 70% of asylum seekers on the island were Afghans who would be awarded refugee status and given travel papers, he said. Recognised refugees can move to another EU member state for up to three months using the documents.

      Chrysochoidis, who flew into Lesbos to help oversee relief efforts, welcomed reports that Germany was prepared to take in as many as 1,500 people from Moria.

      “It’s very generous, very brave,” Chrysochoidis said of the goodwill gesture. “All over Europe, countries have their own internal political problems around this issue but I also think they [EU states] can see we are protecting the bloc’s borders, we have greatly minimised flows.”

      On the problem that stranded refugees and asylum-seekers refuse to settle in the new temporary tents camp in Kara Tepe, Chrysochoidis blamed Afghan asylum-seekers and even some NGOs.

      “There are groups of Afghans and I am afraid even some human rights organisations who are encouraging thousands of people not to go in,” said Chrysochoidis.

      “It’s non-negotiable. They will leave the island but they have to go through this new facility and get the requisite legal documents first,” the minister stressed speaking to the Guardian.

      If refugees go, why a permanent refugee camp?

      Of course, in order to have 6,000 refugees relocated to the mainland by Christmas, that is in 3 months, you have to have structures to host them. Where are they? Where are the government plans for them? And where will the remaining 6,000 people go “by Easter”? Most likely, they will also found themselves on the mainland – because so far, the famous “EU solidarity” was never strong enough to take some burden from Greece’s shoulders – and neither will it be, I’m afraid.

      And how about the refugees and asylum-seekers in the overcrowded camps on the islands like Samos and Chios and Kos? Will they be transferred to the new camp on the island where “the people have gone through a lot and have be very patient,” as the Minister said?

      Minister Chrysochoidis and the government is general is proud to have minimized the refugees flows – even though often with questionable means such as “pushbacks” that are illegal.

      So the question that arises is near: If the plan is to have all 12,000 refugees relocated away from Lesvos within the next six months, then why does Greece build a new permanent camp –the largest in the EU! – on the island of Lesvos and thus with the assistance of the European Commission?

      Will the new camp host refugees currently on the other islands and also display Greece’s readiness should an influx turn into a problem again?

      President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday during her speech at the European Palriament speech that “the Commission is now working on a plan, for a joint plan with the Greek authorities for a new camp in Lesvos. We can help with asylum and return procedures and significantly improve conditions for refugees.”

      Permanent camp until 2025

      With two decisions on September 14, the Ministry for Migration and Asylum has secured the amount for the lease of land plots on Lesvos for the permanent camp until 2025.

      According to an exclusive report by local media stonisi, the Ministry uploaded on state website for public expenditures Diavgeia, the amounts needed to be paid for the lease from September 2020 until 31. December 2025. The total price to be paid is 2.9 million euros.

      €142,051 for the lease of the land plots for the operation of the temporary camp in Kara Tepe until 31. December 2020.

      €2,750,000 (550,000 euros per year) for the lease of the same land plots in Kara Tepe from 2021 until 2025.

      According to the exclusive story, the size of the whole area, extending over several hundreds of acres and including the area of ​​the Ministry of National Defense [the firing range where the temporary camp is], shows the new refugee center will be much larger than that of Moria, the largest in Greece and in the whole European Union.”

      The camp will be in direct contact with residential areas and many dozens of businesses, a few hundred meters from the village of Panagiouda, the news website notes.

      Camp set up without necessary approvals

      At he same time, regarding the temporary camp, the Technical Chamber of Northern Aegean region (TEE) denounces “massive arbitrariness” and violations of construction and others laws.

      The Mavrovouni Firing Range (Kara Tepe) for the temporary settlement of refugees and immigrants belong to the Ministry of Defense but not the coastline and the shore lines, the TEE says among others..

      In an announcement, the TEE says that the concession of the area for a camp needed approval by Environmental services, by the Marine Antiquities Authority, the Forest Service and General Staff of the Navy as well as some other departments of the state.

      The TEE raises the issue of the “highest National Security” and of the “defense of the island” that is closed to the Turkish coast.

      https://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2020/09/16/greece-refugees-lesvos-permanent-camp

    • Greece vows to empty Lesbos of all refugees by Easter after fire

      Exclusive: minister says island ‘has been through a lot’ as he welcomes new German offer.

      The island of Lesbos will be emptied of refugees by next Easter, the Greek government has vowed, as it welcomed Germany’s offer to take in 1,500 people left without shelter.

      Following the devastating fires that destroyed the notoriously overcrowded Moria facility last week, Greece’s top public order official said plans would be accelerated to decongest the outpost.

      “They will all leave,” the civil protection minister, Michalis Chrysochoidis, told the Guardian. “Of the roughly 12,000 refugees here currently, I foresee 6,000 being transferred to the mainland by Christmas and the rest by Easter. The people of this island have gone through a lot. They’ve been very patient.”

      About 70% of asylum seekers on Lesbos were Afghans who would be awarded refugee status and given travel papers, he said. Recognised refugees can move to another EU member state for up to three months using the documents.

      Greek police detained five people on Tuesday in connection with the blazes at the camp, and are searching for one other. No more details were given but from the outset officials have attributed the fires to camp residents pressuring authorities to leave.

      Chrysochoidis, who flew into Lesbos to help oversee relief efforts, welcomed reports that Germany was prepared to take in as many as 1,500 people from Moria.

      The German coalition government on Tuesday agreed to take in a total of 1,553 people from 408 families whose protected status has been confirmed by Greek authorities, Angela Merkel’s spokesperson said.

      Last Friday, Germany said it would take up to 150 out of approximately 400 unaccompanied minors from the camp, where more than 12,000 people were left homeless by the fire in the early hours of 9 September.

      “It’s very generous, very brave,” Chrysochoidis said of the goodwill gesture. “All over Europe, countries have their own internal political problems around this issue but I also think they [EU states] can see we are protecting the bloc’s borders, we have greatly minimised flows.”

      Merkel insisted on Monday any transfer of migrants to Germany would need to go hand-in-hand with a broader European initiative, emphasising her support for Greek plans for a new reception centre on Lesbos.

      Apart from Luxembourg, no other country has so far showed a willingness to partake in a pan-European solution to the crisis in Moria.

      Some countries, such as Austria, have categorically rejected taking in people from the destroyed camp. “If we give in to this pressure now, then we risk making the same mistake we made in 2015,” said chancellor, Sebastian Kurz, referring to Merkel’s decision to take in large numbers of refugees five years ago.

      Germany’s leader faces domestic pressure from two sides on the issue. Members of her own party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), have warned that any resettlement programme must be carried out in a way as to avoid chaotic scenes akin to those at the height of the 2015 refugee crisis. “We must not go alone,” said CDU delegate Mathias Middelberg.

      From the other side, Merkel faces calls from her coalition partner, the centre-left Social Democratic party (SPD), and a number of federal states and city mayors across Germany for Europe’s largest economy to step up its humanitarian efforts.

      The leadership of the SPD, which will need to approve Merkel and Seehofer’s decision, has pressured its senior coalition to take in more than 5,000 people to alleviate the situation in Greece.

      German calls for resettlement schemes have until now also faced resistance from Greece, where prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, accused some residents of Moria for trying to blackmail his government by deliberately setting the fires that destroyed their camp.

      Chrysochoidis insisted it was crucial Moria’s erstwhile occupants move into a temporary camp, close to Mytilene, the island’s port capital, that the government, with the aid of the army had rushed to build. Opposition is such that seven days after the first blaze, only 1,000 had so far agreed to enter the new facility.

      Athens’ centre-right government has enlisted NGOs and distributed multi-lingual notices in a bid to encourage relocation, saying the new site provides a safe place for asylum seekers to complete applications. Many have denounced the facility as “a new Moria, another prison.”

      As tensions mounted, the Greek migration minister Notis Mitarachi alluded to the possible use of force if the displaced migrants refused to go voluntarily.

      Nine riot police units and water cannon have been dispatched to the island. “If this is not possible through discussion, then the police will have to be used,” he told Mega TV. “It is their obligation to move to the new site,” he said acknowledging for the first time that families would likely spend the winter in tents.

      The Greek government has pledged to build a new structure on the island that will be co-managed by EU agencies but says construction of the camp in a place that has yet to be decided will require at least six months.

      Concerns over Covid-19 – more than 21 asylum seekers since the fires have tested positive for the virus in addition to 35 who were diagnosed with it before – have made resettlement even more pressing.

      Close to 12,500 men, women and children have been living out in the open, often in makeshift tents of tarps and bamboo reeds. Some 406 lone migrant children, also in the camp, were flown to the mainland immediately before continuing on to European states that have agreed to accept them.

      “There are groups of Afghans and I am afraid even some human rights organisations who are encouraging thousands of people not to go in,” said Chrysochoidis, who is seen as the face of the centre-right government’s tough public order policies. “It’s non-negotiable. They will leave the island but they have to go through this new facility and get the requisite legal documents first.”

      Efforts will be launched in the coming days to clear the charred remains of what had once been Europe’s largest refugee camp. Designed to host no more than 3,000, Moria accommodated almost 10 times that number at its height and was regularly condemned by aid groups for its deplorable conditions.

      “It was a camp of shame,” the politician admitted, denying that the government was also forcibly pushing back other refugees who were trying to get to Greece . “Now it belongs to history. It will be cleared up and replaced by olive groves.”

      https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/15/after-fire-greece-vows-to-empty-lesbos-of-all-refugees-by-easter

    • Six arrested over Lesvos camp blaze

      Greek police have detained six migrants over a fire that razed the Moria refugee camp to the ground, the government said on Tuesday, as thousands of displaced people refused to move to a new facility and demanded to leave Lesbos island.

      More than 12,000 people, mostly refugees from Afghanistan, Africa and Syria, were left without shelter, proper sanitation or access to food and water after a fire tore through the overcrowded Moria migrant camp last Wednesday.

      Greek authorities believe the fire was deliberately lit by camp occupants after quarantine measures were imposed following the discovery of COVID cases on the site, but the incident has put the migrant issue firmly back on the European agenda.

      Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis repeated a call for more help from the European Union, which has struggled to find a unified approach to the migrant crisis at its borders, saying it was time for “tangible solidarity” from Europe.

      European Council President Charles Michel who visited Lesbos said the challenge was European not just Greek and urged for more commitment by EU members for a new migration policy to be effective.

      “This is difficult, a very complex situation, but on behalf of the European Union, I would want to say that I refuse to paper over this migration challenge. This is a common European challenge,” Michel said.

      Government officials in Berlin said Germany could take in up to 1,500 people stranded by the fire, in addition to 100-150 Berlin has already agreed to take in. But a wider solution has remained elusive.

      Mitsotakis said a permanent new reception facility would be built on Lesbos with EU support and that the notoriously overcrowded and squalid Moria camp “belongs to the past”.

      On the ground in Lesbos, however, thousands, including children, were still sleeping rough a week after the blaze.

      Officials were struggling to overcome resistance from migrants hoping to be allowed to leave the island who fear that life in temporary shelters being erected would be no better than the conditions they endured in Moria.

      Migrants wearing masks as a precaution against the coronavirus queued outside the camp gates to receive water, food and blankets from aid workers. The task was complicated by the need for COVID-19 tests, with at least 25 positive cases found among the displaced.

      “The big concern is that even though many thousands of places are available and will continue to be expanded, there are still less than 1,000 that have been occupied,” said Luciano Calestini, head of the Greece office of the United Nations childrens organisation UNICEF.

      Only a few hundred migrants, mainly unaccompanied minors, have been moved off Lesbos. Greek officials have said there will be no mass transfers and all asylum seekers will have to go into the new shelter.

      https://www.ekathimerini.com/257005/article/ekathimerini/news/six-arrested-over-lesvos-camp-blaze

      #arrestation

    • Reportage : une semaine après l’incendie de Moria, les migrants vivent toujours dans l’enfer de la rue

      Depuis une semaine, les quelque 13 000 personnes qui ont fui les incendies du camp de Moria, sur l’île de Lesbos, dorment à la rue. Au bord de la route de Mytilène, elles n’ont ni eau, ni nourriture, ni couverture.

      Il est environ 15h, le soleil écrase de toutes ses forces le camp qui s’est formé le long de la route qui mène de Moria à Mytilène, sur l’île grecque de Lesbos. Soudainement, des centaines de personnes cessent leurs activités, quittent leur abri et forment, en l’espace de quelques secondes, une queue qui s’étend à perte de vue. Au bout de la file, des bénévoles d’un collectif d’ONG débutent une distribution de nourriture.

      Treize mille repas vont être servis. Il risque de ne pas y en avoir pour tout le monde. « Les distributions n’ont lieu qu’une fois par jour et pour avoir à manger, il faut être costaud. Il y a un problème d’organisation », déplore Michaël, originaire de République démocratique du Congo (RDC).

      Lundi 14 septembre, sur la route de Mytilène, les migrants ont faim depuis près d’une semaine. Lorsque les résidents de Moria ont fui les flammes qui ont dévoré le camp dans la nuit du 8 au 9 septembre et qu’ils ont été bloqués par la police sur cette route, certains ont pu acheter de quoi manger au grand magasin Lidl, en bord de mer.

      Mais les policiers ont rapidement exigé du gérant qu’il tire le rideau. Les stations services ont fermé, elles aussi, ainsi que tous les autres commerces le long de cette route qui mène au centre-ville de Mytilène.

      Pour se nourrir, certains rescapés de Moria demandent à d’autres migrants qui vivent dans Mytilène de leur acheter de la nourriture et de la leur apporter au camp informel qui a vu le jour. D’autres ont réussi à sauver des flammes quelques aliments qu’ils avaient achetés à Moria, souvent des paquets de pâtes.

      Gertrude et Naomi préparent un plat de légumes dans une grande marmite posée sur un feu. Ces deux Congolaises ont tenté quelques fois de récupérer de la nourriture lors des distributions mais être servi relève du combat. « Pour avoir de la nourriture, il faut se bagarrer », affirme Naomi.
      « Aidez-nous ! »

      Assises sur une grande couverture grise flanquée du logo du HCR, deux jeunes Afghanes qui s’appellent toutes les deux Zahra donnent le biberon à leurs bébés de 5 et 7 mois. « On a ramené le lait de Moria », explique l’une d’elles, en brandissant un petit sac en plastique à moitié rempli de lait en poudre.

      Les deux jeunes mères manquent de nourriture et d’eau ainsi que de vêtements pour leurs enfants. C’est ce que dit aussi une autre jeune Afghane en montrant le foulard dans lequel elle a dû emmailloter sa fille de quelques mois. « Aidez-nous ! », supplie-t-elle.

      Le seul point d’eau du camp improvisé se trouve à quelques dizaines de mètres de là et n’a rien d’officiel. Dans une rue qui remonte vers les oliveraies, les tuyaux destinés à l’irrigation ont été percés. Autour de chaque trou, plusieurs personnes se pressent pour remplir des bouteilles vides, laver un vêtement ou se rincer le visage. L’eau ruisselle en permanence dans la petite rue en pente et charrie des ordures.

      Couvertures et sacs de couchage sont également très recherchés sur le camp car les nuits sont déjà fraîches. Michaël n’a que son sweat-shirt bleu pour dormir. Le Congolais guette la route car il a entendu dire que des bénévoles distribuaient quelques sacs de couchage dans le camp. Mais tellement de personnes en manquent qu’il n’y en a sûrement déjà plus. Cependant, « ce qui nous préoccupe le plus c’est de ne pas pouvoir se doucher et aller aux toilettes », explique Michaël.

      Le seul moyen de se laver, c’est d’aller dans la mer. La plage n’est qu’à quelques minutes de marche du parking Lidl. Michaël aimerait aller se laver mais il n’a pas de savon.
      Un tiers d’enfants

      Cet après-midi, des dizaines d’enfants jouent dans la mer. La chaleur étouffante a aussi poussé quelques adultes à se mettre à l’eau.

      Azim shampouine énergiquement la tête de son fils Moustapha, 3 ans, pendant que sa fille Rokhoya rayonne de bonheur en barbotant autour de lui. Après cinq mois de confinement dans le camp de Moria, c’est la première fois qu’ils peuvent approcher la mer.

      Le camp compte plus de 4 000 enfants, selon l’Unicef, soit un tiers des migrants de Lesbos. À la nuit tombée, quand les bruits des machines de chantier qui construisent le camp provisoire sur un terrain militaire en bord de mer se taisent, on n’entend plus que les cris des enfants qui jouent. Le parking du Lidl prend des airs de cour de récréation.

      Les parents s’inquiètent de voir leurs enfants ne pas aller à l’école. La vie dans les conditions indignes du camp de Moria, puis au bord de cette route, pourrait aussi avoir des conséquences psychologiques à long terme sur ces enfants, met en garde Dimitra Chasioti, psychologue pour Médecins sans frontières (MSF).

      L’environnement dans lequel ils ont grandi pourrait affecter « la manière dont ils gèrent les difficultés mais aussi leurs interactions avec les autres », décrit-elle devant la clinique mobile installée par l’ONG à deux pas des tentes.

      Parmi les adultes, c’est l’angoisse de ne pas avoir d’information sur leur avenir – et notamment sur le nouveau camp provisoire en construction - qui est le plus difficile à gérer.

      Dimanche matin, Notis Mitarachi, le ministre grec de la Migration a déclaré que « tous les demandeurs d’asile y seraient transférés ». Selon son ministère, quelque 800 exilés sont désormais logés dans ce camp temporaire, fermé à la presse. L’AFP a recueilli des témoignages de personnes à l’intérieur qui ont affirmé n’avoir ni douche, ni matelas.

      Naomi semble aussi terrifiée à l’idée d’aller dans ce nouveau camp que de rester à la rue. Cette mère d’une fille de 5 ans et d’un garçon de 7 mois interroge : « Comment est le camp là-bas ? Est-ce que nous devrions y aller ? »

      https://www.infomigrants.net/fr/post/27269/reportage-une-semaine-apres-l-incendie-de-moria-les-migrants-vivent-to

    • Une intervention intéressante sur Lesbos de la présidente de la Commission européenne ainsi que de la chancelière allemande en réponse aux journalistes lors d’une conférence de presse portant initialement sur un sommet UE-Chine...il faut vraiment faire du suivi sur tout pour avoir les informations ! 😉

      La chancelière a eu une parole que je trouve politiquement extrêmement forte en disant la chose suivante : « la #concentration des nombres n’est pas la bonne approche ». Ce qui est remarquable c’est qu’elle a parlé en allemand, et qu’elle a utilisé le mot « #Konzentration » ("Ich glaube, dass die Konzentration auf einer Zahl der falsche Ansatz ist"). Cette phrase porte en elle quelque chose de très fort que Migreurop dénonce depuis sa fondation, l’#encampement, la stratégie des #nasses. Ce genre de #terminologie reste, en allemand, évidemment très délicat vu l’usage du terme par le régime nazi, et je doute fort que l’on puisse imaginer la chancelière d’avoir omis cet élément l’espace d’un instant. Je pencherais plutôt pour une remarque volontaire, appelant les choses par leur nom. Nos ami.es allemand.es sur cette liste auront peut-être une autre lecture, je serais heureuse de les lire à ce sujet.

      Cela n’empêchera, en suite de cette intervention, ni la chancelière, ni la présidente de la Commission européenne, de justifier de la création à venir d’un « #centre_d'accueil_européen » géré par les agences européennes et les autorités grecques en lieu et place des #hotspots actuels en Grèce (un « projet pilote » selon Van der Layen)...Ce qui finalement correspondait au plan initial comme le dénonce Migreurop depuis le départ.

      Vidéo à partir de la minute 25 et 50 secondes (question du journaliste) : prise de parole #Merkel puis #Van_der_Layen. tout est doublé en anglais
      https://www.euronews.com/2020/09/14/watch-live-eu-chiefs-update-on-summit-with-china

      Message de Marie Martin reçu via la mailing-list Migreurop, le 15.09.2020

      #Angela_Merkel

    • For many migrants, the dream of freedom ends in Lesbos

      After the devastating fires in the Moria migrant camp on Lesbos, Muhammad spent days on a sealed-off section of road with thousands of others. His most fervent wish is to leave the island, as DW’s Max Zander reports.

      “We had some hope, but we have lost it. We thought the government would take us to Athens now,” says Muhammad Sator Massi. Muhammad, who is 19, is sitting alone on a curb in the blazing sun, looking down at the ground in resignation.

      Near him, Greek garbage collectors are at work, loading one blue garbage bag after the other onto their truck with a crane. Today, they have started getting rid of the traces left by the past week. The road leading from Lesbos’ capital, Mytilene, past the Moria migrant camp is littered with plastic bottles, packaging and the remnants of temporary shelters. The bushes at the side are full of rubbish. Even though the sea is just a few steps away, there is a terrible stench.

      Muhammad has fled from Afghanistan with his aunt and uncle and their six children. They have already been on Lesbos for nine months. He says that it has been a terrible time that has left deep marks on him. After the fires last week, he set off for the capital with the other camp residents. Police stopped them and sealed off the section of road they were on. Muhammad and his family were among those forced to sleep in the open air, some on cardboard cartons on the bare ground.

      They spent more than a week under these conditions, then the police began clearing the improvised camp bit by bit. This morning, they arrived at Muhammad’s tent. The family was eating at the time, he says. A police officer threw their belongings all over the place and yelled at them, then began demolishing their shelter, Muhammad says.

      Doubtful about conditions in the new camp

      Now there is a new camp, called Kara Tepe. “They are forcing us to go there. We don’t have a choice. I don’t think it will be better than Moria; it will just be a repeat,” says Muhammad.

      Like most people here, he is afraid that the conditions there will be just as unbearable or even more so than in Moria: thousands of people in a confined space without enough toilets and showers, too little to eat, barely any medical care and violence every night.

      A spokesman for the Greek Migration Ministry insists that the conditions in the new camp are good, with toilets, running water and electricity. And he says its capacities are being expanded.

      But people who are already in the camp have reported the opposite, saying that there are far too few toilets, meals just once a day and no mattresses or blankets in the big white tents provided by the UNHCR and the Red Cross. Many are also worried because the camp, set up in haste on a former army drill ground, is likely to be situated on soil full of toxic substances and munitions. While it was being constructed, soldiers with metal detectors could be seen searching the area around the tents. But the Migration Ministry spokesman declares that “everything is safe.”

      For refugees like Muhammad, the biggest problem is the uncertainty about whether they will be allowed to leave the camp later. Greek officials have announced that it is initially to be put under quarantine, after more than 200 cases of coronavirus infection were recorded in the past few days. After two weeks, residents will be allowed to leave the camp during the day, they say. But that is not certain, and Muhammad and others are worried.

      “We came here looking for protection. We aren’t prisoners. I have been on Lesbos, in Moria, for a year. I can’t bear it any longer,” he says.

      Lost time

      Muhammad slowly gets up, because he wants to go down the road to his aunt’s family and register in the new camp with them. He seems tired and worn out. The road around him is almost deserted. Apart from the Greek garbage collectors, only a few people occasionally come by: a family from Afghanistan laden with plastic bags, a young man from Congo carrying an old, dirty tent. Muhammad sets off in the same direction and walks slowly toward the new camp.

      He is smoking a cigarette. “I never used to do that; I was sporty and kept away from people who smoke. But now it calms me down,” he says.

      He says he has changed a lot in the time here and that he is mentally exhausted. “We are losing a part of our lives here. It doesn’t feel as if we are alive,” he says while going past a police bus.

      In Afghanistan, he was well-off financially, he says. His father is a member of the provincial council in Wardak province and owns a water company. His family had money but no security. One day, Muhammad recounts, he was on his way home from school when he was stopped by some men in a car. They said they were friends of his father and asked him to get in. When he refused, they tried to drag him into the car, but he was able to pull free and run away. “When you go to school, you don’t know if you will come home alive,” he says.

      He decided to flee to Europe with his aunt. But he has given up hopes of starting a new life here, perhaps in Germany. He wanted to learn the language, study medicine and play football, his great passion.

      Rather be deported than be a prisoner

      By now, Muhammad has arrived at the new camp. Next to the road, there are groups, mostly of men, sitting and waiting in the shade of low bushes. For the moment, only families are being allowed to join the queue before the entrance. They are standing tightly packed. The police, equipped with protective clothing and masks, keep at a distance. Each person is registered and given a coronavirus test.

      Muhammad said earlier on that he would rather be deported back to Afghanistan and die there than go to this prison. But now he has no choice. He sees his aunt standing at the front of the queue. Slowly, his head bowed, Muhammad pushes his way past the other families and disappears in the crowd.

      https://www.dw.com/en/for-many-migrants-the-dream-of-freedom-ends-in-lesbos/a-54989158?maca=en-rss_top_news-13961-xml-mrss

    • Στήνει « Γκουαντάναμο » παντού με αφορμή τον κορονοϊό

      Η είδηση της διάγνωσης Σομαλού πρόσφυγα στη Μόρια με Covid-19 έδωσε την ευκαιρία στον Νότη Μηταράκη να επαναφέρει την πρόταση για μετατροπή όλων των ΚΥΤ σε κλειστές φυλακές με 24ωρη παρακολούθηση, διπλή περίφραξη και έλεγχο αποσκευών στα πρότυπα των αεροδρομίων ● Χωρίς γιατρούς παραμένουν οι προσφυγικές δομές Λέσβου και Χίου.

      Ετοιμος να εκμεταλλευτεί πολιτικά την ύπαρξη ακόμη και ενός θετικού δείγματος κορονοϊού σε πρόσφυγα που διαμένει στη δομή της Μόριας, προκειμένου να προωθήσει τα σχέδια μετατροπής των ΚΥΤ σε φυλακές, αποδείχθηκε ο υπουργός Μετανάστευσης και Ασύλου.

      Θετικός βρέθηκε άνδρας από τη Σομαλία στο Κέντρο Υποδοχής και Ταυτοποίησης της Μόριας και τέθηκε σε καραντίνα ολόκληρο το ΚΥΤ των 13.000 ανθρώπων. Ο Σομαλός είχε λάβει άσυλο στις 17 Ιουλίου, οπότε και αναχώρησε για την Αθήνα. Ομως, χωρίς καμία μέριμνα ή υποστήριξη για τη στέγασή του σε ασφαλή χώρο, επέλεξε να επιστρέψει στη « ζούγκλα » της Μόριας στις 27 Αυγούστου, μεταφέροντας πλέον την πανδημία εντός του καταυλισμού και κάνοντας τον εφιάλτη πραγματικότητα.

      Ευνοημένος από τη συγκυρία, ο υπουργός Νότης Μηταράκης θεώρησε ευκαιρία το γεγονός για να επαναφέρει την πρόταση μετατροπής των ΚΥΤ σε κλειστές δομές-φυλακές, παρουσιάζοντας ως πρότυπο τα σχέδια για την ανέγερση της δομής της Σάμου που εισάγει αλλά και επισημοποιεί την οργουελιανή εκδοχή στη μεταναστευτική πολιτική της Ελλάδας.

      Τα ΚΥΤ, σύμφωνα με όσα παρουσίασε ο υπουργός σε σύσκεψη με τους επικεφαλής των δημοτικών παρατάξεων στη Χίο με θέμα το μέλλον της ΒΙΑΛ, αποκτούν διπλή περίφραξη με νεκρή ζώνη πλάτους έξι μέτρων, ελεγχόμενη είσοδο-έξοδο με κάρτα και δακτυλικά αποτυπώματα, πανοπτικό σύστημα παρακολούθησης με κάμερες όλο το 24ωρο, σύστημα ελέγχου αποσκευών όπως στα αεροδρόμια και φυσικά μια « μαύρη τρύπα » δικαιωμάτων που ονομάζεται ΠΡΟΚΕΚΑ και μέσα του θα χάνονται όσοι/ες κριθούν ότι δεν τηρούν τα κριτήρια παροχής ασύλου, με αόριστο τον χρόνο κράτησης. Γενικότερα, θα έλεγε κανείς ότι οι αιτούντες άσυλο σε αυτά τα κέντρα-φυλακές αντιμετωπίζονται προκαταβολικά ως ύποπτοι τέλεσης σοβαρών αδικημάτων και ως κρατούμενοι που στερούνται τα βασικά τους δικαιώματα.
      Το κρούσμα στη Μόρια

      Ο 40χρονος πρόσφυγας βρέθηκε θετικός έπειτα από τεστ στο Νοσοκομείο Μυτιλήνης, όπου οδηγήθηκε με συμπτώματα και παραμένει νοσηλευόμενος, την ώρα που στον ΕΟΔΥ έχει χτυπήσει « κόκκινος » συναγερμός, έχοντας ως μοναδικό όπλο άμυνας τα αυστηρά μέτρα περιορισμού της κυκλοφορίας, αλλά ουσιαστικό αντίπαλο την αδυναμία εφαρμογής των υγειονομικών κανόνων λόγω των άθλιων συνθηκών διαβίωσης, αλλά και την ανυπαρξία γιατρών και νοσηλευτικού προσωπικού τόσο στη Μόρια όσο και στη ΒΙΑΛ της Χίου, που επίσης έχει τεθεί εδώ και εβδομάδες σε αυστηρή καραντίνα.

      Χαρακτηριστικό είναι ότι τόσο η δομή υγείας -δωρεά της ολλανδικής κυβέρνησης, που εγκαινιάστηκε πρόσφατα με τη παρουσία της ΠτΔ κ. Αικατερίνης Σακελλαροπούλου- όσο και τα ιατρεία της Περιφέρειας στα ΚΥΤ των δύο νησιών παραμένουν χωρίς γιατρούς. Η νέα δομή ακόμη δεν έχει λειτουργήσει καθόλου, ενώ οι συμβάσεις των υπηρετούντων ιατρών με την Περιφέρεια Βορείου Αιγαίου έληξαν και η σχετική προκήρυξη, που έληξε προ ολίγων ημερών, απέβη άγονη. Το ίδιο αναμένεται και γι’ αυτήν που λήγει αύριο, παρά τις αυξημένες αποδοχές που προβλέπει για το επιστημονικό προσωπικό οι οποίες φτάνουν τις 2.500 ευρώ μηνιαίως.

      Από το υπουργείο Μετανάστευσης και Ασύλου, ωστόσο, εκφράζουν την αισιοδοξία τους ότι σύντομα η δομή της ολλανδικής κυβέρνησης στη Μόρια θα είναι σε θέση να λειτουργήσει. Σύμφωνα με πληροφορίες, πρόθεση του υπουργείου είναι να θέσει τη δομή σε λειτουργία σε συνεργασία με κάποιες ΜΚΟ υγειονομικού χαρακτήρα που ήδη λειτουργούν εντός του ΚΥΤ. Ομως το πρόβλημα των άθλιων συνθηκών διαβίωσης, της ανυπαρξίας χώρων υγιεινής, της υπερσυγκέντρωσης ανθρώπων σε ουρές και όλα αυτά που δημιουργεί το πλήθος των 13.000 ανθρώπων σε χώρους με προδιαγραφές για 3.100 παραμένει και εκεί ουσιαστική απάντηση δεν υπάρχει.

      Η μόνη απάντηση που δίνει το υπουργείο είναι για ακόμη μία φορά η προσπάθεια εκμετάλλευσης των συνθηκών ώστε να προωθήσει τα σχέδια για μετατροπή των δομών της ΒΙΑΛ και της Μόριας σε « κλειστές ». « Το ΚΥΤ Μόριας παραμένει ανοιχτή δομή και το περιστατικό αυτό ενισχύει την ανάγκη να υλοποιηθούν οι εργασίες δημιουργίας κλειστής ελεγχόμενης δομής. Για το χρονικό διάστημα έως και τις 15/09/2020 θα απαγορεύεται ρητά η είσοδος και η έξοδος από τη δομή φιλοξενίας, ενώ η ΕΛ.ΑΣ. θα έχει ενισχυμένη παρουσία στον χώρο γύρω από τη δομή, για την τήρηση της απαγόρευσης της κυκλοφορίας καθ’ όλο το 24ωρο », αναφέρει χαρακτηριστικά σε δελτίο Τύπου, περιγράφοντας τις προθέσεις του.
      Σε εφαρμογή το σχέδιο Μηταράκη

      Το σχέδιο αυτό, που περιλαμβάνει και τη ΒΙΑΛ, ουσιαστικά έχει τεθεί σε εφαρμογή εδώ και μήνες, αλλά τις τελευταίες ημέρες μπήκε σε μια νέα φάση. Το προανήγγειλε ο κ. Μηταράκης πριν από δύο μέρες με αναρτήσεις του στον προσωπικό του λογαριασμό σε γνωστό μέσο κοινωνικής δικτύωσης, όπου σημείωνε τα εξής : « Ζητούμενο η ασφάλεια των δομών φιλοξενίας αιτούντων άσυλο. Ξεκινάμε τη μετατροπή των δομών σε κλειστών/ελεγχόμενων προς όφελος και των διαμενόντων και των τοπικών κοινωνιών ».

      Πρόθυμους συμμάχους σ’ αυτό το σχέδιο όσον αφορά τη Χίο, που μαζί με τη Λέσβο παραμένουν το αγκάθι στον σχεδιασμό (ενώ οι νέες δομές σε Λέρο, Κω και Σάμο προχωρούν κανονικά), βρήκε στην τοπική κοινότητα Χαλκειούς που υπό το βάρος της γειτονίας με την υπερπλήρη ΒΙΑΛ ασφυκτιά ψάχνοντας απεγνωσμένα για λύτρωση. Ετσι, με αίτηση προς το δημοτικό συμβούλιο Χίου, ο άλλος πρόθυμος σύμμαχος Μηταράκη, η δημοτική αρχή Κάρμαντζη, άδραξε την ευκαιρία και την έκανε αποδεκτή, απευθύνοντας τη σχετική πρόσκληση και στον υπουργό, που επίσης τη δέχτηκε άμεσα.

      Στόχος, να θέσει και πάλι το εκβιαστικό δίλημμα « ή νέος χώρος ή ΒΙΑΛ » ώστε να εισπράξει την άρνηση των επικεφαλής των παρατάξεων και να προχωρήσει το σχέδιο μετατροπής του ΚΥΤ σε ημίκλειστη φυλακή αλλά και ταυτόχρονα μονιμοποιώντας την, παρουσιάζοντας το αποτέλεσμα ως επιλογή του Δ.Σ. Χίου και ειδικά της μειοψηφίας. Τακτική που έχει δοκιμαστεί και στη Λέσβο για τη Μόρια, με τα πρώτα αποτελέσματα να είναι ήδη ορατά, αφού πρόσφατα εξασφαλίστηκαν επιπλέον 40 στρέμματα για την επέκτασή της.

      Αξίζει να σημειωθεί ότι από τις επτά παρατάξεις στο Δ.Σ. Χίου, το « παρών » έδωσαν οι πέντε, με τον Μάρκο Σκούφαλο από τη Λαϊκή Συσπείρωση και τον Μανόλη Στάθη από τον ΣΥΡΙΖΑ να αρνούνται την παρουσία τους καταγγέλλοντας τα σχέδια Μηταράκη. Οι υπόλοιποι (Κ. Τριαντάφυλλος, Μαν. Βουρνούς, Γ. Καραβασίλης και Δ. Αντώνογλου) επέμεναν στην εφαρμογή των ομόφωνων αποφάσεων του Δ.Σ. περί αποσυμφόρησης και κλεισίματος της ΒΙΑΛ και δημιουργίας δομής Καταγραφής και Ταυτοποίησης έως 500 ατόμων.

      Αντίθετα, ανοιχτός στην επανεξέταση του θέματος εμφανίστηκε ο δήμαρχος Στ. Κάρμαντζης που σημειωτέον δεν έθιξε καθόλου το θέμα της ακραίας βίας που άσκησαν στη Χίο τα ΜΑΤ κατά την επεισοδιακή τους παρουσία τον περασμένο Φεβρουάριο. Ζήτημα που έθεσαν κατά κόρον οι υπόλοιποι στη σύσκεψη καθώς και πολλά ακόμη θέματα, όπως η κατάρρευση της κοινής δήλωσης Ε.Ε. - Τουρκίας, το ζήτημα της 18μηνης εκκρεμοδικίας της αγωγής του Δήμου Χίου για την έξωση του υπουργείου από τη ΒΙΑΛ, ενώ ο Δ. Αντώνογλου εκ μέρους της Χιακής Συμπολιτείας έθεσε και το θέμα των παράνομων επαναπροωθήσεων προσφύγων.

      Τέλος, να σημειωθεί και η αποχώρηση του κ. Τριαντάφυλλου και του κ. Καραβασίλη σε κλίμα έντασης με τον κ. Μηταράκη.

      https://www.efsyn.gr/politiki/258178_stinei-gkoyantanamo-pantoy-me-aformi-ton-koronoio

      –—

      Traduction de Vicky Skoumbi via la mailing-list Migreurop :

      Le gouvernement grec a l’intention de ‘profiter’ de l’effet médiatique du premier patient de Covid au camp de #Moria pour transformer le #RIC de Moria à une sorte de Guantanamo, écrit le quotidien grec Efimerida tôn Syntaktôn :

      « Le Ministre de l’Immigration Notis Mitarakis y voit une opportunité de promouvoir la transformation de Centres de réception et Identification en structures pénitentiaires fermées, en imposant comme modèle les plans de la structure de Samos en cours de construction. Si on se fie aux déclarations du ministre lors de sa rencontre avec les chefs des factions municipales de Chios sur l’avenir de hot-spot de VIAL, les hot-spots auront une double clôture avec une zone morte de six mètres de large, toute entrée et sortie seront contrôlées avec carte et empreintes digitales, l’ensemble du camp sera sous surveillance par une système panoramique de caméras 24h / 24, il y aura même un système de contrôle des bagages équivalent à celui des aéroports et, bien sûr le « trou noir de droits » appelé PROKEKA [les centres de détention fermés avant renvoi] où seront détenus pour un laps de temps indéterminé ceux qui ne remplissent pas les conditions d’obtention d’asile. Plus généralement on pourrait dire que les demandeurs d’asile dans ces centres pénitentiaires seront traités à l’avance comme des suspects de crimes graves et comme des détenus privés de leurs droits fondamentaux. »

      Le comble de l’affaire dans cette opération d’instrumentalisation d’un cas de Covid à l’Oliveraie de Moria est le fait que le patient est un réfugiés reconnu comme tel qui avait été obligé de retourner d’Athènes où il arrivait pas à vivre faute de moyens de subsistance et de logement à l’Oliveraie. Bref il n’était qu’une énième victime de la politique gouvernementale qui prive les réfugiés de tout moyen de subsistance juste un mois après l’obtention de l’asile (Voir aussi l’article de Libération )

      En effet les déclarations du Ministre de l’Immigration Mytarakis font d’autant plus froid dans le dos que 800.000 euros seront destinés à l’installation de clôtures tandis que le seul dispensaire du camp habilité à traiter de cas Covid reste fermé faute de personnel (voir EfSyn en grec). Qui plus est il y a déjà en cours un appel d’offre pour la location pour cinq ans de champs qui entourent le camp de Moria pour l’extension de celui-ci, même au-delà du camp informel de l’Oliveraie (voir stonisi.gr ).

      L’instrumentalisation de la peur que suscite la propagation du virus – avec 111 cas dans la population locale et cinq morts depuis le 12 août à Lesbos- va de pair avec l’annonce quasi-explicite de refoulements illégaux par des membres du gouvernement. Le 2 septembre, lors d’une conférence de presse, Mr Plakiotakis, ministre de la Marine avait présenté comme un exploit le fait que les gardes côtes grecques ont dissuadé-empêché 3000 personnes d’atteindre les côtes grecques pendant le seul mois d’août. Aux questions insistantes de journalistes qui voudraient savoir par quels moyens ont eu lieu ces opérations de dissuasion, le ministre a répondu par de faux-fuyants : « « Nos officiers opèrent toujours sur la base de la légalité, ils défendent les frontières maritimes de notre patrie, mais en respectant la vie humaine en mer. Il y a une réticence de la part de la Turquie à coopérer, elle ne respecte pas les termes fondamentaux de l’accord avec l’UE » avait-il dit. pour l’immigration " ( voir EfSyn en grec). Bref le gouvernement grec en est arrivé au point de se vanter –ne serait-ce qu’à mi- mots, de refoulements illégaux.

      #Lesbos

    • Refugee Covid case sparks ’closed camps’ fears on Lesbos

      Greek government suggests need for ‘closed and controlled’ structures but NGOs fear virus is pretext for increased restrictions.

      The first recorded coronavirus case in Moria refugee camp on Lesbos, where just under 13,000 people are living in a space designed for 3,000, has led to fears that the government will use the pandemic as a pretext to create closed camps.

      https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/sep/04/refugee-covid-case-sparks-closed-camps-fears-on-lesbos

      #paywall

    • Les travaux de transformation de #hotspots en #centres_de_détention_fermés et contrôlés avancent à grand pas à #Lesbos et à #Chios. Le ministre Mitarakis a déjà signé à cette fin de contrats avec deux entreprises de construction qui se chargent d’y installer une double #clôture et de portiques de sécurité aux deux camps.

      (commentaire de Vicky Skoumbi via la mailing-list Migreurop, le 06.09.2020)

      Ci-dessous des extraits d’un article publié le 4 septembre au quotidien grec Efimérida tôn Syntaktôn (https://www.efsyn.gr/ellada/koinonia/258311_prota-synapse-symbaseis-kai-meta-ekane-dialogo) :

      Πρώτα σύναψε συμβάσεις και μετά έκανε « διάλογο »

      Le ministre de l’Immigration et de l’Asile Notis Mitarakis a déjà signé un accord avec les entreprises de construction TERNA et AKTOR pour les projets de conversion de hot-spots à Chios et à Lesbos en prisons pour réfugiés.

      Mettant en œuvre les décisions antérieures du gouvernement M. Mitarakis immédiatement après la réunion à la mairie de Chios a signé les contrats avec « TERNA » et « AKTOR », pour les travaux d’installation d’une double clôture autour du came VIAL et de celui de Moria, respectivement, qui transforment les RIC en prisons pour les demandeurs d’asile avec entrée et sortie contrôlées.

      Suivant la méthode d’affectation directe sans appel d’offre préalable, le ministère, pour le montant de 1 031 398 euros et avec un horizon temporel de deux mois, invite "TERNA Construction SA". à entreprendre le projet « Travaux préparatoires à la clôture et au nettoyage d’un stade sur l’île de Chios ».

      Publiée sur le site diavgeia.gov (Transparence), la lettre de garantie déposée par "TERNA d’un montant de 41 600 euros, a été émise depuis le 26/8, ce qui montre que tout a été décidé d’avance et le dialogue après-coup avec la société locale n’a été qu’une manœuvre de communication.

      Cependant, la question de la légalité des travaux demeure entière, puisque, comme on le sait, le camp de VIAL est sur un site qu’est la propriété de la municipalité de Chios, qui a fait appel auprès des tribunaux en déposant une action en évacuation contre le ministère et en demandant la restitution de l’espace, le contrat de concession correspondant ayant expiré depuis 20 mois. L’affaire est en attente de jugement depuis 18 mois maintenant et personne n’est en mesure de dire quand la procédure relative sera fixée.

      Il est à noter également que le contrat de concession entre la Commune de Chios et VIAL a été signé en 2015 sous la pression d’une situation urgente, mais, cinq ans plus tard personne ne peut prétendre que le besoin d’un site pour le RIC relève toujours d’une urgence et ne pouvait pas être prévu d’avance.

      Une décision similaire a été signée par le ministre de l’Immigration et de l’Asile, avec l’entreprise de construction "AKTOR", pour que celle-ci installe une double clôture autour du hot-spot de Moria Là, le coût a été fixé à 854 390,86 euros TTC et le contrat a été signé le mercredi 2 septembre. Respectivement, là aussi, la lettre de garantie bancaire d’un montant de 34 600 euros a été émise le 7 juillet, soit il y a presque deux mois !

      Reste à voir les réactions des communautés locales et en particulier de la commune de Chalkeia à Chios et de celle de Moria à Lesbos, qui depuis cinq ans ne cessent de manifester leur opposition à l’installation de RIC à la proximité de leur village.

      https://www.efsyn.gr/ellada/koinonia/258311_prota-synapse-symbaseis-kai-meta-ekane-dialogo

    • 2000 personnes qui auraient être en contact avec le réfugié somalien porteur du virus à l’ Oliveraie de Moria ;
      A ce jour nous avons le résultat de 1.600 tests de dépistage et pour 17 personnes les résultats ont été positifs
      voir en grec https://www.stonisi.gr/post/11213/17-kroysmata-koronoioy-sth-moria-realtime
      17 cas cela ne serait pas dramatique dans des conditions normales, mais avec le surpeuplement, la quasi-inexistence d’infrastructures sanitaires surtout à la partie informel du camp, l’Oliveraie, c’est extrêmement inquiétant, d’autant plus que rien n’est prévu pour l’instant pour la mise en quarantaine de porteur et la prise en charge de malades, d’autant plus que l’hôpital de Mytilène est déjà débordé par la recrudescence de cas dans la population locale, suite aux cérémonies religieuses du 15 août
      Et l’unité de soins Covid de Moria inaugurée en grande pompe par la Présidente de la République il y a une dizaine de jours n’est toujours pas fonctionnelle.

      Message de Vicky Skoumbi via la mailing-list Migreurop, le 07.09.2020

  • Refugee Covid case sparks ’closed camps’ fears on Lesbos | Global development | The Guardian
    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/sep/04/refugee-covid-case-sparks-closed-camps-fears-on-lesbos
    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/a4af1d2e29d3cff56c0e21ba732d14a02e851855/282_744_5467_3280/master/5467.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-ali

    The first recorded coronavirus case in Moria refugee camp on Lesbos, where just under 13,000 people are living in a space designed for 3,000, has led to fears that the government will use the pandemic as a pretext to create closed camps. Notis Mitarachi, the minister for migration, told local news that the coronavirus situation demonstrated the need for “closed and controlled” structures. The migration ministry also released a statement on Thursday, which said that plans to create closed structures on the islands of Lesbos and Chios were progressing. On Wednesday, a 40-year-old man, a recognised refugee from Somalia, tested positive for Covid-19. The camp is now under a strict two-week quarantine and police monitor entrances and exits. Since the outbreak of the pandemic there have been calls by NGOs for the evacuation of overcrowded Aegean island camps where social distancing is impossible. In Moria, most people live in cramped conditions outside the official perimeters of the camp often in thin tents or makeshift huts.
    Greece, which had success in flattening the curve at the outbreak of the pandemic, has experienced a rise in cases since the country opened up to tourism in July. Rights groups have drawn distinctions between the differing attitudes shown towards tourist and refugees: as holidaymakers have taken to the country’s beaches, refugees have remained locked down since 23 March. Caroline Willemen, the MSF project coordinator for Covid-19 on Lesbos, said she was concerned not only about the impact of the virus but also the plans for closed centres. “There have been statements that if only Moria was a closed structure, this would never have happened, which is extremely questionable,” she said. “The person who was found to be positive reportedly came back from Athens, but that’s only one of many ways in which sooner or later Covid would have reached Moria. It’s a very cynical approach and it’s really using the pandemic as an excuse to supplement further restrictions that are not justified from a public health point of view.

    #Covid-19#migrant#migration#grece#camp#hotspot#confinement#moria#chios#lesbos#sante#politiquemigratoire#UE#MSF

  • If you felt cooped up in lockdown, think of refugees confined in camps | Moulid Hujale | Global development | The Guardian
    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/aug/24/if-you-felt-cooped-up-in-lockdown-think-of-refugees-confined-indefinite
    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/4bdc7ce5879b796b49e1d95a53d7b45d1a3b0d9e/0_337_5156_3094/master/5156.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-ali

    Covid-19 has transformed the world beyond imagination, affecting almost everyone in some way.Yet for me the changes have felt familiar – from movement restrictions to quarantines, every measure taken to prevent the spread of the virus reminds me of what it means to live as a refugee in a camp.I was once one of them. After my family fled Somalia, we settled in Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camp, where I lived for many years. As soon as we crossed the border we were registered, put in an isolated camp and basically quarantined from the rest of the Kenyan society.
    This is how refugees are treated when they end up in displacement camps. They are not allowed to leave their designated settlements. They live in prison-like conditions indefinitely, where their movement is controlled by local authorities. I’m one of the lucky ones who got resettled in a third country. I currently live in the UK and have been confined to north-west London.The coronavirus lockdown brought back stark memories of life in the camp. It first started when people were panic buying in March. I had to wake up very early to join a long queue at the local Sainsbury’s. The lines of people holding carrier bags and trolleys to carry as much food and toilet paper as possible reminded me of queues in the camps where refugees wait for the monthly UN food distributions. As no one respected physical distancing rules, I would hear people standing close to me complain about the lack of food in the supermarket, and wondering how they would survive with so little. I would think to myself: “Imagine if these people were in refugee camps where they would receive food only once a month? Imagine if they were forced to skip meals, sleep hungry until the next cycle of distribution?”

    #Covid-19#migrant#migration#refugie#grandebretagne#kenya#somalie#sante#mémoire#trauma#santementale#asile

  • #Louise_Hunt : « Elle ne peut pas dire non » : les hommes ougandais qui exigent d’être allaités
    https://tradfem.wordpress.com/2020/08/03/elle-ne-peut-pas-dire-non-des-hommes-ougandais-exigent-detre-alla

    Le mari de Jane* aime le lait maternel. « Il dit qu’il en aime le goût et que cela l’aide sur le plan de la santé. Il se sent bien après », dit cette Ougandaise de 20 ans, qui a un bébé de 6 mois.
    Jane dit que son mari a commencé à lui demander son lait le soir où elle est rentrée de l’hôpital après avoir accouché. « Il a dit que c’était pour m’aider à faire couler le lait. J’avais l’impression que c’était normal. »
    Il n’est pas rare que les hommes boivent le lait de leur partenaire dans certaines régions de l’Ouganda, et dans certaines parties de la Tanzanie et du Kenya. On lie aujourd’hui cette exigence à la violence sexiste et aux comportements coercitifs et l’on s’inquiète de l’impact sur la nutrition des bébés. Cette pratique était peu connue jusqu’à ce que la ministre ougandaise de la santé, Sarah Opendi, brise le silence au Parlement en 2018 et mette en garde contre « une culture croissante d’hommes exigeant de téter, ce qui devenait un problème pour certaines mères allaitantes et leurs bébés ».
    Les raisons de ce phénomène et ses conséquences font aujourd’hui l’objet de ce que l’on croit être la première étude préliminaire à ce sujet, réalisée par l’université Kyambogo de Kampala et l’université britannique du Kent, avec le soutien du Global Challenges Research Fund.

    Traduction : #Tradfem
    Version originale : https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jan/28/she-cant-say-no-the-men-who-take-breast-milk-from-babies
    #Ouganda #exploitation_des_femmes #malnutrition #violence_sexiste

  • ’She can’t say no’: the Ugandan men demanding to be #breastfed | Global development | The Guardian
    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jan/28/she-cant-say-no-the-men-who-take-breast-milk-from-babies

    Women did not seem to have much choice in the matter. “It appears to be a hugely coerced behaviour from the people we spoke to,” added Merritt.

    When asked what might happen if she said no, one woman replied: “I fear that my husband might go elsewhere if I wouldn’t let it happen.”

    Thomas admitted that resistance could result in the women being beaten. “She can’t say no because you become obsessed, it’s hard to stop. If women say no it can cause violence, it’s a big issue,” he said.

    The behaviour has been linked to gender-based #violence in the Karamoja region in north-east Uganda. “The principal nutritionist has claimed that it is a common practice there in the form of violence, that when the men get drunk some went for the breasts forcefully,” said Rukundo.

    Health professionals, including midwives and nutritionists, told researchers about cases where babies had to be given formula milk because partners wanted the breast milk, and where women came to clinic with infected or bitten nipples caused by a man suckling. There are also risks to babies of cross-infection from the man’s saliva.

  • Greece’s refugees face healthcare crisis as Lesbos Covid-19 centre closes

    Patients on island camps face long wait for specialist help and mental health services, while in Athens others are left destitute
    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/3d2772106771ac41a4424c0fc1c52f61d01c40b2/0_363_5472_3283/master/5472.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=df484692f169d84d0d8e17

    In a fresh blow to refugees and migrants experiencing dire conditions in Greece, frontline medical charity Médecins San Frontières (MSF) on Thursday announced it has been forced to closed its Covid-19 isolation centre on Lesbos after authorities imposed fines and potential charges.

    From the island of Lesbos to the Greek capital of Athens, asylum seekers and recognised refugees, some with serious medical conditions, are unable to access healthcare or see a doctor as treatments are disrupted by new regulations.

    Asmaan* from Afghanistan is 10. For eight months she has lived in a makeshift tent with her family on the outskirts of the olive grove surrounding the Moria camp on Lesbos. She is one of more than 17,000 asylum seekers and refugees who have been living under lockdown here since 23 March.

    Asmaan is a familiar face at the paediatric clinic run by MSF just outside the main gate. “She was vomiting, shivering through the nights and became apathetic,” said her mother Sharif*. “We really became alarmed when she was bleeding going to the toilet.” Diagnosed with an acute inflammation of her kidney, Asmaan was transferred to the island’s hospital. Sharif said staff wanted to send her daughter to the mainland for treatment. But the family cannot leave Lesbos until their asylum procedure is completed.

    “Only highly severe cases can be transferred to the mainland,” Babis Anitsakis, director of infectious diseases at the hospital in Mytilene, told the Guardian. “This is also the case for the local population.” Such cases often involve a wait of two to three months in the camp before a transfer can be arranged, he said.

    “We are confronted with patients from Moria daily who have sicknesses like tuberculosis or HIV. We are simply not equipped for these treatments. On top of it, we face tremendous translation difficulties. At night the medical staff work with a phone translation app to communicate with the patients, which can be disastrous in an emergency situation.”

    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/1875a0bb75e484383197257df58241d8922139b0/58_42_1885_1074/master/1885.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=c80ba861e2d27d0dfcc973

    For Giovanna Scaccabarozzi, a doctor with MSF on Lesbos, Asmaan’s case is typical of a system where refugees and asylum seekers find it increasingly difficult to access proper healthcare, often despite being in desperate need.

    “Even survivors of torture and sexual violence are now left to themselves with no one to talk to and with no possibility to escape the highly re-traumatising space of Moria,” she said. The camp’s lockdown has meant fewer people have been able to attend MSF’s mental health clinic in Mytilene.

    “From five to 10 appointments a day, we are now down to two to three a week in the torture clinic in town,” Scaccabarozzi said. Even when people reach the clinic, “it feels like treating someone with a burn while the person is still standing in the fire”.

    The closure of the Covid-19 isolation unit on Thursday is down to the island’s authorities enforcing planning regulations, MSF said. “We are deeply disappointed that local authorities could not quash these fines and potential charges in the light of the global pandemic, despite some efforts from relevant stakeholders,” said Stephan Oberreit, MSF’s head of mission in Greece. “The public health system on Lesbos would simply be unable to handle the devastation caused by an outbreak in Moria – which is why we stepped in. Today we had to unwillingly close a crucial component of the Covid-19 response for Moria.”

    Athens has become a beacon of hope for those living in the island’s overcrowded camps, but a recent policy change has seen people who arrive in Athens with refugee status left virtually destitute, many with ongoing healthcare issues.

    The changes, which mean cash assistance and accommodation support end a month after refugee status is granted, affect around 11,000 refugees in Greece. MSF told the Guardian it is concerned that a number of patients face eviction and many refugees in Athens are sleeping on the streets as a result.

    Hadla, a 59-year-old from Aleppo who had had multiple heart attacks, died within days of leaving the apartment she shared with her daughter Dalal in Athens. She had been asked to leave repeatedly. “I told them that my mother is terribly ill and showed them the medical files but they told us that they cannot do anything about it and that the decision had come from the ministry,” said Dalal.

    Fearing eviction, Dalal took her mother to Schisto refugee camp on the outskirts of Athens, where her brother was staying. Two days later Hadla had another cardiac arrest and died. Dalal is still in the apartment with the rest of her family but continues to face eviction. “We have nothing and nowhere to go,” she said.

    Kelly Moraiti, a nurse at the MSF daycare centre in Athens, said evictions put patients’ health at risk, particularly those living with diseases such as diabetes. “Someone who is facing a lifelong disease should have uninterrupted permanent access to treatment. They need to have access to a proper diet and a space to store medications, which should not be exposed to the sun; to be homeless with these conditions is extremely dangerous.”

    MSF urgently called on the Greek government and the EU to help house refugees sleeping rough in Athens and to halt evictions of vulnerable people.

    Some of the refugees on the streets of Athens are heavily pregnant women and new mothers as well as survivors of torture and sexual violence. Many have significant health conditions often complicated from their time in camps such as Moria.

    The Greek migration ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

    * Names changed or shortened for privacy reasons

    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jul/31/greece-refugee-healthcare-crisis-island-camps-lesbos-moria-coronavirus

    #Lesbos #migrations #covid #coronavirus #centre_covid #asile #réfugiés #Grèce #fermeture #Moria #camps_de_réfugiés #santé_mentale #confinement

    ping @thomas_lacroix

  • ’Virtually entire’ fashion industry complicit in Uighur forced labour, say rights groups | Global development | The Guardian
    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jul/23/virtually-entire-fashion-industry-complicit-in-uighur-forced-labour-say
    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/ea298b59f9b1257df104da8be7636c0425b97bd2/107_0_1543_926/master/1543.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-ali

    China is the largest cotton producer in the world, with 84% of its cotton coming from the Xinjiang region. Cotton and yarn produced in Xinjiang are used extensively in other key garment-producing countries such as Bangladesh, Cambodia and Vietnam. Xinjiang cotton and yarn are also used in textiles and home furnishings. This week the New York Times reported that factories in the region were also supplying face masks and other PPE to countries around the world.

    The coalition has published an extensive list of brands it claims continue to source from the region, or from factories connected to the forced labour of Uighur people, including Gap, C&A, Adidas, Muji, Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein.

    #Chine #Ouïghours #coton #travail_forcé

  • Médecins Sans Frontières is ’institutionally racist’, say 1,000 insiders
    Karen McVeigh, The Guardian, le 10 juillet 2020
    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jul/10/medecins-sans-frontieres-institutionally-racist-medical-charity-colonia

    The medical NGO Médecins Sans Frontières is institutionally racist and reinforces colonialism and white supremacy in its humanitarian work, according to an internal statement signed by 1,000 current and former members of staff.

    #Médecins_Sans_Frontières #ONG #racisme #racisme_systémique #néocolonialisme #humanitaire

  • ’Get me back to Caracas’: desperate Venezuelans leave lockdown Bogotá | Global development | The Guardian
    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jul/04/get-me-back-to-caracas-desperate-venezuelans-leave-lockdown-bogota
    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/53220cc80fda2fbb5b9acda93b000c1863735324/90_0_4920_2952/master/4920.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-ali

    More than 4 million Venezuelans have now left, with about 5,000 crossing into neighbouring Colombia each day at the end of last year, according to data from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Nearly 2 million live in Colombia.But now, with lockdown shuttering businesses and keeping customers away, there is little work for Venezuelans such as Vera. Unable to pay rent, she was evicted from the house she shared with other migrants in the south of Bogotá. She has spent the past month camped outside a bus terminal on the northern outskirts of the city. Vera, like the 430 others here, would rather be home in Venezuela, where at least shelter is guaranteed. “I can knock on doors but if there’s no work, what can I do?” Vera asks, as she washes her clothes in a stream. “Going home is the only option I have. “The dream is to get home and get a roof over my head,” Vera says. “With a little help from God, I’ll get there.”

    #Covid-19#migrant#migration#venezuela#colombie#sante#vulnerabilite#confinement

    • As Brazil’s confirmed overall death toll from Covid-19 passes 50,000, the virus is scything through the country’s indigenous communities, killing chiefs, elders and traditional healers – and raising fears that alongside the toll of human lives, the pandemic may inflict irreparable damage on tribal knowledge of history, culture and natural medicine.

      The Munduruku people alone have lost 10 sábios, or wise ones. “We always say they are living libraries,” said Alessandra Munduruku, a tribal leader. “It’s been very painful.”

      The victims include prominent figures such as Paulinho Paiakan, a Kayapó leader who fought alongside rock star Sting against the Belo Monte dam.

      The indigenous organisation Apib has logged at least 332 Covid-19 deaths, and 7,208 coronavirus cases across 110 communities. “We are facing extermination,” said its executive coordinator, Dinamam Tuxá.

      Indigenous leaders such as Tuxá say the government of the far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, is failing to protect the country’s 900,000 indigenous people – many of whom live in small communities, where dozens often share the same house.

      #Brésil #culture_vernaculaire

  • EU ’covered up’ Croatia’s failure to protect migrants from border brutality

    Exclusive: Brussels officials feared disclosing Zagreb’s lack of commitment to monitoring would cause ‘scandal’

    EU officials have been accused of an “outrageous cover-up” after withholding evidence of a failure by Croatia’s government to supervise #police repeatedly accused of robbing, abusing and humiliating migrants at its borders.

    Internal European commission emails seen by the Guardian reveal officials in Brussels had been fearful of a backlash when deciding against full disclosure of Croatia’s lack of commitment to a monitoring mechanism that ministers had previously agreed to fund with EU money.

    Ahead of responding to inquiries from a senior MEP in January, a commission official had warned a colleague that the Croatian government’s failure to use money earmarked two years ago for border police “will for sure be seen as a ‘scandal’”.

    Supervision of the behaviour of border officers had been the condition set on a larger grant of EU funds to Croatia. There have been multiple allegations of violent pushbacks of migrants and refugees by Croatian police on the border with Bosnia, including an incident in which a migrant was shot.

    In response to allegations of a cover-up, an EC spokesman told the Guardian that what was known had been withheld from MEPs as the information was believed to have been “incomplete”.
    Crosses on our heads to ’cure’ Covid-19: refugees report abuse by Croatian police
    Read more

    It throws a spotlight on both the Croatian government’s human rights record and the apparent willingness of the EU’s executive branch to cover for Zagreb’s failure.

    Croatia is seeking to enter the EU’s passport-free Schengen zone – a move that requires compliance with European human rights standards at borders.

    Despite heated denials by the Croatian authorities, the latest border incident has been described by aid workers as the most violent in the Balkan migration crisis. On 26 May, 11 Pakistani and five Afghan men were stopped by a group wearing black uniforms and balaclavas in the Plitvice Lakes, 16km (10 miles) into Croatia from the Bosnian border.

    “The men in uniforms tied each of the Pakistanis and Afghanis around a tree, so their wrists were bound and they had to turn their faces toward the trees,” according to a report from the Danish Refugee Council (DRC), which provides healthcare for migrants in Bosnia. “Once these people were unable to move, the men in uniforms fired several shots in the air with guns placed close to the ears of the Pakistanis and Afghanis. There were also shots fired close to their legs.’’

    “They kept shooting. They were shooting so closely that the stones under our feet were flying and being blown to pieces,” one of the men told the Guardian. “They kept saying: ‘I want to beat and kill you.’ They tortured us for three to four hours.”

    The council’s report says electro-shockers were placed on people’s necks and heads. “One of the men in uniform was cutting several victims with knives and the same person inflicted cuts on both of the palms of one person.”

    One asylum seeker said that one of the men put his knee on his neck, then cut at him with a blade. ‘‘He sliced the index finger of my left hand, and blood started spurting out like a small shower,’’ he said. “Then he smiled and cut my middle finger followed by my palm with a larger cut. The whole hand is swollen beyond recognition.”

    After a while, the men in balaclavas called other uniformed officers.

    According to the victims and a report by the DRC, “before the police arrival, one of the men in uniform made a film with his mobile phone, while others in his company were laughing, yelling and provoking”.

    Upon the arrival of police officers, the migrants were put into vans and taken to the border at Šiljkovača, a village close to Velika Kladuša. Police officers did not beat them, but ordered them into Bosnian territory.

    “All of them had bleeding wounds on their heads and numerous bruises on various parts of the body,” Nicola Bay, the DRC country director for Bosnia, told the Guardian. “Four of them had broken arms and one had a broken leg and both arms.”

    Contacted by the Guardian, the Croatian police denied the allegations and suggested that asylum seekers could have fabricated the account and that the wounds could be the result of “a confrontation among migrants” that took place ‘‘on 28 May in the vicinity of the Croatian border, near Cazin’’.

    Volunteers and charities who have treated migrants involved in the fight in Cazin, said the two incidents are unrelated and happened two days apart. Those involved in the fight in Cazin have not claimed they were attacked by the police.

    The establishment of supervisory mechanisms to ensure the humane treatment of migrants at the border had been a condition of a €6.8m (£6.1m) cash injection announced in December 2018 to strengthen Croatia’s borders with non-EU countries.

    The mechanism was publicised by the European commission as a way to “ensure that all measures applied at the EU external borders are proportionate and are in full compliance with fundamental rights and EU asylum laws”.

    Croatian ministers claimed last year that the funds had been handed over to the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Croatian Law Centre to establish the supervisory mechanism.

    Both organisations deny receiving the money.

    In January this year, the commission was asked by Clare Daly, an Irish MEP in the Independents 4 Change party, to account for the discrepancy.

    A commission official responded that the UNCHR and Croatian Law Centre had established the monitoring mechanism but from “their own funds” to ensure independence from the government.

    He added: “Hopefully [this] clarifies this matter once and for all”.

    But both organisations have again denied being involved in any monitoring project, clarifying that they had only been engaged in an earlier initiative involving the examination of police files.

    Beyond the apparent inaccuracy of the response to Daly, internal emails suggest the full facts of the “underspending” – as its known to the commission – were also withheld.

    The EC failed to inform Daly that the Croatian government had decided to ring-fence only €102,000 of the €300,000 provided for the monitoring mechanism and that ultimately only €84,672 was actually spent – €17,469.87 was given to the interior ministry and €59,637.91 went to NGOs. A roundtable conference accounted for €1,703.16.

    “While we know that there has been underspending on the €300,000 … we thought that around € 240,000 were nevertheless spent in the context of the monitoring mechanism,” an EU official had written while discussing how to deal with the MEP’s questions. “Having spent only EUR 102,000, will for sure be seen as a ‘scandal’.”

    The commission did not pass on information on the spending to Daly but privately officials agreed to seek answers urgently. They also discussed in a phone and email exchange the possibility of intervening in the member state’s planned report due to the poor handling of the matter by the Croatian government.

    “Seeing how unfortunate [Croatia] is presenting this issue, [Croatia] definitively needs (your?) help in putting some ‘final touches’ to the report,” an official in the commission’s migration department wrote to a colleague. “Will [Croatia] provide you with an advance copy of the final report?”

    Daly told the Guardian: “It is outrageous – the commission appears to be colluding with the Croatian authorities in a cover-up.”

    An EC spokesperson said the EU’s executive branch was committed to the establishment of a fully independent border monitoring mechanism.

    The spokesperson said: “We would caution against drawing misleading conclusions from reading the internal email exchanges in isolation.”

    He added: “The Croatian authorities are explaining in their final implementation report how the monitoring mechanism was established, how it works in practice and outline the results.

    “Given that the report submitted by the Croatian authorities was incomplete, the commission asked the Croatian authorities for clarifications first in writing and orally regarding outstanding issues (eg factual data confirming the achievements of the project indicators relating to internal controls and trainings).”

    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jun/15/eu-covered-up-croatias-failure-to-protect-migrants-from-border-brutalit
    #complicité #EU #UE #Croatie #violence #réfugiés #asile #migrations #violence #violences #hauts_fonctionnaires #fonds #argent #gardes_frontière #route_des_Balkans #frontières #Plitvice_Lakes #commission_européenne #Union_européenne #couverture

    • Report from Centre for Peace Studies on the pushback of children

      On 29th May 2020, the Centre for Peace Studies – a key member of the Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN) – presented a new report alongside the Welcome! Initiative. Addressing the Croatian Government, the “Report on violent and illegal expulsions of children and unaccompanied children” is based on testimonies collected by activists through the BVMN shared database. The publication shares the story of children who sought protection from Croatia, and how Croatia answered in violence.

      “We came to the door of Prime Minister Plenković and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior Božinović, who have been turning their backs on testimonies and accusations for years and silently pursuing a policy of flattering the European Union. Even the most vulnerable are not excluded from violence – children “, said Tea Vidović on behalf of the Welcome! Initiative.

      The report submitted to the Government by the organizations provides testimonies of children and their families and unaccompanied children on violent and illegal methods that they had to experience at the hands of police authorities. This illegal and inhuman behavior violates national laws, international law and human rights, prevents access to international protection and, most importantly, marks children’s lives. Although the Government of the Republic of Croatia and the Ministry of the Interior should take into account the special vulnerability of children, respect their rights and best interests, children experience police brutality and limitation of their freedom for hours without access to water and food.

      “While the government uses every opportunity to emphasize the importance of border protection, we wonder in which way is police protecting Croatian borders? By beating children, confiscating their personal belongings, locking children in police vans for several hours in which they are exposed to extremely high or extremely low temperatures, shooting and using electric shocks, is this how the police protect Croatian borders? ”, points out Ana Ćuća.

      The exact number of children who are victims of police brutality remains unknown. BVMN has reported 209 cases of violent and illegal expulsions of children from Croatia since 2017, while Save the Children recorded 2969 expulsions of children at the borders in the Western Balkans during the first 9 months of last year.

      Two cases are currently pending at the European Court of Human Rights against Croatia, both involving violence and pushback. The first is the case of the family of the tragically late six-year-old girl Madina Hussiny, who was killed at the Croatian-Serbian border. The second includes pushbacks, illegal detention and inhumane treatment of a 17-year-old Syrian boy by Croatian police, who was pushed back to Bosnia and Herzegovina despite seeking asylum in Croatia.

      The latest report presented is the sixth report on violent and illegal expulsions published in the last four years, and it is the collective work of the Centre for Peace Studies, the Society for Psychological Assistance, the Welcome! Initiative and the Border Violence Monitoring Network. It also brings a short graphic novel based on the story of little #Madina, a young girl killed in transit, for whose death no one has yet been held accountable.

      Therefore, the organisations ask the Government and the Ministry of the Interior to finally take responsibility and for those who sanction and carry out systematic violence. Responsible institutions are obliged to investigate those who commit violence and push back children in need of protection. All children deserve justice and protection.

      https://www.borderviolence.eu/report-from-centre-for-peace-studies-on-the-pushback-of-children
      #enfants #enfance #mineurs

      Pour télécharger le #rapport:
      https://www.cms.hr/system/article_document/doc/647/Pushback_report_on_children_and_unaccompanied_children_in_Croatia.pdf

    • Policiers croates accusés de violences contre des migrants : l’UE réclame une "enquête approfondie’’

      Après avoir été interpellée par Amnesty International sur la « violence » des policiers croates à l’égard des migrants, la Commission européenne a réclamé à Zagreb une « enquête approfondie ». L’institution prévoit d’envoyer une mission sur place, quand la situation sanitaire le permettra.

      L’Union européenne est sortie de son ’’silence’’ au sujet des accusations de violences contre des migrants perpétrées par la police croate. Vendredi 12 juin, la Commission européenne a réclamé à Zagreb une "#enquête_approfondie'' à la suite de la publication d’un rapport à charge de l’ONG Amnesty International dénonçant des #passages_à_tabac, des #tortures et des tentatives d’#humiliation de la part de policiers croates (https://www.infomigrants.net/fr/post/25339/on-les-suppliait-d-arreter-de-nous-frapper-ils-chantaient-et-riaient-l).

      « Nous sommes très préoccupés par ces allégations », a déclaré un porte-parole de l’exécutif européen, Adalbert Jahnz. « La #violence, l’humiliation et les #traitements_dégradants des demandeurs d’asile et migrants n’ont pas leur place dans l’Union européenne et doivent être condamnés », a-t-il assuré.

      L’Union européenne avait été directement interpellée par Amnesty International dans son rapport. Ce document affirme que 16 migrants, qui tentaient d’entrer illégalement en Croatie, ont été « ligotés, brutalement battus et torturés » pendant plusieurs heures par des forces de l’ordre, dans la nuit du 26 au 27 mai. « L’Union européenne ne peut plus rester silencieuse et ignorer délibérément les violences et les abus commis par la police croate à la frontière », avait déclaré Massimo Moratti, directeur adjoint de l’antenne européenne de l’ONG.

      https://twitter.com/Jelena_Sesar/status/1271044353629335553?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E12

      Une mission sur place quand la situation sanitaire le permettra

      L’exécutif européen a également indiqué être « en contact étroit » avec les autorités croates qui « se sont engagées à enquêter » sur ces accusations de mauvais traitements à leur frontière avec la Bosnie (https://www.infomigrants.net/fr/post/18721/plusieurs-migrants-retrouves-blesses-a-la-frontiere-entre-la-bosnie-et). « Nous attendons que ces accusations fassent l’objet d’une enquête approfondie et que toutes les actions nécessaires soient prises », a poursuivi le porte-parole.

      La Commission prévoit aussi d’envoyer, quand la situation sanitaire le permettra, une mission sur place, dans le cadre d’un mécanisme de surveillance du respect des droits fondamentaux par les autorités aux frontières lié à l’allocation de fonds européens.

      Le ministère croate de l’Intérieur a, de son côté, immédiatement démenti ces accusations, en ajoutant cependant qu’une enquête serait ouverte.

      Des milliers de migrants empruntent chaque année la « route des Balkans » pour essayer de rejoindre l’Europe occidentale. La plupart passent par la Croatie, pays membre de l’UE, le plus souvent en provenance de la Bosnie.


      https://www.infomigrants.net/fr/post/25354/policiers-croates-accuses-de-violences-contre-des-migrants-l-ue-reclam

    • Croatia: Fresh evidence of police abuse and torture of migrants and asylum-seekers

      In a horrifying escalation of police human rights violations at the Croatian border with Bosnia, a group of migrants and asylum seekers was recently bound, brutally beaten and tortured by officers who mocked their injuries and smeared food on their bleeding heads to humiliate them, Amnesty International has revealed today.

      Amnesty International spoke to six men among a group of 16 Pakistani and Afghan asylum-seekers who were apprehended by the Croatian police on the night between 26 and 27 May near Lake Plitvice, as they tried to cross the country to reach Western Europe.

      Between eight and ten people wearing black uniforms and balaclavas identical to those used by Croatia’s Special Police, fired their weapons in the air, kicked and repeatedly hit the restrained men with metal sticks, batons and pistol grips. They then rubbed ketchup, mayonnaise and sugar that they found in one of the backpacks on migrants’ bleeding heads and hair and their trousers. Amnesty International also spoke to doctors who treated the men and NGOs who witnessed their injuries.

      “The European Union can no longer remain silent and wilfully ignore the violence and abuses by Croatian police on its external borders. Their silence is allowing, and even encouraging, the perpetrators of this abuse to continue without consequences. The European Commission must investigate the latest reports of horrifying police violence against migrants and asylum-seekers.” said Massimo Moratti, Deputy Director of the Europe Office, following the latest incident on the Croatian border.

      Physical and psychological abuse

      Amir from Pakistan told Amnesty: “We were pleading with them to stop and show mercy. We were already tied, unable to move and humiliated; there was no reason to keep hitting us and torturing us.” He said the armed men showed no sympathy. “They were taking photos of us with their phones, and were singing and laughing.” Amir had a broken arm and nose, stiches on the back of his head, and visible bruising all over his face and arms.

      Ten men suffered serious injuries that night. Thirty-year-old Tariq now has both of his arms and a leg in a cast, visible cuts and bruises on his head and face and is suffering from severe chest pain.

      “They did not give us a chance to say anything at all when they caught us. They just started hitting us. While I was lying on the ground, they hit my head with the back of a gun and I started bleeding. I tried to protect my head from the blows, but they started kicking me and hitting my arms with metal sticks. I was passing in and out of consciousness the rest of the night.” Tariq is now forced to use a wheelchair to move around and it will take months before he is able to move on his own again.

      The men told Amnesty International how they felt humiliated as militia rubbed mayonnaise and ketchup on to their bloody heads and faces. One masked man squirted mayonnaise on an asylum-seeker’s trousers between his legs, while others laughed and sang “Happy Birthday” around them.

      After almost five hours of continuous abuse, the migrants were handed over to the Croatian Border Police who transported them close to the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina in two vans before ordering them to walk. “They were taken aback by our condition. We were drenched in blood and very shook up. We could barely stand, much less walk for hours to Bosnia. But they told us to go. They told us to carry the guys who couldn’t walk and just go.” Faisal told Amnesty.

      Some of the men eventually reached Miral, a reception centre run by the International Organization for Migration in Velika Kladusa in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but five, who were too weak to walk, stayed behind and were eventually picked up by an NGO operating in the camp.

      An emergency doctor at the medical clinic in Velika Kladusa who treated the men told Amnesty International that they all had injuries on the back of their heads which were consistent with a blow by a blunt object and required stiches. Most had multiple fractures, joint injuries, collapsed lungs, cuts and bruises and several were traumatized. Their recovery could take months.

      Routine violent pushbacks and torture by the Croatian police remain unpunished

      While only the latest in the series, the incident points to a new level of brutality and abuse by the Croatian police. In early May, the Guardian reported about a group of men who were forced across the Croatian border after being beaten and having orange crosses spray-painted on their heads. The Croatian Ministry of Interior dismissed the allegations, but the testimonies of violence and intimidation fit the trend of unlawful pushbacks taking place not only on the Croatian, but also on other external borders of the European Union.

      Numerous reports over the past three years have revealed how the Croatian border police routinely assault men, women and teenagers trying to enter the country, destroy their belongings and smash their phones before pushing them back to Bosnia. People are sometimes stripped of their clothes and shoes, and forced to walk for hours through snow and freezing cold rivers.

      A physician in the Velika Kladusa clinic told Amnesty International that approximately 60 per cent of migrants and asylum-seekers who required medical treatment reported that their injuries were inflicted by the Croatian police, while they were trying to cross the border. “Many injuries involve fractures of long bones and joints. These bones take longer to heal and their fractures render the patient incapacitated for extended periods of time. This appears to be a deliberate strategy – to cause injuries and trauma that take time to heal and would make people more reluctant to try to cross the border again or any time soon,” the physician told Amnesty International.

      The Croatian Ministry of Interior has so far dismissed these allegations, refusing to carry out independent and effective investigations into reported abuses or hold its officers to account. In a climate of pervasive impunity, unlawful returns and violence at the border have only escalated. Amnesty International has shared the details of this incident with the Ministry of Interior, but has not received an official response.

      The EU’s failure to hold Croatia to account

      The European Commission has remained silent in the face of multiple, credible reports of gross human rights abuses at the Croatian border and repeated calls by the European Parliament to investigate the allegations. Furthermore, Croatia remains a beneficiary of nearly EURO 7 million of EU assistance for border security, the vast majority of which is spent on infrastructure, equipping border police and even paying police salaries. Even the small proportion (EURO 300,000) that the Commission had earmarked for a mechanism to monitor that the border measures comply with fundamental rights and EU asylum laws, has been no more than a fig leaf. Last year, the Commission recommended Croatia’s full accession to the Schengen Area despite human rights abuses already being commonplace there.

      “The European Commission cannot continue to turn a blind eye to blatant breaches of EU law as people are being branded with crosses on their heads or brutally tortured and humiliated by Croatian police. We expect nothing less than the condemnation of these acts and an independent investigation into reported abuses, as well as the establishment of an effective mechanism to ensure that EU funds are not used to commit torture and unlawful returns. Failing urgent action, Croatia’s inhumane migration practices will turn the EU into an accomplice in major human rights violations taking place at its doorstep,” said Massimo Moratti.

      Violent pushbacks from Croatian border have been a regular occurrence since late 2017. The Danish Refugee Council recorded close to 7,000 cases of forcible deportations and unlawful returns to Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2019, most of which were accompanied by reported violence and intimidation by Croatian police. Despite the brief respite during the lockdown due to COVID-19 pandemic, pushbacks continue with 1600 cases reported only in April. The figures are increasing daily, as the restrictions across the region are being lifted and the weather is turning milder.

      Amnesty International has interviewed over 160 people who have been pushed back or returned to Bosnia and Herzegovina since July 2018. Nearly one third reported being beaten, having their documents and telephones stolen, and verbally abused in what appears to be a deliberate policy designed to deter future attempts to enter the country.

      https://www.amnesty.eu/news/croatia-fresh-evidence-of-police-abuse-and-torture-of-migrants-and-asylum-se
      #rapport #Amnesty_international

    • Croatia, police abuse is systemic

      While the world is outraged and protests after George Floyd’s death to denounce institutionalised violence, migrants have been beaten and tortured on the Balkan route for years. A brutal practice often covered up, even by the EU itself.

      George Floyd’s death on May 25th sparked protests around the world against police violence and institutional racism. In the Balkans as elsewhere, sit-ins have been held in support of #BlackLivesMatter , followed by calls to report abuses committed locally by the police. And in the region there is no lack of such abuses. In fact, police violence is routine on the “Balkan route”, the flow of migrants and refugees that has crossed the peninsula since 2015 in the hope of reaching the European Union. The events of the past few weeks have unfortunately confirmed once again the link between police brutality and immigration, bringing us back to the Croatian-Bosnian border. It is a story of systemic abuse, both proven and covered up, which involves a member state of the EU, candidate for accession to the Schengen area and, according to the latest revelations of The Guardian, the European Commission itself.
      Torture in Croatia

      When it comes to police abuse on the Croatian-Bosnian border, one does not really know where to start. The accidents recorded in recent years are so many that we can no longer even speak of “accidents”, or unexpected events. On the contrary, violence is rather a common practice, the only news being the increase in brutality by the agents, who have gone from illegal pushbacks to outright torture.

      “We rarely use the word ’torture’ in Europe, but in this case we had to”, explains Massimo Moratti, deputy director of the Europe office of Amnesty International (AI). Last week, AI published yet another report of the mistreatment of migrants by the Croatian police along the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina. Mistreatment is an understatement. The testimonies collected no longer speak of broken mobile phones, or – as has happened more recently – destroyed with a screwdriver to prevent recharging, but instead contain “actual sadism”, as Moratti puts it.

      The case in question is that of 16 Pakistani and Afghan asylum seekers arrested by the Croatian police near the Plitvice lakes between May 26th and 27th. Their testimony is chilling. “We asked them to stop and show mercy. We were already tied up, there was no reason to continue hitting and torturing us", Amir told Amnesty International. Singing and filming on mobile phones, the agents continued to beat the 16 unfortunate men hard, finally smearing their wounds with ketchup and mayonnaise found in the backpack of one of the migrants. Eventually, the group was brought back to the border and forced to walk to Bosnia. Those who were unable to walk, because they are now in a wheelchair, had to be transported by others.

      “It is a pattern, a trend. These are the same practices that we have already seen in Hungary in 2015, 2016, and 2017. Dogs, sticks, broken bones... The goal is to intimidate and frighten so that no one tries to cross the border anymore", resumes Massimo Moratti, who adds: “the fractures we saw in the latter case will take months to heal”. The Amnesty International report and the attached photos tell the rest.
      Four years of violence

      How did we get to this? It is useful to make a brief summary of recent years to understand the evolution of violence. First, the “Balkan route” became a media phenomenon in the summer of 2015, when hundreds of thousands of Syrians, Iraqis, and Afghans began to travel up the Balkan peninsula to reach the European Union. At the beginning, the destination of the route was Hungary, then, with the closure of the Hungarian wall, it became Croatia, which leads to Slovenia and then to the Schengen area. In 2015, Croatian policemen showed themselves to be tolerant and benevolent, as reminded by this cover of Jutarnji List .

      In the spring of 2016, the agreement between the EU and Turkey led to the closure of the Balkan route and a change of pace. “The first case of pushback is registered in 2016 on the Serbo-Croatian border. In 2017, we have the first cases of violence", says Antonia Pindulić, legal advisor to the Centre for Peace Studies (CMS) in Zagreb. At the end of 2017, Madina Hussiny, 6, died hit by a train while returning from Croatia to Serbia following the tracks. Together with her family, she had been illegally pushed back by the Croatian policemen.

      In the summer of 2018, the Croatian police fired on a van that carried 29 migrants and refused to stop. Nine people were injured and two minors ended up in hospital in serious conditions. Since then, it has been a crescendo of accidents, especially on the Croatian-Bosnian border, where what remains of the Balkan route passes. Here, the testimonies collected by NGOs speak of beatings, theft, destruction of mobile phones and, as always, illegal pushbacks. Then, the situation has deteriorated up to the torture of the last few weeks. All in the silence of the authorities.
      The silence of the institutions

      How could the Zagreb government not complete an investigation in four years, address the police abuse, punish the guilty? It just didn’t. In fact, Andrej Plenković’s government has just “denied everything” for four years, while “no investigation has produced results”, as Antonia Pindulić of CMS summarises. And this despite the fact that there have been complaints from NGOs and also the actions of the institutions themselves in Croatia.

      “In 2019, a group of policement wrote an anonymous letter to the Croatian Ombudswoman asking to be protected from having to carry out illegal orders”, recalls Pindulić. The agents then revealed the pushback technique: GPS off, communications only on Whatsapp or Viber, no official report. Also in 2019, then President Kolinda Grabar Kitarović had let slip , during an interview on Swiss television, that “of course, a little strength is needed when making pushbacks”. Later, she said she had been misunderstood.

      After dozens of complaints have fallen on deaf ears and after in 2018 the Ombudswoman, in her investigations, had been denied access to video surveillance videos with the excuse that they were lost, the CMS decided a couple of weeks ago to file a complaint “against unknown police officers” guilty of “degrading treatment and torture against 33 people” and “violent and illegal expulsion [of these people, ed.] from the territory of the Republic of Croatia to Bosnia and Herzegovina”. “We hope that the prosecutor will open an investigation and that people who have violated the law are identified. But since the institutions themselves have violated the law for four years, I don’t know what we can expect”, says Antonia Pindulić.

      The complaint filed brings together four cases, all of which occurred at the beginning of May 2020. “We suspect that the cases are linked to each other, as all the migrants and refugees involved have reported beatings, theft of their belongings, being stripped and, above all, having a cross drawn on their head with orange spray”, says Antonia Pindulić. This very detail had brought the story on the Guardian and sparked controversy in Croatia.
      Towards a turning point?

      In their brutality, the cases seem to repeat themselves without any change in sight. But the Croatian government may soon be forced to answer for what appears to be institutionalised violence. Not only the legal action taken by the CMS “could likely end in Strasbourg”, as Massimo Moratti of Amnesty International speculates, but a lawsuit filed by three Syrian refugees against Croatia reached the European Court of Human Rights at the end of the May . And last week, after the publication of the AI ​​report, the European Commission announced that an observation mission will be sent to Croatia.

      And there is more. This week, the Guardian also revealed that communications between officials of the European Commission show how the European body “covered up Croatia’s failure to protect migrants from brutality on the border”. In question are the European funding received from Zagreb for border security: 7 million Euros, of which 300,000 for the implementation of an independent control mechanism that should have supervised the work of the police. Not only has the mechanism never been implemented, but there have been contradictory communications in this regard, with the Commission declaring that UNHCR was part of the mechanism and the latter publicly denying at the end of 2019 .

      In short, although Brussels allocated a (small) budget for the control of the brutality of Croatian agents, the mechanism that was to be activated with those funds was never created. And the Commission is aware of this. How long, then, will the Plenković government manage to hide its system of violence on the Bosnian border?

      https://www.balcanicaucaso.org/eng/Areas/Croatia/Croatia-police-abuse-is-systemic-202952

      #violence_systémique

    • Croatia: Police brutality in migrant pushback operations must be investigated and sanctioned – UN Special Rapporteurs

      Croatia must immediately investigate reports of excessive use of force by law enforcement personnel against migrants, including acts amounting to torture and ill-treatment, and sanction those responsible, UN human rights experts said today.

      “We are deeply concerned about the repeated and ongoing disproportionate use of force by Croatian police against migrants in pushback operations. Victims, including children, suffered physical abuse and humiliation simply because of their migration status,” Felipe González Morales, the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, and Nils Melzer, Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, said in a joint statement.

      They said physical violence and degrading treatment against migrants have been reported in more than 60 percent of all recorded pushback cases from Croatia between January and May 2020, and recent reports indicate the number of forced returns is rising.

      Abusive treatment of migrants has included physical beatings, the use of electric shocks, forced river crossings and stripping of clothes despite adverse weather conditions, forced stress positions, gender insensitive body searches and spray-painting the heads of migrants with crosses.

      “The violent pushback of migrants without going through any official procedure, individual assessment or other due process safeguards constitutes a violation of the prohibition of collective expulsions and the principle of non-refoulement,” González Morales said.

      “Such treatment appears specifically designed to subject migrants to torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment as prohibited under international law. Croatia must investigate all reported cases of violence against migrants, hold the perpetrators and their superiors accountable and provide compensation for victims,” Melzer added.

      The UN Special Rapporteurs are also concerned that in several cases, Croatian police officers reportedly ignored requests from migrants to seek asylum or other protection under international human rights and refugee law.

      “Croatia must ensure that all border management measures, including those aimed at addressing irregular migration, are in line with international human rights law and standards, particularly, non-discrimination, the prohibition of torture and ill-treatment, the principle of non-refoulement and the prohibition of arbitrary or collective expulsions,” they said.

      During his official visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina in September 2019, González Morales received information on violent pushback of migrants by Croatian police to Bosnia and Herzegovina. He has exchanged views with relevant Croatian authorities on this issue on several occasions. Already during his official visit to Serbia and Kosovo* in 2017, Melzer had received similar information from migrants reporting violent ill-treatment during pushback operations by the Croatian police.

      * All references to Kosovo should be understood to be in compliance with Security Council resolution 1244 (1999).

      https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=25976&LangID=E

      #OHCHR

    • Dva policajca u pritvoru u Karlovcu zbog ozljeđivanja migranta - protiv njih pokrenut i disciplinski postupak

      Zbog sumnje u počinjenje kaznenih djela obojica su, uz kaznenu prijavu, dovedeni pritvorskom nadzorniku Policijske uprave karlovačke. Također, obojica su udaljeni iz službe, odgovoreno je na upit KAportala

      Dva policajca PU karlovačke nalaze se u pritvoru i to zbog sumnje u ozljeđivanje ilegalnog migranta, stranog državljanina.

      Na naš upit iz policije su nam rekli da je u četvrtak, 11. lipnja, u večernjim satima, tijekom utvrđivanja okolnosti nezakonitog ulaska u Republiku Hrvatsku, u policijsku postaju Slunj doveden strani državljanin na kojem su policijski službenici uočili da je ozlijeđen.

      https://kaportal.net.hr/aktualno/vijesti/crna-kronika/3836334/dva-policajca-u-karlovackom-pritvoru-zbog-ozljedjivanja-migranta-protiv

      Commentaire reçu via la mailing-list Inicijativa Dobrodosli, mail du 23.06.2020

      two police officers were arrested this week for injuring migrants. This is a big step for the Ministry of the Interior, but small for all cases that have not yet been investigated. However, it is important to emphasize that the violence we are witnessing is not the result of isolated incidents, but of systemic violence for which those who issue and those who carry out these illegal orders should be prosecuted.

  • Global protests throw spotlight on alleged police abuses in West Papua | Global development | The Guardian
    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jun/11/global-protests-throw-spotlight-on-alleged-police-abuses-in-west-papua
    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/a2757620a8f0a9e8130bfe3817d83aacbde218a5/0_294_4847_2908/master/4847.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-ali

    The #PapuanLivesMatter protests also inspired a team to create an interactive graphic, We Need To Talk About Papua, for progressive teenage art magazine, Kudeta. The graphic, which has been widely shared on social media, including by the singer Isyana Sarasvati, who has 7 million Instagram followers, contains a history of Indonesia’s colonialism in West Papua, links to petitions against police violence and a list of the names of the Papuans allegedly killed by Indonesian security forces.

    “The discussion about Black Lives Matter must also be followed by an awareness that racism still occurs in our country,” says writer Bageur Al Ikhsan, part of the creative team.

    West Papua is a former Dutch colony that was absorbed into Indonesia in 1969 following a controversial referendum. An existing movement agitating for independence from Dutch rule has refocused its energies on the Jakarta government, which maintains tight control over the region.

    At the far east of Indonesia, West Papua remains physically and ideologically separate from the rest of the country. Indigenous Papuans make up about half of the population. Locals claim racism is rife among the police and the military, and there have been allegations of human rights abuses and exploitation against the local population. In August 2019, protests erupted in the region over alleged police abuse against ethnic Papuan students. It was the biggest protest since 1998.

    #Papouasie #Indonésie #PapuanLivesMatter

  • Greece ready to welcome tourists as refugees stay locked down in Lesbos

    In #Moria, Europe’s largest migrant camp, tensions are rising as life is more restricted and the threat of Covid-19 is ever present
    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/45abcc985d2ef6e0a80dc3dde342a2ba20a63e0b/0_478_5018_3011/master/5018.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=6ee1833e39d3b998

    Children fly kites between tents in the shadow of barbed wire fences as life continues in Europe’s largest refugee camp. There are 17,421 people living here in a space designed for just under 3,000. Residents carrying liquid soap and water barrels encourage everyone to wash their hands as they pass by, refugees and aid workers alike. While Moria remains untouched by the pandemic, the spectre of coronavirus still looms heavy.

    Greece is poised to open up to tourism in the coming months and bars and restaurants are reopening this week. Movement restrictions were lifted for the general population on 4 May but have been extended for refugees living in all the island camps and a number of mainland camps until 7 June.

    According to the migration ministry, this is part of the country’s Covid-19 precautions. Greece has had remarkable success in keeping transmission and death rates from coronavirus low.

    Calls for the mass evacuation of Moria, on the island of Lesbos, by aid workers and academics, have so far gone unheeded.

    The news of the extended lockdown has been met with dismay by some in the camp. “Why do they keep extending it just for refugees?” one resident says. Hadi, 17, an artist from Afghanistan, is distributing flyers, which underline the importance of hand washing. He gingerly taps on the outside of a tent or makeshift hut to hand over the flyer. “People were dancing at the prospect of being able to leave, now they have another two weeks of lockdown,” he says.

    Before the coronavirus restrictions, residents were able to leave Moria freely; now police cars monitor both exits to ensure that only those with a permit can get out. About 70 of these are handed out each day on top of those for medical appointments.

    Halime, 25, gave birth just over two weeks ago in the Mytilene hospital on Lesbos. She cradles her newborn daughter in the small hut she shares with her husband and two other young children. May is proving one of the hottest on record in Greece and her hut is sweltering. “We always wash our hands of course,” she says. “Corona isn’t our biggest concern here at the moment, how do we raise our children in a place like this? It’s so hot, and there are so many fights.”

    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/3723516010c58be9fe3ac7b75ffab8e8faddd9fe/0_0_5376_3840/master/5376.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=aafd0a84465653cb

    Halime left home in Baghlan, Afghanistan, with two children after her husband, a farmer, was asked to join the Taliban and refused. They have been living in the camp for five months, two of which have been under the coronavirus lockdown. “We came here and it was even worse in many ways. Then the coronavirus hit and then we were quarantined and everything shut down.”

    Social distancing is an impossibility in Moria. Queueing for food takes hours. Access to water and sanitation is also limited and in some remoter parts of the camp currently there are 210 people per toilet and 630 per shower.

    Khadija, 38, an Afghan tailor, produces a bag from the tent she shares with her son and daughter in the overspill site. “When people came around telling us to wash our hands, we asked, how can we do it without soap and water?” she says. She has now been given multiple soaps by various NGOs as her large bag testifies. Kahdija and her family wash using water bottles and towels, creating a makeshift shower outside their tent, instead of waiting for the camp facilities.

    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/26a19baeeded572d1590b5acec0751e4118d0de6/0_0_5002_3573/master/5002.jpg?width=605&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=7ad6ca2d53966606

    At the bottom of the camp Ali Mustafa, 19, is manning a hand-washing station. “It’s really important,” says Mustafa. “There are a lot of people crowded in Moria and if one person got coronavirus it could be very dangerous.” Mustafa, from Afghanistan, hopes one day to be able to live somewhere like Switzerland where he can continue his studies. He is looking forward to the lockdown being lifted so he can go back to his football practice.

    Five boats have arrived on Lesbos in the past three weeks: 157 of the arrivals have been quarantined in the north of the island. Four have since tested positive for the virus and have been isolated according to a UNHCR spokesperson, who said they had installed four water tanks in the quarantine camp and are providing food and essential items. “We have generally observed substandard reception conditions across the islands for new arrivals since the start of March,” he adds.

    The threat of coronavirus has increased anxiety and led to mounting tensions in the camp. There have been two serious fights in the past few days. One 23-year-old woman has died and a 21-year-old man is in a critical condition.

    Omid, 30, a pharmacist from Kabul, leads one of the self-organised teams raising Covid-19 awareness in Moria. He said that the lockdown had been necessary as a preventive measure but was challenging for residents. “There is only one supermarket inside the camp and it’s overcrowded and not enough for people. It also makes people’s anxiety worse to be all the time inside the camp and not able to leave.”

    Stephan Oberreit, the head of mission for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in Greece, said they were working on the preparation of an inpatient medical unit, which would be able to admit suspected Covid-19 patients and those with mild symptoms. MSF is already running multiple health services, including a paediatric clinic, in Moria camp.
    ’Moria is a hell’: new arrivals describe life in a Greek refugee camp
    Read more

    Greek asylum services reopened last week after being closed for two months, and 1,400 people have subsequently received negative responses to their asylum claims. People with negative decisions have to file an appeal within 10 days or face deportation but there are not enough permits for everyone to leave Moria within the designated time period to seek legal advice.

    Lorraine Leete from Legal Centre Lesvos says that 14 people who came to its offices on 18 May hoping to get legal advice for their rejections were fined by police for being out of the camp without a permit. “All of them had negative decisions issued over the last months and have limited time to find legal aid – which is also inadequate on the island,” she says. “The police have visited our office every day since the asylum office opened, and on Monday they gave out 14 €150 fines, which we have contested.

    “These are people who are stuck in Moria camp for months, who have the right to legal aid, and who obviously don’t have any source of income.”

    Leete added that she considered that the movement restrictions were still in place for refugees in Moria in the absence of robust efforts to protect and evacuate the most vulnerable in the camp and were unjustifiable. “While people continue to be detained inside refugee camps in horrible conditions where there’s limited measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19, restaurants and bars will be opened this week across Greece. This discriminatory treatment is fulfilling the goal of local rightwing groups of keeping migrants out of public spaces away from public view, abandoned by the state,” she says.

    As Greece starts to see some signs of normality returning, each week brings fresh turmoil to the thousands of residents of Moria, who are still living under lockdown in a space not much bigger than one square mile.

    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/may/27/greece-ready-to-welcome-tourists-as-refugees-stay-locked-down-in-lesbos

    #coronavirus #covid-19 #confinement #Moria #Lesbos #Grèce #tourisme #camps_de_réfugiés #réfugiés #asile #migrations

    –—

    Ajouté à la métaliste tourisme et migrations :
    https://seenthis.net/messages/770799

    Et ajouté à ce fil de discussion :
    Grèce : nouvelle extension du confinement dans les #camps de demandeurs d’asile
    https://seenthis.net/messages/860092

    ping @isskein @luciebacon

    • Greece extends lockdown in refugee camps amid tourist season

      Greek authorities have extended the lockdown in all refugee camps for two more weeks, until July 19, 2020. The joint ministerial decision on Saturday comes more than two months after lifting restrictions for the general population and just four days after the country opened wide its gates to international tourists.

      According to the announcement by the ministers of Citizen Protection, Health and Migration the lockdown extension aims at preventing the spread of the coronavirus.

      Refugees and migrants in the camps have been locked down since March 23rd.

      Detention Migrants are allowed to leave the camps from 7:00 am to 9:00 pm only in groups of less than 10 and no more than 150 people per hour

      At the end of the day, it seems that the coronavirus is a pretext to authorities to implement a kind of ‘soft detention’ or ‘closed camps’ as was the government plan in last winter but rebuked by the European Union and international organizations.

      It has been alleged that the lockdown has become an instrument to restrict the movement of refugees and migrants who normally exit the camps to purchase food and basic goods.

      According to an AFP report, Marco Sandrone, coordinator of the medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) at the Moria refugee camp on Lesvos, said before the announcement that the lockdowns had nothing to do with public health as there were no cases in the camps.

      Some NGOs and volunteers have argued that the lockdown extension is linked to Greece’s tourist season.

      “They try to make the refugees as invisible as possible, and think that then the tourists would love to come,” said Jenny Kalipozi, a Chios island local and volunteer who often brought aid to the Vial refugee camp.

      Greece has recorded 192 deaths across the country since the outbreak in late February and no death in the refugees and migrants camps.

      It should be stressed that social distancing inside the camps is impossible.

      https://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2020/07/05/lockdown-mitrants-camps-greece

  • Facebook deactivates accounts of Tunisian political bloggers and activists
    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jun/04/facebook-deactivates-accounts-of-tunisian-political-bloggers-and-activi

    Several accounts reactivated after protests with social media giant blaming ‘technical error’ The Facebook accounts of several high-profile bloggers and activists in Tunisia were among those deactivated without warning over the weekend. Up to 60 accounts are understood to have been deactivated, including that of journalist and political commentator Haythem El Mekki. At least 14 accounts have since been restored, but no explanation has been given for the action by the social media giant. (...)

    #Facebook #activisme #censure #SocialNetwork

    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/40a5c5ab69701a857d3d9e88eb7f7d41eb345b30/0_352_5282_3169/master/5282.jpg

  • Lockdown in Dhaka: where social distancing is an illusion | Global development | The Guardian
    https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jun/01/lockdown-in-dhaka-where-social-distancing-is-an-illusion
    https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/62f7230f1f9b03ffa8651df5504f4cac31f3150d/30_370_4939_2963/master/4939.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-ali

    Even the rickshaw drivers vacated the streets. But after a week they had to return to work. They have been busy, replacing cars and buses to transport people around their neighbourhoods. Day labourers remain outside, looking for work so they can feed their families. Many of them came to Dhaka from the countryside and have to send money to their villages. They cannot afford to stay at home during this lockdown.

    #Covid-19#migrant#migration#déplacements#migrants-internes#Dhaka#Bangladesh#virus#distanciation-sociale#santé#vulnérabilité#survie