#bosnie-herzégovine

Bosnian minister proposes deportation and incarceration of migrants

As the #COVID-19 outbreak continues, the security minister of Bosnia-Herzegovina suggested that migrants should be deported from the country. He alleged that refugees and migrants posed an economic burden amid the pandemic — as well as a security threat. The mood against migrants in Bosnia is beginning to turn sour.

Bosnian security minister Fahrudin Radoncic on Thursday said he would submit a proposal based on his comments to parliament — without specifying a date when the proposed legislation would be ready for a parliamentary debate.

He added that migrants who could not prove their identity by providing passports or other forms of identification would be imprisoned under his plan rather than accommodated in migrant camps.
“(Migrants) who do not want to show their identity cards will not be allowed any more to use our migrant and refugee camps,” Radoncic said. “They will go straight to jail. And we will keep them there for one to five years until we can establish their identity. This is our proposal for a new law.”

“We want to (ease) the burden of taking care of 8,000 to 9,000 people here. We just can’t handle that, especially now, with the virus situation. We also want to psychologically discourage new migrants from coming here after the pandemic ends and borders open again."

Bosnian authorities have tried other extreme measures before to dissuade migrants from coming and staying in their country, such as threatening to send in the military to fortify borders and turning off water supply to makeshift camps sites.

Growing crisis situation

The comments came after hundreds of migrants stuck near the town of Bihac by the country’s border with EU-member state Croatia were transferred to a nearby IOM emergency tent camp, set up amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Migrants and refugees have been camping out at the Vucjak camp site by Bihac for years in the hope of crossing the border of Bosnia-Herzegovina into Croatia and thus reaching EU territory. However, Croatia has put strict border controls and fortifications in place, with mounting reports of violent pushbacks into Bosnian territory leaving would-be asylum seekers in the EU stuck in perpetual limbo in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

https://scd.infomigrants.net/media/resize/my_image_big/3e0645125b97ee5a54bb7db73de8a26f267adb1f.jpeg

But with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the site hosting up to 1,500 migrants has once more become a major issue of concern for the government with poor sanitary conditions at the camp and other such sites across the country could provide a perfect breeding ground for diseases and cost millions of euros to the Bosnian taxpayer amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.

More than 6,000 migrants are reported to be living at IOM-run camps across Bosnia-Herzegovina.

▻https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/24333/bosnian-minister-proposes-deportation-and-incarceration-of-migrants
#renvois #expulsions #asile #migrations #réfugiés #Bosnie #rétention #détention #enfermement #coronavirus

ping @luciebacon

[original n BCS - traduit en anglais sur Googletranslate]

Radoncic: We plan to deport migrants, BiH is not a parking lot for Europe

"My position is precise, yesterday I directed the director of the Foreign Affairs Office, Slobodan Ujic, to request that 9-10 thousand illegal economic migrants be enlisted to see how to deport them from BiH. Let’s see who agrees to voluntary deportation and what to do. with thousands of those who don’t want to show a passport to see who they are. It’s a huge security problem, it’s ruining the lives of our citizens, "Radoncic said.

He stressed that he would not now deal with refugees from Syria because this is another problem that needs to be addressed. He also claims that being aware of the deportation decision will not appeal to some EU countries, but that does not mean that BiH is inhumane.

"All these migrants come from countries that are richer than BiH and must be deported. Let us instead of keeping the money here, the EU give the money to deport them. who are waiting for BiH to be a parking lot for Europe will not be able to, "Radoncic said.

He also stated that the BiH Ministry of Security believes that every cantonal government should take care of migrants, and that the Una-Sana Canton will not provide any assistance for the accommodation of migrants at Camp Lipa, as the ministry plans for them to leave BiH.

▻https://www.klix.ba/vijesti/bih/radoncic-migrante-planiramo-deportovati-bih-nije-parking-za-evropu/200422200

#Covid-19 #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Expulsion #Retourvolontaire

[seulement en BCS]

Appeal to the Council of Ministers of BiH for the Decision on Restriction of Movement and Stay of Foreigners in Bosnia and Herzegovina dated 16.04.2020

▻http://vasaprava.org/?p=3124

#Covid-19 #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine

AYS Daily Digest 21/04/20

GREECE
ECtHR requests that Greece provide appropriate accommodation and medical treatment to refugees contained in Lesvos hotspot

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic highlights yet again the extreme risks facing refugees contained under squalid conditions on the Eastern Aegean islands. The Reception and Identification Centres (RIC) on Lesvos, Chios, Samos, Leros and Kos host over 35,000 persons, more than five times above their reception capacity. Severe overcrowding under abhorrent living conditions in the RIC is a persisting reality, in sharp contrast to social distancing measures enforced throughout Greece and to recent European Commission guidance to transfer asylum seekers to facilities with lower occupancy.
This backdrop renders evacuation out of Moria and other sites a public health imperative to prevent loss of life. Beyond unaccompanied children, whose plight has led to welcome relocation initiatives to other EU countries, many more people face acute health risks, not least due to particular circumstances including age, medical conditions and trauma.

150people tested positive for the coronavirus at a quarantined seaside hotel housing 470 people, including many children, but none of those infected displayed symptoms of COVID-19, media report.
Located 170 kilometres southwest of Athens, this hotel has been quarantined since April 16 after an employee tested positive.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
L’ ALTRA VOCE published a letter co-signed by 70 people staying at one of the official camps in Una Sana canton, run by IOM. From the Miral camp in Velika Kladuša, they wrote that there is not a sufficient amount of food for everyone, and people are not allowed to buy and bring inside their own food to eat at their chosing, thus selectively applying their own standards.

According to the people whose photos and statements made it to the Letter, there is always someone going to sleep hungry. Also, there are frequent references to violent measures and unprofessionally harsh treatment by the outsourced security companies working in camps. Among others, the letter states:
“If we ask for the market they always say IOM will open market for you inside the camp and provide you a western union inside the camp but until this opportunity, you cannot buy anything from the market.
We are all worried because very soon our Ramzan month is coming how we will survive during the Ramzan because they don’t have any good management or their staff is also acting like racist people we are afraid might be they will also beat us in future.”

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Camp #Lesvos #Chios #Samos #Leros #Kos #Hotspot #Athènes #Hotel #Quarantaine #Bosnie-Herzégovine

▻https://medium.com/are-you-syrious/ays-daily-digest-21-04-20-transparency-ignored-when-it-serves-ulterior-motiv

AYS Weekend Digest 18–19/4/20

FEATURED
During this weekend a tragic incident happened at the Vial camp on Chios.
Please, read about it in our latest AYS Special, based on the statements and accounts by people on the ground at the time and residents of the camp.
AYS Special from Chios: Fire swallows up makeshift homes of thousands
The results of last night’s huge fires and damages in Vial camp are laid bare this morning. The protests happened after…
medium.com
There were big fires in a number of different areas. One was near the front of the camp where the shop, the police kiosk and at least two police cars were burned down. In the middle of the official camp the information & food distribution point were set ablaze, as well as the food stores. At the back of the camp, perhaps the most devastating fire occurred. At least three of the larger ‘Rubb Hall’ enclosures, which can accommodate well over 40 people, were burned down. People’s homes have been completely destroyed, almost all of their personal belongings aside from what they could salvage are gone.
Three asylum seekers were arrested under a suspicion they are responsible for the violent incidents that broke out on Saturday following the start of the fire. Reportedly, the police said that a large number of people are detained.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
There are many people still scattered across the country’s towns and villages, without a proper reception facility, those who are outside the system due to the system’s capacities find their own way of going through every day. They sleep in abandoned houses, outside in the open, in train wagons, whatever is at hand in these difficult days when everyone sees another person as a possible life threat. The current situation in many places still seeks a proper, humane and realistic (in terms of capacities and conditions) coordinated approach in order to be sure it is assessed and approached in the best way. It is not about the international standards, at this point, it is still about people needing food, and their basic rights met and their dignity respected.
The first people were planned to be taken to the provisional tent settlement near Bihać, Lipa, built with the support and management of the international organisations, a project we wrote previously about and we will report about the plan being put into practice.
Although many see it as a step forward, we like to always remind that “international standards” stand for a MINIMUM level of standards when it comes to international aid and protection and it should serve as a warning of a line never to be reached, or even crossed, and not as a goal, as it seems to be interpreted more and more by those deciding and putting things into place.

▻https://medium.com/are-you-syrious/ays-weekend-digest-18-19-4-20-vial-fire-latest-in-line-to-confirm-that-evacu

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Camp #Chios #Vial #Incendie #Révolte #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Squat #Lipa #Bihac

AYS Daily Digest 17/04/20

GREECE
An article has been published in the German newspaper DER SPIEGEL that gives insight into the Greek government’s plans to handle an outbreak of COVID-19 in the camps on the mainland and the islands. The plan is called Agnodike and comprises three levels:
1. Preventive measures: Lockdown and partial curfew, controlled by police. A special area will be assigned in which new arrivals can be tested and cases of infection can be isolated.
2. First cases inside the camp: complete curfew. NGOs are only allowed in with special permission. Health stations will be erected with space for 30 people.
3. The virus spreads, evacuation: complete separation of healthy and infected people. The smaller of the two groups will be evacuated and accommodated in hotels, ships or gyms.

A total of 2,300 most vulnerable people will be transferred from the islands to the mainland. These people are above 60 years of age or have chronic diseases. They will be transferred together with their families. The transfers are supposed to take place after the Orthodox Easter celebrations on April 19th. The people will be housed in camps, apartments, and hotels.

The Moria Corona Awarness Team and the Moria White Helmets, two volunteer refugee groups, wrote a dramatic appeal to the European Union.
“While Corona spread in Greece and here in Lesvos, we expected the worst, because this virus in the camp would be like a death sentence for old, sick and other vulnerable individuals”

Three groups of people are still camping rough on the northern coast of Lesvos, without any substantial aid or support. They have been there for some 25 days now. The people told Mare Liberum: “different people tell us different things, and that changes day by day”. Apparently it is clear now that they will stay on the island and will eventually be able to apply for asylum. The local authorities are apparently fighting about who should take care of them. According to a new law, the communes in which the people are should take care of them, but they seem to be lacking the political will.

IOM is proud to present a video of the distribution of food baskets and hygiene kits in the Malakasa camp in central Greece. The camp is run by IOM and hosts 1,600 people, including 620 children. The camp has been under quarantine since April 5th. If people have been without hygiene kits since that time, there is nothing to be proud of. “Immediate response” to a contagious disease for people who are not allowed to leave a facility and take care for themselves should not take almost two weeks.

The journalist Mortaza Behboudi, who is an indispensable source on the ground who covers the living conditions in Moria for the French /German TV channel ARTE, has been attacked and exposed to threats of physical violence on Twitter by the Greek right wing politician Thanos Tzimeros. Reporters without borders is concerned about Mortaza’s security and calls on the politician to refrain from smearing journalists.

Movement on the Ground donated 8,000 pieces of essential soap to the Vathy camp management on Samos. About 6,900 people live in and around the camp. The soap was distributed to all of them during the week.

Recognized refugees in Greece face big challenges after their asylum process is completed. The UNHCR ESTIA program (Emergency Support to Integration and Accomodation) is not designed for recognized refugees. Since it is very difficult for them to find a job or receive state benefits, many of them become homeless. This is especially problematic for families, as homeless shelters do not accept them at all.

The US Ambassador to Greece Geoffrey Pyatt announced that US will support Greece with 500,000 $ to support COVID-19 response efforts for migrants and refugees.
This February 2020 Factsheet from UNHR gives a good overview on what UNHCR is doing in Greece.

About 50 minors who are being transferred to Germany from the Greek islands will arrive in Germany today, on April 18th. We falsely reported that they had already arrived yesterday.

CROATIA
Violent push-backs from Croatia to Bosnia continue in the time of the pandemic, as No Name Kitchen reports:
“Over the last several weeks, we have continued to receive reports and news updates of the violent push-back of people-on-the-move by Croatian authorities to the borderlands surrounding Velika Kladusa, Bosnia (the men in the pictures above experienced this brutality within the last week). These testimonies of violence include stories of individuals being beaten with batons, thrown into cold rivers, and having their clothing stolen.”

BH
The Red Cross in Bihac and the Civil Protection Headquarters of Bosnia’s Federation have set up a new camp, consisting of 50 tents with 200 beds in total. The camp is supposed to accommodate the people on the move who are currently in the northwestern Una-Sana Canton.
About 7,000 people are currently stranded in the Bihac region. About 3,300 are accommodated in closed camps, the rest live in abandoned buildings and shelters. During the corona pandemic resentment against the people is rising; at the same time their life is getting even harder, as they are not allowed to use public transport, cannot be seen in groups, some shops won’t let them in to buy groceries and the police gets more violent towards them every day.

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Croatie #Confinement #Isolation #Couvrefeu #Transfert #Grècecontinentale #Hotel #Bateau #Gymnase #Lesbos #Malakasa #Quarantaine #Allemagne #mineursnonaccompagnés #Enfants #Bihac #Unasanacanton

▻https://medium.com/are-you-syrious/ays-daily-digest-17-04-20-at-least-some-of-the-people-who-have-been-rescued-

AYS Daily Digest 16/04/20

Bosnia and Herzegovina
Exposing the harsh realities of the conditions that migrants and refugees are forced to endure, a video has been shared highlighting how 4 young boys are made to shelter in a shack next to an open rubbish dump.
The Council of Ministers have acted on a proposal from the Ministry of Security and have approved new measures to restrict the movement and stay of foreign nationals without valid identification documents, can demonstrate that they are legally staying in BiH or have applied for asylum.
These restrictions will prohibit the movement and stay outside the centres in which these foreign nationals are housed. Anyone found breaching these rules, in accordance with the Law on Aliens will be transferred to the nearest temporary reception centre. These restrictions are implemented on a provisional basis until the Council of Ministers decide that the reason for prescribing these measures has ceased.

Greece
Aegean Boat report claim that there have been no new arrivals on the Greek islands in the last week. If true, this will be the first time since 2015. Unfortunately, we know that this absence of new arrivals is not because safe and legal migrant routes have been opened but because the Greek coast guards have been ordered to prevent migrants from entering Greek waters using the pretext of COVID-19 to justify their actions.
Aegean Boat report has also shared a report into the experience of 131 people who have been abandoned at the point of arrival in Lesvos. These people have been living outside for 25 days without any support from the authorities and with minimal assistance from UNHCR.
Human Right Watch has urged the Greek government to release hundreds of unaccompanied children currently locked up in police cells.
HRW affirms that “kids should be in safe, child-friendly housing with the freedom to learn, play and thrive. Yet, hundreds of migrant children in Greece without a parent or relative are sitting behind bars in police jails and immigration detention. Their conditions create a heightened risk for contracting COVID-19”
The organisation believes that there are at least 331 children currently in police custody waiting for transfer to a shelter. In addition to the psychological stress and the increased risk of contracting COVID-19, HRW has documented instances of ill-treatment by the police that these children have had to ensure.

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lesbos #Camp #Postedepolice #Détention #Enfants #Mineursnonaccompagnés

▻https://medium.com/are-you-syrious/ays-daily-digest-16-04-20-testimonies-from-people-trapped-at-sea-e74f9f892a5

AYS Daily Digest 15/04/20

GREECE

Luxembourg welcomed 12 children from Greece camps on Wednesday.
Nine of the children were from Lesvos, two from Chios, and one from Samos who was transferred to the Grand Duchy. Fifty other children are expected to fly from Athens to Germany on Saturday the 18th, in an effort to move the 1,600 people EU countries have promised to relocate from Greece’s camps. France, Portugal, Finland, Lithuania, Croatia and Ireland have also said that they will participate.

As Sea-Watch reminds us, the number of children who have been evacuated so far still only represents about 0.1% of the people trapped on the Greek islands.

Almost 1000 vulnerable people will be transferred to hotels in Greece.
This is in an effort to ease the camps, Ylva Johansson, the EU commissioner for home affairs, announced on Tuesday. AYS will continue to follow closely.

Authorities in Greece are very worried that potentially 2,000 people are entering coastal Turkish towns and are going to try and cross over to the islands. During the quarantine, the Turkish government closed the camps along the northern Greek border and transferred a lot of people to coastal cities like Izmir. Many were transferred beyond their control. L

Katie Emm provides a comprehensive Lesvos update:
“GOOD NEWS!
1) People are generally respecting the movement restrictions…and some transfers have been made.
2) According to data released yesterday, there have been no new confirmed cases for two weeks on Lesvos. This is a major milestone, as it suggests that there are no new infections here and Lesvos has contained COVID-19. Of course, there are still possibilities of infection emerging, and we still have to remain vigilant, but it sure feels nice to have hit this point. According to public data, there have been eight cases, and one death. In Greece overall, there are approximately 100 deaths, and about 2200 cases (as of today). There have been no confirmed cases in Moria, Kara Tepe, or Pikpa.
3) No new fascist attacks — there have so far been no recent reports of attacks on NGO workers or refugees or locals.

HARD NEWS!
1) There are reports of Turkey planning to send refugees en masse to the Aegean Islands. This falls somewhere on the spectrum between propaganda and something legitimate. There’s no way to know what will happen, but it does raise some major questions, notably: Where will people go if they reach the shores, especially with a mandatory 14-day quarantine? Will there be a repeat of what happened the last time Turkey sent people en masse? Will rights be respected? Will lives be put in (further) danger?
2) Greece voted to extend the lock down. While originally things were going to open back up on 6 April (maybe), the government extended the restriction of movement until at least 27 April. (Perspective: that is less than two weeks away, and we’ve already successfully navigated this for three weeks).
3) Most NGOs remain working with a bare-bones team, as they are unable to get new volunteers to the island. (This is also likely a major reason why Lesvos has been able to keep numbers of infections down though, so while difficult, there is definitely an upside to this!)”

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

In an update from No Name Kitchen on their current food services in Velika Kladuša:
“No Name Kitchen continues to be present daily in Velika Kladuša. Our main objectives are to give people food and clean clothes….In order to meet the needs of many people with the few available hands, we have been working on a new plan that is already paying off.
We started last week, associating NNK to a bakery. Money is given to this bakery and people who live in the abandoned houses are given vouchers. Each of these squats has a representative and is also connected, thanks to social networks, to an international volunteer who has previously been in Velika Kladuša. Twelve volunteers are currently involved in this task, being the ones who send the vouchers to the squats. On those vouchers, there is a code that is also registered at the bakery so that the workers know how many breads and bureks they have to give. This also allows us to have a better view of the situation and the needs to be covered.
One day a week, the representative of each squat must go to the bakery to collect food for everyone. This project covers, from Monday to Saturday, 70 people with a large piece of bread and a burek (typical Bosnian food with meat or cheese). This project is more expensive than what we did before when we used to only give food for people to cook (something that also continues), but evaluating the options with the local volunteers, we found that this solution is the most convenient. We are working on getting more financial support so that each person can receive this meal twice a week.”

BALKANS
Transbalkan Solidarity Group provide this update on the Balkan route and need for solidarity:
“Tens of thousands of refugees and other migrants in the Balkans are only partially accommodated in official collective centers, while a large number of people fall outside the system, surviving through the help of the local population. With the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the already difficult situation is becoming detrimental and demands urgent action of local and international actors — and solidarity from all of us.
The state of emergency now in force in many countries of the region reinforces social inequalities…
We, therefore, call for an end to all official and unofficial discriminatory and dehumanizing practices, for the legalization of everyone’s existence, for the closure of all forms of detention and collective centers that restrict freedom of movement and fail to secure humane and hygienic conditions…
More, we demand of the member governments of the European Union, the states of the region, and all relevant institutions and international organizations…that all people be equally afforded critical information on pandemic and unrestricted access to the health care system, that refugees and migrants are treated without discrimination, and that concrete measures for their protection are made part of all measures for the protection of the population as a whole.”

▻https://medium.com/are-you-syrious/ays-daily-digest-15-04-20-controversy-when-italy-orders-people-rescued-at-se

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Camp #Velikakladusa #Chios #Samos #Lesbos #Transfert #Mineursnonaccompagnés #Enfant #Luxembourg #Hôtel

AYS Daily Digest 14/04/20

GREECE
#Kos
Two days ago, people finally received their cash card top up. Normally, they receive financial assistance at the beginning of the month, as do most people in Greece, but due to the Corona restrictions, it was late this month. A lot of people needed to go shopping as they were running out of food, but only 65 people are currently allowed to go out at one time. There are currently over a thousand people in the camp, which has become more crowded since they moved the people camping outside to within the walls of the hotspot. As a result the situation escalated and the police beat both the women and the men to separate the groups.

#Ritsona
With 14 more days of quarantine, the people in Ritsona have no way to protect themselves. Seven out of ninety have already tested positive in the community.

#Thessaloniki
Mobile Info Team has recorded information from 30 homeless people on the move in Thessaloniki who were fined by the police under the “movement restrictions.” One person has been fined as often as 5 times, another two people, 4 times each. These people have nowhere to live, nowhere to go and the government who refuses to assist them sends its law enforcement officers to fine them?

#Lesbos
Fascist violence has been escalating over the past few weeks and on April 8th they burned down the home of refugees living outside Moria. Mare Liberum spoke with two of the men who were living there.
The latest fire in #Moria caused a lot of devastating destruction.
Luckily, the White Helmets have begun cleaning up the area, trying to make conditions better and cleaner for residents.
Seawatch is working to send 1000 masks to Lesvos to try to curb the outbreak.
#Incendie #Xenophobie

#Chios
The Ministry of Immigration and Asylum signed a contract today to lease a property in the ALITHEIA complex, in #Lefkonia-Kontari area of ​​Chios, for the creation of a space for the stay of the newcomers.
The rent for a period of seven months amounts to 46,200 EURO, with the possibility of extending the lease, and the property will operate as a place of residence for newly arrived immigrants. This is supposedly all done in an effort to disperse the impact of the Corona pandemic. The impetus for the decision was stated as:
“For reasons of urgency and unpredictability that are not the fault of the Greek State, as well as for reasons of security, public order and public interest, with attention to the need to take the necessary measures to protect public health and society as a whole.”

#Samos
Some good news out of Samos today. A young Syrian boy’s family reunification case was accepted! Hassan* will be able to join his older brother in the UK. The pictures below were taken by Hassan himself and demonstrate the dire conditions in the camps.

#Transfert #Mineurs #Enfants
This afternoon 20 minors were taken from Moria Camp to the harbor of Piraeus (Athens). They should reach Germany by the 18th.

Human Rights Watch is calling for hundreds of migrant children who are in Greece without parents or relatives and in immigration detention to be moved to child friendly housing. HRW say they are currently at a heightened risk for contracting COVID-19.

Human rights violations including illegal pushbacks continue occurring at the Greece-Turkey border. Read MIT’s report co-authored with No Name Kitchen and Border Violence Monitoring Network for more information on the update situation.

BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA

The changing weather has just added to the number of difficulties people on the move face while stuck in Bosnia and Herzegovina. As there is no public transport at their disposal and no freedom of movement for them, getting from one place to another is extremely difficult. Most of the people are left out on their own (if they are not forced into provisional campsite like #Lipa near #Bihac), only some have managed to stay in private accommodation under different conditions and circumstances, while many are stuck in different hardships of the official camps run by international organisations, and German Civil Protection (Technisches Hilfswerk) in the case of recently infamous #Blazuj camp. Those who bother to go the extra step and show humane treatment to these people in transit through Bosnia and Herzegovina more than often see images of despair among these people who now also often carry the stigma of potential health risk in the context of coronavirus, although no infected people have been reported among all those people throughout the country.

▻https://medium.com/are-you-syrious/ays-14-04-2020-left-to-fend-for-themselves-europes-unspoken-migration-policy

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Camp

AYS Weekend Digest 11–12/04/20

GREECE

Coast guard ordered to prevent any crossing from Turkey
Following news from Turkey (see above), Greek media went into a frenzy on a possible second wave of what they like to call “the Turkish invasion”. According to these racist and colonial rhetorics, people on the move are nothing more than pawns used by Turkey to destroy Greek and European civilisation. The Greek coastguard has received orders to stay alert, “prevent any vessel carrying migrants from entering Greek territorial waters” and avoid any crossing from Turkey “on grounds of national security and public health”, Giorgos Christides reports.
Since early February, Greek media have embraced war-like rhetoric and fake news in their coverage of people on the move in the country. Not only have they been described as ‘biological weapons’ armed by Turkey, but the number of positive Covid-19 tests are constantly given in separate figures for “citizens” and “non-citizens”. A racist attitude that is expanding to other groups:

Criminal complaint filed against Greek coast guard for push-backs from Samos coast

Greece: CHIOS
No running water in Vial camp, Chios
From Jenny Zinovia Kali, in the Solidarity in Chios group:
Μessages keep coming from the residents of Vial about the unacceptable conditions they are experiencing in the camp despite the pandemic.
As of yesterday, VIAL does not have running water. People can neither shower nor wash their hands. The mothers have no water to clean the little ones.
Even worse, the administration has also banned the distribution of basic necessities to voluntary groups outside Vial, but no distributions have taken place since the pandemic started from Vial’s first reception. So the residents do not have any sanitary ware, diapers, sanitary napkins, etc.
How do you ask 6000 people — roughly — to follow the protection measures when they don’t provide them with the basics ??????

Greece: LESVOS
Hunger strike in Moria’s PRO.KE.KA carries on
As reported by Deportation Monitoring Aegean, the prisoners detained in Moria pre-removal detention centre (PRO.KE.K.A) in Lesvos have been on hunger strike since 5th April 2020. The PRO.KE.K.A hunger strikers demand their immediate release to avoid the disastrous consequences of a virus outbreak in the prison.

As we previously reported, this week one boy was killed in Moria camp. Violence and fights erupted in the following hours. Nonetheless, the self-organised Moria White Helmets and the Moria Corona Awareness team are continuing to do what they can to improve the conditions in the camp. People are reportedly scared to line in queues for food and water and on Friday they held a large peaceful protest demanding safety, protection and the evacuation of everybody.

While UNHCR is reportedly looking for hotels and ships on the eastern Greek islands to house vulnerable people from RICs, it is also reported that West Lesvos Municipality “grudgingly” accepted to restore and reopen the “old” Stage-2 transit camp in Skala Sykamnias as a quarantine facility to house new arrivals. This was used until the beginning of the year, but it was closed following a decision of the same municipality. It was later attacked by arsonists in March.

GREECE: Samos
Med’EqualiTeam is looking for doctors and nurses on Samos
We need your help!
Med’EqualiTeam is the only medical NGO on the Greek island of Samos offering primary healthcare to the 7000+ refugee population. Focusing on triage, treatment and wound care, the team sees currently up to 100 patients per day.
The team are urgently looking for doctors and nurses who can stay 1 month or more.
(All new team members must self-isolate for 2 weeks upon arrival to ensure safety of patients.)
Please apply on ▻https://www.medequali.team/de/volunteer/application

GREECE: Athens
More reports of racial profiling and police violence during so-called Covid-19 checks
One young man was stopped, beaten, humiliated and had his papers destroyed in Athens. Read the full report (in Greek and English) HERE

SERBIA
People are once again being placed in Miratovac and Krnjača camps.

A local solidarity group reports that the situation in Serbia is increasingly tense. Corona virus has allowed the Government to close the camps, turning them into jails. The army is stationed outside while inside there are the Comisariat, a department of the police. There are reports that a child was hit by one of the workers this week, which was followed by the presence of armed police using tear gas as we reported last week. Local activists are calling on people to spread the news of what is happening.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
Violence Continues in camps and at borders
Local groups report that workers from the private security agency that is involved in the camp Blažuj have physically attacked people staying at the camp. When they stood up against this violence, the police were brought in.
When people try to leave these conditions and cross over into Croatia, further violence awaits for them.

▻https://medium.com/are-you-syrious/ays-weekend-digest-11-12-04-2020-how-many-have-to-die-for-europe-sins-7157f1

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Xénophobie #Chios #Vial #Camp #Lesbos #Moria #Grèvedelafaim #Révolte #Violence #Quarantaine #Skalasykamnias #Samos #Athènes #Miratovac #Krnjaca #Serbie #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Blažuj

CDB

BOSNIE-HERZÉGOVINE : UN CAMP D’URGENCE OUVRE PRÈS DE LA FRONTIÈRE CROATE
20 avril - 15h :Selon l’Organisation internationale des migrations, le camp d’urgence de Lipa est prêt à ouvrir. Situé à une trentaine de kilomètre de Bihać, ce centre pourra héberger jusqu’à mille personnes dans de grandes tentes collectives. L’objectif : accueillir les migrants qui survivaient dans les squats ou les bois du canton d’Una Sana, à la frontière avec la Croatie.

Les fonds nécessaires à la construction de ce camp d’isolement ont été fournis par la ville de Bihać, l’Union européenne et l’Agence des États-Unis pour le développement international (USAID). L’objectif est d’y fournir un suivi médical aux migrants face à l’épidémie de coronavirus et de rassurer la population locale. Aucun cas de covid-19 n’a été enregistré pour le moment parmi les migrants examinés en Bosnie-Herzégovine.

►https://www.courrierdesbalkans.fr/Les-dernieres-infos-Refugies-Balkans-Bosnie-Herzegovine-un-nouvea

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lipa #Camp #Bihac #UnaSanaCanton

InfoPark
15 – 21 April 2020
Weekly Flashback

Serbia
➢ A heavy presence of police and military troops continued in and around centers in Serbia, failing to yield any improvement of the situation. Some of the recent repressive actions can only be described as an open intimidation of migrants without
any clear reason and against international humanitarian laws – using surveillance drones flying low above the tents or parading with heavy vehicles in camps both during the day and during the night.

➢ During his visit to Obrenovac RTC on April 16, Serbian Minister of Defense Aleksandar Vulin stated that migrants present a security and health risk to Serbian citizens, stressing that the camps will remain locked until the end of pandemic, guarded by the Serbian Army. Soon after, Obrenovac migrants demolished an internal CCTV system installed for camp’s surveillance, continuing tense relations
with the authorities.

➢ According to local media, another massive incident occurred on Easter Sunday in Adasevci Reception Center when approx. 50 migrants tried to leave (as an act of nonviolent protest). This protest also came as a result of dissatisfaction over being locked in overcrowded government run centers, inadequate services and in this case,
repeated complaints over poor food quality. The riot was halted when an officer of the Serbian Armed Forces fired warning bullets into the air. This is the second time that live bullets were used in Serbian camps against non-armed refugees and migrants in the state of emergency.

➢ In the 7th week of COVID-19 outbreak, the centers are not yet capable of fulfilling the universal recommendations on social distancing, quarantine requirements and
voluntary isolation.

➢ A boat with migrants capsized on the Serbia-Romania border last week, according to Romanian police. Allegedly, the boat carried 2 Serbian smugglers and 16 migrants of different origins (Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, Iraq, Palestine). Two persons drowned,
eight were reported missing and eight were rescued. Official report on the incident has yet to be issued, however it has been shown once again how illegal movement through Serbia is still very strong despite the lockdown.

➢ Deutsche Welle (DW) in Serbia reported on a mysterious international agreement between Austria and Serbia, which allegedly gives an option to Austria to return rejected asylum seekers on behalf they have previously passed through Serbia and their deportation to countries of origin is not possible. The Austrian Ministry of Interior confirmed that there is such a “working agreement” However, details have
been marked as secret and it is unclear whether or not the agreement has been implemented so far. Info Park expects this information to cause additional stir on Serbian political scene, since several right wing, anti migrant parties were accusing the government of “a secret agreement” between Austria and Serbia that has now
been formally confirmed. The right-wing groups accused Serbian authorities of secretly implementing the agreement in the first days of camps lockdown, bringing busloads of migrants from Austria to RTCs overnight. No reaction from the Serbian officials was noted so far.

➢ Serbia faced the longest general lockdown of 84 hours during the weekend. Results of fight against COVID-19 on Monday, 20 April, in Serbia are: Confirmed cases - 6,630, Deaths - 125, total number of tested people: 41,812. None of the 8,900 refugees, asylum seekers or migrants in Serbia have tested positive for COVID-19.

Bosnia and Herzegovina
➢ Although displacement of asylum seekers and other migrants to the new camp Lipa near Bihac, Bosnia and Herzegovina, was announced in March, it has not yet occurred. However, according to local B&H media, the first migrants should be accommodated this week, due to the coronavirus crisis. Fifty tents in total were erected on this site, which should accommodate 1,000 migrants.

Greece
➢ Following the closure of the migrant camps due to coronavirus pandemic, the restrictions on the movement of refugees and migrants thought Greece have been extended until 10 May. Meanwhile, a fire destroyed parts of one of Greece’s largest migrant camps on the Aegean island of Chios. The fire tore through Vial camp
destroying some accommodation and administrative facilities leaving a few hundred homeless. Three migrants have been arrested, according to Infomigrants portal.

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Serbie #Grèce #Camp #Obrenovac #Adasevci #Roumanie #Lipa #Bihac #Chios #Vial #Révolte #Incendie #Accordderéadmission #Autriche

(Google Translation - original BCS] 

Stuck in BiH: Thousands of people without housing, food and medical assistance

Several thousand people are currently sleeping on the streets of Bihac, abandoned houses and former factories. There is no place for them at Camp Bira, and they survive with the help of locals and volunteers who organize themselves to provide them with food.

Several thousand people are currently sleeping on the streets of Bihac, abandoned houses and former factories. There is no place for them at Camp Bira, and they survive with the help of locals and volunteers who organize themselves to provide them with food.

One of the largest squats is located near Camp Bira. At the time the eTrafika team visited them, about 120 men were staying there. The spacious, abandoned two-story building is a temporary home for people from Pakistan, Agvanistan, Bangladesh… While some of them absorb sunlight in the open, others prepare lunch. We came without notice or acquaintance with any of them. We just showed up and asked if it was okay to have a little chat and record the atmosphere inside the building. Without thinking, they agreed and invited us to come in.

As they make their way around the chicken and rice courts, they tell us that volunteers occasionally visit them and bring them food. However, it is difficult to care for so many people and often not enough for everyone.

Here one knows who is doing what, while some are burning, others are chopping onions, cleaning potatoes, or kneading bread. They ask us if we like rice and then pour it into bowls and give it to us. None of them wants to stay here, but because of closed borders, they are currently “stuck” in BiH.

We also attended a farewell from a group of guys who went into the games (illegal border crossing). With large backpacks full of clothing and food for a ten-day walk, they searched for their friends in a crowd, then hugged them for a long time in greeting. This may be the last time they are seen live.

Across the city, people are moving around abandoned homes, about a dozen in each. They buy food at a nearby market or bring it to volunteers. All have repeatedly tried to cross the Croatian border and most have similar experiences.

“Croatian police take away all our belongings - phones, external batteries, sleeping bags, backpacks with food… They even force us to take off our shoes and jackets and then bring us back to BiH. Sometimes they beat us, sometimes they don’t. They didn’t touch me last time, "a young man from Pakistan tells us.

While they have no problems with the locals and the police, conflicts arise between them.

“Recently, a group of almost 20 Afghans came in for us overnight. They all had knives. They robbed us, but they did not hurt us. They took almost all the phones, we managed to hide two, ”he says.

Thirty kilometers further, in the settlement Tržac on the border with Croatia, the situation is almost identical, the difference is only in the number of people. In one of the abandoned houses we found a group of eight Pakistanis. Most of them want to go to Italy, while one young man is planning to reach Spain.

A young man from Pakistan
"I have been in BiH for two years, I tried to cross the border 30 times. I was caught once by the Slovenian police and 29 times by the Croatian police. They beat me up and took all the things I had. They even made me take off my shoes and then they lit it all up. Pakistan is a good country, but there is no business there, so I want to get to Spain. Some people are good here and some are not. The police are fine, they don’t touch us. The locals are really good, they give us flour, oil and milk, ”he tells us.

The locals we spoke with did not want to be filmed, but emphasized that they never had any problems with the people on the move.

“They take the water, charge the phones a little and that’s it,” an elderly woman we met near the house where people on the move are staying tells us.

Her neighbor points out that she has never had an awkward situation with them.

“Sometimes they come in front of the house, but they do not enter the yard. There was never a problem with them, they did not attack us. They look for abandoned houses where they can sleep, ”he explains.

So does her neighbor Suleiman.

"When they see which house is empty, that’s where they are. When we meet on the street there are no problems. I was a refugee and I understand them all, ”he emphasizes as he tidies up the yard.

In Sturlic, about 40 kilometers from Bihac, we met a young man from Libya named Ejub (35). As he tells us, he left home two years ago because of the war and reached BiH via Turkey, Greece, Macedonia and Serbia. It combined hiking and bus rides. Here he sleeps under the open sky.

"Our country is destroyed by war, you have no chance of a stable life and we are forced to look for it somewhere else. I’ve been in BiH for about two months. First I was in Sarajevo, so we came to Kladusa and then to Bihac. The campsites are full, there is no place for us. There are already more people there than beds. We sleep outside, we have no shelter, not even a tent. There are five of us traveling together. Our plan is to try to cross the border again. I want to get to Belgium, I have a family there. I have completed master studies in information technology. I hope to find a job in Belgium and make my living, ”he says.

Young men from Libya
So far, he has tried twice to cross the border, but has been caught and taken back by police and seized items he had with him. He has a very good opinion of the locals.

"Bosnians are good people, so far I have not met badly or had a problem with anyone. When you respect them, they respect you too. And the police are fine. When you register and give them your fingerprints for identification, they will not touch you. However, some refugees pose problems, ”he stresses.

During this time, marketers in Bihać make it clear that people on the move are not welcome at their facilities.

In order to remove people from the street and from abandoned buildings, a tent camp for 1,000 people was set up in the village of Lipa 20 kilometers from Bihac. The financiers are the City of Bihac, the European Union and USAID, who point out that everything is done according to international standards. On the other hand, volunteers warn that a new Wolf is preparing, an unconditional camp in which people will be separated from civilization. According to officials, the move of people on the move to Camp Lipa is planned for tomorrow.

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Transfert #Camp #Lipa #Bihac #Tržac #Bira #Refoulement #Push-Back #Croatie

[Google Translation - original, BCS] 

Today the reception of the first migrants to the new Lipa camp
04/20/2020
Although Bihac City Council accepted Lipa as a new location to house migrants in November last year, authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina gave their consent only after the declaration of a coronavirus pandemic in BiH, to move several thousand migrants from the streets of Krajina cities.

Although the first displacement of migrants was announced in March, it has not yet occurred. According to official announcements, the first migrants are expected to enter the new Lipa camp today, so intensive training is being done to train the camp. 50 tents were erected on this site, which should house 1000 migrants.

ŠUHRET FAZLIĆ, Mayor of Bihać

“A project is underway that is certainly the largest construction undertaking in the Balkans. Who hasn’t been up there can’t know what’s going on. Up there is a million investments. 15 days ago, there was only a meadow upstairs; now, up to 1000 migrants are being accommodated, ”said Fazlic.

Since the authorities do not want the image of Vucjak to be repeated, the opening of the Lipa camp is delayed. The issue of electricity, water and drainage has been resolved and green light from the health sector is still pending.

According to the Cantonal Institute of Public Health, they receive daily reports from the DRC and IOM on the health status of migrants in reception centers. Migrants will be triaged at the entrance to Lipa and quarantined.

Epidemiologist ZARINA MULABDIC, Director of the Public Health Institute

"We are pleased with those found above. It just needs to be done until the end, something about the infrastructure that needs to be supplemented. It will be a great solution, not like Vučjak, to which I have given a negative opinion as an epidemiologist, ”said Mulabdić.

Lipa is primarily intended for the reception of migrants who are on the streets of Bihać and do not have basic living conditions worthy of a human being.

MUSTAFA RUZNIC, USK Prime Minister

“The capacity for now is 1000 migrants. We will see how the situation develops. You saw, it’s a small town by all standards, ”Ruznic said.

Epidemiologist ZARINA MULABDIC, Director of the Institute of Public Health

Our goal is to put what we have on the street in Lipa so that we have control, Mulabdić added.

The Una-Sana Cantonal Ministry of Interior says they are ready to move migrants, both those from the streets of Bihac and those who have a temporary roof over their heads in abandoned buildings.

NERMIN KLJAJIC, USK Minister of the Interior

"In this way, we will respect the decision of the Council of Ministers on an absolute ban on movement. I believe that some 400 to 500 migrants can be moved up to that location this week, Kljajic explained.

The citizens of Bihac are in self-isolation while migrants are free to roam the city streets while waiting for their relocation. Without basic hygiene and health conditions, the threat of widespread coronavirus pandemics is open.

►https://bhrt.ba/1134278/danas-prijem-prvih-migranata-u-novi-kamp-lipa

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Transfert #Camp #Lipa #Bihac

Newly formed ’Lipe’ migrant camp will be operational soon (PHOTO)

Hundreds of migrants from across the northwestern Una-Sana Canton, the area affected the most by the migrant crisis in Bosnia, will be sent to the newly formed ‘Lipe’ migrant camp in the coming days.

The Civil Protection Headquarters of Bosnia’s Federation (FBiH) region and the Red Cross in Bihac have already set up 50 tents containing 200 beds.

“We will soon complete the transit centre for all the migrants who are currently moving freely across towns in the USK, especially Velika Kladusa and Bihac,” said USK Prime Minister, Mustafa Ruznic.

“We will, together with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), Bihac city authorities, the Red Cross, and the USK ministries of interior and health begin moving the migrants,” he said.

The project cost about two million Bosnian Marks.
▻http://ba.n1info.com/English/NEWS/a426355/Newly-formed-Lipe-migrant-camp-will-be-operational-soon-PHOTO.html

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Camp #Lipa #Unasanacanton #Velikakladusa #Bihac #

Migrantima zabranjeno slobodno kretanje, svi moraju u prihvatne centre

/ Migrants are forbidden to move freely; everyone must go to reception centers

[Google translation]

The Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, at the proposal of the Ministry of Security, adopted today a Decision on Restriction of Movement and Stay of Foreigners in Bosnia and Herzegovina in order to minimize the consequences and prevent the spread of coronaviruses.
In essence, the decision applies to migrants from African and Asian countries although it was not mentioned directly in the decision. The first paragraph of the decision describes exactly the situation in which most people who have illegally entered our country in recent months and even years find themselves.

"The decision restricts the movement and stay of aliens who are not valid
identification documents on the basis of which their security can be determined
real identity, who are illegally staying in BiH, who have indicated their intention to apply for asylum and have a valid certificate of intent or who have applied for asylum in BiH, "the Council of Ministers said.

Restrictions for these foreigners apply to the prohibition of movement and stay outside the centers in which they are housed.

Aliens Affairs Service in cooperation with authorized police officers
Entities and Cantonal Ministries of Internal Affairs and the Brcko District Police will bring foreigners in BiH with any of these statuses, who are outside the centers in accordance with the Law on Aliens, to the nearest temporary reception center, according to the place where the alien is located.

This Decision shall be applied on a provisional basis until the reasons for prescribing these measures have ceased to be decided by the Council of Ministers of BiH.

▻https://www.klix.ba/vijesti/bih/migrantima-zabranjeno-slobodno-kretanje-svi-moraju-u-prihvatne-centre/200416077

Vijeće ministara BiH, na prijedlog Ministarstva sigurnosti, donijelo je danas Odluku o ograničenju kretanja i boravka stranaca u Bosni i Hercegovini kako bi se minimizovale posljedice i spriječilo širenje koronavirusa.
U suštini, odluka se odnosi na migrante iz afričkih i azijskih zemalja iako to nije direktno spomenuto u odluci. Prvi pasus odluke opisuje upravo situaciju u kojima se nalazi većina osoba koje su u posljednjih nekoliko mjeseci pa čak i godina ilegalno ušle u našu zemlju.

“Odlukom se ograničavaju kretanje i boravak stranaca koji nemaju važeće
identifikacione dokumente na osnovu kojih se sa sigurnošću može utvrditi njihov
stvarni identitet, koji nezakonito borave u BiH, koji su iskazali namjeru za podnošenje zahtjeva za azil i posjeduju važeću potvrdu o iskazanoj namjeri ili koji su podnijeli zahtjev za azil u BiH”, kaže se iz Vijeća ministara.

Ograničenja za ove strance odnose se na zabranu kretanja i boravka izvan centara u koje su smješteni.

Služba za poslove sa strancima u saradnji sa ovlaštenim policijskim službenicima
entitetskih i kantonalnih ministarstava unutrašnjih poslova i Policije Brčko Distrikta će strance koji u BiH imaju neki od ovih statusa, a koji se nalaze izvan centara u skladu sa Zakonom o strancima, sprovesti u najbliži privremeni prihvatni centar, prema mjestu u kojem se stranac zatekne.

Ova odluka se privremeno primjenjuje do prestanka razloga za propisivanje ovih mjera, o čemu će Vijeće ministara BiH donijeti odluku

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Hérzégovine #Camps

AYS Daily Digest 13/04/20

GREECE
Coronavirus Hysteria Continues, So Does Inhumane Treatment

The Greek minister of immigration, Notis Mitarakis, formally denied a rumor that Turkey was planning to send groups of people on the move that were carriers of COVID-19 to Greece. The rumor, which has no basis in truth, was spread by several pro-government newspapers and even government officials, including Deputy Minister George Koumoutsakos. The rumor was clearly designed to justify illegal pushbacks and violent treatment of people on the move.
Instead of spreading lies, government officials should be more occupied with helping the vulnerable people they have abandoned to their fates. Over a hundred people who’ve arrived on Lesvos since the 14th of March have been kept in makeshift camps on the beach since then. They do not have adequate housing, any toilets, showers, or protective equipment. People who are already in Moria cannot withdraw cash with their government-issued money cards anymore, forcing them to shop in only two shops that accept these cards. Not only will this increase crowding, it hurts independent shops organized in the camp that can only accept cash.
The IOM did announce that over 2,000 vulnerable people, including everybody over the age of 65, will be transferred away from the hotspots and housed in hotel rooms. However, much more needs to be done for people still stuck in these unsanitary camps before it is too late.

Violence Along the Balkan Route
A group of people on the move in Velika Kladuša , Una Sana canton of Bosnia and Herzegovina, were the victims of brutal treatment.
Pictures of their injuries can be found here (warning: pictures are fairly graphic).

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Camp #Lesbos #Moria #Campementinformel #unasanacanton #bosnie-herzégovine #Velikakladusa #hotspot # Hotel #OIM

BALKAN REGION REPORT – MARCH 2020

▻https://www.borderviolence.eu/balkan-region-report-march-2020

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Turquie #Slovénie #Serbie #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Camp #Frontières

Migrants in Bosnia ‘More Vulnerable to Infection’ Despite Lockdown
Anja Vladisavljevic and Danijel Kovacevic
Banja Luka, Zagreb
BIRN
March 23, 202006:30

▻https://balkaninsight.com/2020/03/23/migrants-in-bosnia-more-vulnerable-to-infection-despite-lockdown

Many people in Bosnia and Herzegovina are self-isolating at home to protect themselves from the coronavirus, but migrants and refugees living in squatted buildings and tent camps are more vulnerable to infection because they can’t take the same precautions.
he streets of Banja Luka, the main city in Bosnia’s Serb-dominated Republika Srpska entity, are almost empty. Fear of contracting the coronavirus has caused most people to stay indoors.

But some people in the city cannot take such precautions because they have fled their homes, and those homes are several thousand kilometres away from Bosnia.

Not far from Banja Luka’s railway station, BIRN met Feroz, a migrant from Afghanistan, and his friend from Morocco.

“I spent almost all winter in a tent at the Tuzla train station [in eastern Bosnia]. I can’t do that anymore, I’m going to Bihac [near the Croatian border] and try to cross over to Croatia,” Feroz said.

Feroz has heard about the coronavirus, but said he is not afraid of it. He said he does not know that a state of emergency has been declared in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Republika Srpska had 29 confirmed cases of coronavirus infection by Thursday, and 23 of them are in Banja Luka.

The country has introduced emergency measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection. All restaurants and cafes are closed, and only grocery stores and pharmacies are still working.

People here are reminded daily to adhere to the recommended personal hygiene regime, to avoid public gatherings, and not to leave their homes without urgent need.

Feroz, who left his native Afghanistan three years ago, worries that this might complicate his journey to his preferred destination, Germany.

“There was a lot of sick in the tents in Tuzla, but I don’t think it’s a corona[virus],” he said.

Restrictions on movement imposed

Reception camp Bira near the town of Bihac. Photo: BIRN.

There are approximately 7,500 registered migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina. For at least 2,500 of them, there are no places in temporary reception centres set up by the authorities.

On Wednesday, the government of the Sarajevo Canton, which includes the Bosnian capital and various nearby towns and villages, imposed restrictions on the movement of migrants and ordered them into temporary reception centres.

“As the existing capacities in temporary reception centres will not be sufficient to accommodate all the migrants located in and moving around the Sarajevo Canton, the government will without delay send the authorities an initiative to establish an additional temporary reception centre (facility, tent settlement, etc) in the canton,” the Sarajevo Canton’s government said in a press release.

Una-Sana Canton, in the west of the country near the border with Croatia, has been hardest hit by the migrant crisis. On top of this, the first case of coronavirus infection in the area was confirmed on Tuesday.

As a result, the Una-Sana Canton’s crisis headquarters issued an order on Monday to completely restrict the movement of migrants outside the temporary reception centres in which they are housed.

Back in Banja Luka, Feroz and his Moroccan companion did not know that in Bihac, where they were planning to go, measures to prohibit the movement of migrants had come into force. They said they would worry about that when they arrive.

Migrants in squats unmonitored

Migrants and refugees in front of the reception camp Bira near the town of Bihac. Photo: BIRN.

There have so far been no indications of coronavirus symptoms at temporary reception centres for migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina, according to the International Organisation for Migration, IOM.

“Preventive measures are being implemented in reception centres in cooperation with the World Health Organisation, the Danish Refugee Council, DRC, and the Institute for Public Health of the Sarajevo Canton,” Edita Selimbegovic, a public information officer at the IOM, told BIRN.

Selimbegovic added that there are currently enough medical staff in the temporary reception centres.

But migrants who are living in squatted accommodation or on the streets rather than in temporary reception centres pose a different problem. A significant number of them are in Tuzla in eastern Bosnia, and in the west of the country in the Una-Sana Canton, close to Croatia.

“We lack the capacity to adequately accommodate all migrants who are outside the temporary reception centres and have control over them at the centres to avoid them being infected,” Selimbegovic said.

The contruction of tent camp on the “Lipa” site, between Bihac and Bosanski Petrovac, began on Saturday, and iz is expected to accommodate migrants and refugees who are on the streets.

“We received the support of the Security Ministry, the Federal Government and immediately we started to set up a tent settlement. The primary goal of everything we do is the protect of epidemiological and health situation in the town, but also to find more humane accommodation for these people,” Bihac mayor Suhret Fazlic said on Saturday.

IPSIA, an Italian NGO that has been working in Bosnia and Herzegovina since 1997 and is now helping migrants and refugees, warned that migrants in squats and improvised camps could end up living in dangerous conditions.

“Migrants inside the camps do not understand what is going on, at the moment they are more confused than angry,” ISPIA told BIRN.

Migrants trying to get to EU countries also do not know that coronavirus-related restrictions on movement are in force there too, ISPIA added.

“Migrants are also not aware that even if they get to Slovenia or Italy they are not free to move inside these countries, we know that many are stuck in Trieste [in Italy] and at the moment in that city, the reception centres are full or in quarantine too,” it said.

Meanwhile Bosnia and Herzegovina’s border police are warning that the influx of migrants can be expected to increase soon.

“On the one hand, there is the warmer weather, and on the other, the fact that Turkey has opened its borders [for migrants to leave for the EU],” border police spokesperson Franka Vican told BIRN.

“We do not have enough police or the technical means to control the border itself. The border police are lacking 401 police officers to carry out regular activities. In the extraordinary circumstances as they are now, another 1,200 police officers are needed to effectively guard the Bosnian state border,” Vican added.

‘No one is safe until we are all protected’

Reception camp Bira near the town of Bihac. Photo: BIRN.

A group of activists involved in the Transbalkan Solidarity Group published an open letter on Wednesday with some 500 signatures, urging the European Union and countries in the region to take care of refugees and migrants who are “stuck in our countries”.

They warned that currently there are tens of thousands of refugees and migrants in the Balkans – some of them accommodated in official reception centres, but “a large number of people fall outside the system, surviving through the help of the local population and support provided to them by volunteers throughout the region”.

With the spread of the coronavirus, refugees and migrants’ situation “is becoming even more challenging and demands urgent action of those in charge – local and international actors – and solidarity from all of us”, they said.

“This is required of us out of elementary humanity as well as the basic logics of public health because no one is safe until we are all protected,” their letter concluded.

As for Feroz, the migrant from Afghanistan who is currently in Banja Luka, he insisted that will continue his journey to Germany if he can – whatever happens with the coronavirus.

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Squat #Republikasrpska #Banjaluka #Tuzla #Bihac #Croatie #sarajevocanton #unasanacanton #lipa

No Coronavirus Cases Found Yet Among Migrants, Refugees in Bosnia

▻https://balkaninsight.com/2020/04/06/no-coronavirus-cases-found-yet-among-migrants-refugees-in-bosnia

The IOM says it has not found any cases of COVID-19 among the thousands of migrants and refugees hosted in centres it manages in Bosnia – though several hundred recent arrivals have been placed in isolation as a precautionary measure.

The International Organization for Migration, IOM, which manages temporary reception centres, TRCs, for migrants and refugees in Bosnia and Herzegovina, told BIRN it had found no cases of coronavirus among the roughly 6,500 migrants held in them.

“So far, there have been no suspected cases with pronounced symptoms, and one person referred for testing … tested negative,” Edita Selimbegovic, an IOM information officer told BIRN.

Despite that, 715 migrants and refugees in centres located in the Una-Sana Canton, in western Bosnia, are being held in isolation in special rooms as a precautionary measure to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, Nermina Cemalovic, Health Minister for the canton, told the media on Thursday.

Selimbegovic said they were not thought to be ill; they were only being kept in isolation because they had arrived in the country recently.

“Just like any citizens or foreigners arriving in Bosnia from abroad, they are kept in isolation as a precautionary measure to prevent them from bringing COVID-19 to other beneficiaries of the centres,” Selimbegovic said.

Many are migrants and refugees returning from failed attempts to cross the Bosnia border into EU-member Croatia, who are then treated like new arrivals in Bosnia, and put for 14 days in a separate isolation area.

Minister Cemalovic said the situation was most critical in the Miral reception centre in the northwestern town of Velika Kladusa, near Croatia, which currently houses about 1,100 migrants and refugees – significantly higher than the projected capacity.

“A few days ago, about 200 migrants crossed the [camp] fence and simply entered the camp. They had been returned from Slovenia and were immediately put in isolation. We are following the situation and so far have recorded four mild cases of illness, two in Miral and two in Sedra [another TRC]. They have no temperatures, have a cough, and their condition is under control,” Cemalovic said.

All TRCs in Bosnia now have quarantine spaces where migrants and refugees who have COVID19-like symptoms can be placed. All the centres provide healthcare. The Danish Refugee Council, DRC, is in charge of medical co-ordination at the TRCs and works in conjunction with cantonal health teams.

However, many migrants and refugees in Bosnia are not staying in TRCs, so their health status is less clear. Bosnian police routinely find them on the streets and take them to the TRCs. Many are not even aware of the new measures introduced in Bosnia, such as bans on outdoor movement and the curfew.

Amid fears that their uncontrolled movement around the country could spread COVID-19, the authorities have introduced tighter controls in the reception centres, which migrants and refugees can no longer leave, or enter.

In the northwestern town of Bihac, this has created major difficulties for local authorities. Hundreds of them – for whom there is now no space in the TRCs – have been left to roam in ruins and parks.

A decision was made to establish a temporary tent settlement for them in controlled conditions in the village of Lipa, some 20 kilometres from Bihac, but this has not been completed yet.

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Camp #Isolation #UnaSanaCanton #Miral #VelikaKladusa #Sedra #Bihac #Lipa #Quarantaine #Encampement #Squat #Refoulements #Croatie #Slovénie

Greece confirms first coronavirus case in migrant camp

▻https://www.ft.com/content/cee3c95d-f2cd-4529-828f-637a1a9ab380

Greece has confirmed the first case of coronavirus in a migrant camp on the mainland, as public health workers warn of a humanitarian disaster if the highly contagious disease takes hold in the overcrowded settlements.

On Tuesday, an asylum seeker who had been living in a camp outside Athens tested positive for the virus after giving birth at a clinic, the first recorded case among an estimated 60,000 refugees and migrants living in camps on the eastern Aegean Islands and remote areas of mainland Greece.

It is not clear where the woman contracted the virus.

Migrants describe a climate of fear as they live packed together with little water, sanitation or information about the coronavirus crisis that is raging across Europe. 

“What hope do we have of defending ourselves from corona? ” said Ahmad, on the phone from a camp under lockdown in northern Greece. He shares his small living space with five other men, his cooking facilities with dozens of people, and his camp recently had no running water for 10 days. 

Six people have also tested positive for coronavirus on the Greek island of Lesbos, home to the 20,000-strong Moria camp that activists say is particularly ill-equipped to handle an outbreak.

Residents have been ordered not to leave the camp, even to collect their monthly stipend in the nearby town as police step up patrols on the roads nearby.

“There are areas in the Lesbos camp […] where there is one water point for 1,300 people. There is one toilet for 167 people. And there is one shower for 200 people,” says Apostolos Veizis, head of mission in Greece for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), or Doctors without Borders. “So when we call for people to stay home, this is the paradox: what home?”

Public health experts say the situation is not only a humanitarian failure, it risks undermining the fight against the pandemic in Europe. 

“Either we include everyone in this strategy, or we strategically fail. Not including these populations is a recipe for failure for our whole society,” said Karl Blanchet, a public health professor and director of the Geneva-based Centre for Education and Research in Humanitarian Action.

Human Rights Watch and MSF are calling for the immediate evacuation of overcrowded island camps. Sea Watch, a search and rescue group, has proposed that decommissioned cruise ships could house those who have been evacuated. 

The European Commission says the risk of a coronavirus outbreak in the migrant camps is “of concern to us and to the Greek authorities” and is seeking to speed up the transfer of people from Greek islands — which host some 41,000 in camps — to the mainland. 

Athens has also announced measures to improve screening and limit groups or visitors, measures Mr Dr Veizis said would do little good given the already unhygienic, overcrowded conditions.

Meanwhile, despite coronavirus being spread by close human contact, other countries in south-east Europe have been accelerating moves to corral migrants into camps.

Editor’s note

The Financial Times is making key coronavirus coverage free to read to help everyone stay informed. Find the latest here.

Migrants have been forced into makeshift settlements in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina. In Serbia some migrants said they had no access to disinfectants or gloves and that camps were under military guard. In some camps, those with a fever said they were left among the camp population while others were whisked into isolation. Some anxious residents wondered whether a coronavirus outbreak had begun.

“The scariest thing is we have no idea who might be sick and who isn’t,” said Mohammed, living in Serbia’s Sombor camp.

Many Balkan states appeared to be trying to push migrants across their borders and into Serbia, where the migrant population in its camps climbed from 5,000 to 8,000 in just a few weeks.

“They [other Balkan states] have taken note of Serbia’s relatively open stance and are pushing migrants into their territories as they try to get rid of migrants in this Covid-19 crisis period,” said Stefan Lehmeier, the deputy director of International Rescue Committee in Europe, “I’m not sure what governments intend to do — the migrants cannot make themselves disappear.”

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Camp #Lesbos #Moria #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Serbie

CARITAS 6 APRIL 2020

We keep working regardless of the virus. Migrants need our support more than ever!

▻https://www.caritas.eu/migrants-struggling-in-the-face-of-covid-19

On 17 March, Bosnia and Herzegovina declared a state of emergency due to the coronavirus. As in many other countries in Europe and the world over, the consequences of the outbreak are problematic and serious. For example, many people have lost their temporary jobs. The country is struggling to develop a strategy to support the hundreds of migrants who are living on the streets or in non-suitable accommodations outside dedicated camps, which are already crowded and operating at full capacity. Each of the ten cantons of the federation has its own agenda and responsibilities, which does not make things any easier.

The situation of migrants is indeed of great concern. In Tuzla, migrants and asylum seekers are not allowed to gather in one place, making it difficult for NGOs to assist them. There are still some local citizens who show their empathy and support as they can, for example by distributing blankets and sleeping bags. However, the vast majority of the local community is living in distress and showing a hostile attitude towards migrants. The Red Cross is the only organisation allowed to distribute food, but in a very restricted way.

Migrants and asylum seekers are human beings who need to eat, sleep and be protected in a dignified way. Their living standards are minimal, yet they fear to ask for help and feel that they need to hide from other people and from the police. Nobody should ever feel unwelcome and lost, even less so during a pandemic. Now there are restrictions also on renting houses, rooms or other type of shelters. Even persons wishing to help find it very difficult to do so.

In Tuzla, the local NGOs operate as one. For example, one of Caritas’ partner organisations opened a new safe house. Caritas does not close under these difficult circumstances either and continues to operate the laundry service to ensure a minimum standard of hygiene for those in need. The Caritas laundry service in the Bira camp is also still working every day. Now, it is needed more than ever!

Blažuj camp
In the Sarajevo canton, the treatment of migrants and asylum seekers is a little bit better. The police is patrolling the area and if they see any migrants, they drive them to Blažuj. This new camp has a capacity to house 1,500 people, but the conditions are incredibly challenging. The residents find it hard to endure the imposed isolation and some tend to leave after a few hours. Many migrants and asylum seekers are afraid of each other, especially since they need to stay in rooms with many people they do not know – different nationalities, with different languages and cultural differences! Hygiene keeps being a major issue: in Blažuj there is running water, but there is no laundry service, for example. Also, the residents still lack hygiene products like soap, shampoo and toothpaste, which in the current situation are very precious.

The number of persons currently accommodated in Blažuj camp is very high; in fact, it is not even clear how many there are exactly. These people are not allowed to leave the camp, despite that there isn’t enough food for everybody. Even if they could leave, shops in the village display signs saying migrants are not welcome as customers, even if they have money.

Living in squats
Migrants who do not want or cannot go to the camps are living in squats. Only those who are not aware of the lock-down or who are desperate for money come out and risk to be taken to a camp. The people living in these squats are hungry and cold; yet, they manage to maintain a positive attitude: the memory of the long journeys they had to travel are enough to keep them hopeful now. But they need more help. Caritas receives many calls for assistance from them. Some of them are desperate for food or other basic necessities. We know that we cannot respond to all this by ourselves, so we try our best to join forces with other local partners to exchange information and find solutions where we can. We simply cannot accept to see people going hungry in the 21st Century. The migrants in squats live in extremely poor conditions, without water nor electricity. Most of the squats are located in ruined, abandoned houses without windows and with living spaces as tiny as broom closets. One such squat is a shelter hosting 40 young men; some lucky ones have tents to stay in.

The coronavirus pandemic is affecting the daily lives of all people in Bosnia and Herzegovina. But, it is those most vulnerable who are the most highly impacted, and migrants and refugees are for sure among them.

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Tuzla #Sarajevo #Blažuj #Camp #Squat

Balkan Countries Close Border Crossings to Stop Coronavirus

▻https://balkaninsight.com/2020/03/13/balkan-countries-close-border-crossings-to-stop-coronavirus

To slow the spread of the coronavirus, several Balkan countries have closed most of their border crossings with neighbouring states, making travel in some parts of the region practically impossible.

Serbia, Albania and Romania have closed many of their border crossings in order to combat the spread of the coronavirus, leaving some parts of the Balkans practically cut off for civil traffic.

All countries of the region have either banned entry or introduced special restrictive measures for passengers arriving from countries with mid to high to risk of coronavirus.

Serbia has closed 44 border crossings with neighbouring Romania, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Croatia, so that its border police can focus on the main and most frequently used crossings. Crossings have been closed mainly to increase staff numbers on the main crossings that remain open. Most closed borders are road border crossings but river, railway and ferry transport is also affected.

Romania has closed several crossing points that connect the country by land with its neighbours. The closures affect crossings to Hungary, Ukraine, Bulgaria and Moldova, the Interior Minister, Marcel Vela, announced on Thursday night. He also said the Serbian authorities had unilaterally closed several crossing points, presumably without informing Romania first. The crossings at the Iron Gates, Moravita and Jimbolia remain open on the border with Serbia, Vela added.

Albania has unilaterally closed several border crossings with neighbouring Montenegro, Kosovo and North Macedonia.

North Macedonia has not closed any borders so far, but, as a result of the unilateral moves made by its neighbours, two crossings with Serbia and three with Albania are closed. Traffic with Serbia continues only through the main Tabanovce crossing.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has not closed any of its borders, though passenger control measures have been strengthened and a temporary entry ban has been imposed on arrivals from the countries worst affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Croatia has also not closed its borders, even with Italy, the worst affected country in Europe. A government session on Friday was expected to clarify whether the crossings will remain open or not.

In Montenegro, the border crossing with Albania at Sukobin-Muricani was closed on Friday morning on the request of Albania. Border crossings with Serbia in Jabuka near Pljevlja and at Godovo near Rozaje were closed on Thursday at the request of Serbia.

Moldova has not closed border crossings, but its neighbours, Ukraine and Romania, have closed some crossings, making travel there harder. Bulgaria also has not closed any border crossings, except those closed from the Serbian side.

#Covid-19 #migrant #migration #Balkans #Serbie #Albanie #Roumanie #Bulgarie #RépubliquedeMacédoine #Monténégro #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Kosovo #Croatie #Frontière

Are You Syrious Daily Digest 6/4/20

▻https://medium.com/are-you-syrious/ays-daily-digest-6-4-20-riot-police-violently-raids-a-detention-centre-in-gr

70members of the riot police stormed a detention centre and were beating the confined people confined with batons. Reportedly, there are five people in a critical condition, many were injured and people had not been given food for a long time, according to the first reports that AYS and other groups received.
The most comprehensive report of the incident reads: The government and the Minister of Civil Protection are responsible for the barbaric crackdown on migrant protests over food in the midst of the corona pandemic. Not only are they cynically indifferent to the human lives of the 450 migrants held in the PRO.KE.K.A (Pre-removal Detention Centre), but they are endangering their health with bad food and that of poor nutrition quality.
On April 3, when the food arrived, they found that it was not eatable, and refused to eat it. This kind of food was simply “not for humans”.
Officials have promised that this will change, which did not happen, however.
Then, starting with a large group of Arab protesters came out of the cells, almost everybody went to the rooftop and started a hunger strike. This was followed by an attack of the police in full battle gear. The police took them out of the cells, hitting them with batons, while they also used electric tasers, as the people complained. Dozens of people were beaten for taking part while lying in the yard, it is reported.
They smashed the cameras on their phones so they can’t take pictures of the injuries. And they haven’t given them food since then. According to police sources, a man was taken to the hospital in critical condition.

Underlying racism in official reporting

There is underlying racism in the way Greece reports about COVID-19, separating the report on the general number of infected people and the number of infected people inside the camps. It is clear that if COVID-19 is present in the camps, it came from outside the camps. These types of reports leave room for interpretations, and all kinds of conclusions and conspiracy theories that connect people on the move currently trapped in the camps with COVID-19. In this way they spread a dehumanizing rhetoric very present in governmental reporting, but also within the bureaucratic reports of the big organisations following their lead.

Illegal Deportations and Pushbacks to Turkey, Ordered by the Greek Government, Executed by the Greek Coast Guard
Aegean Boat Report reports:
“While the eyes of the world are occupied with the COVID-19 pandemic, Greek government seems to be taking advantage of the situation, a new tactic to tackle flows towards the Greek Aegean islands has been implemented.
In the last weeks at least nine incidents of people being found drifting in the sea, in life rafts without propellant, has been reported by Turkish coast guard. This could easily have been disregarded as Turkish propaganda, if it hadn’t been for the evidence from Samos.
April 1th at 08.00 a boat landed on Mourtia Beach, Samos east, carrying approximately 25 people. There where several people on the beach this morning witnessing the landing, pictures, and videos was taken. Port police were called by a person on-site, later port police denied having received any information on such incident, and that no new arrivals had been reported on Samos.
Witnesses report that two boats from HCG arrived in Mourtia bay after the landing, the refugees were taken on one of the boats from port police, a boat took off heading southeast. A picture taken by a local journalist shows that two boats from HCG were in fact in Mourtia bay this morning, but port police deny that any of their vessels were in the area this morning.
The last boat that landed in Mourtia beach was February 19th, nevertheless, later this very day people who walk on this beach every day, found a rubber boat, engine, a fuel tank and clothes that weren’t there the day before. Port police told people who contacted them about this that there had been no arrivals, and that they should remember that it was April fools day.
Turkish Coast guard picked up 26 people 13.30 this same day, in a life raft that had drifted towards Aydin national park, 10 children, 6 women and 10 men. According to the statement from the passengers, obtained by TCG, they claimed that they had crossed to the island of Samos; were later rounded up by the Greek Coast guard, put on a life raft, and dragged to Turkish waters.
Pictures taken by locals from Mourtia Beach, compared to pictures taken by Turkish coast guard leaves no doubt, people photographed on Samos is the same that TCG found drifting in a raft outside Aydin national park. When we also take into account the statements from locals regarding this landing, the evidence is overwhelming.
If this had been an isolated incident, this could have been an HCG crew taking things in their own hands, but it’s not. Nine known cases in the last two weeks, from Simi in the south to Lesvos in the north, shows that this is not an isolated incident, this is boat crews acting on orders from the top.”

Due to a dispute between local government and the Greek Ministry of migration, 152 new arrivals on Lesvos are still stuck out in the open without any sufficient infrastructure which meets basic needs, such as electricity, toilets or other sanitary facilities, @f_grillmeier (Twitter) reported. 25 people of those 152 who also arrived after March 1 have been staying in a discarded bus at Mytilini Harbour close to an old swimming pool, but have now been tranferred to Kara Tepe.

56people are in tents and underneath broken boats close to Petra, 32 people are reportedly in staying tents at mountain-region of Agios Stefanos, 39 in a chapel close to Kliou, north. According to the media, the local government has not indicated a safe temporary place for those who have to quarantine for 14 days after arrival. The Ministry of Migration says that it is the responsibility of local authorities.

Anxiety and Despair Among People Confined in Camps Across the Country
As a consequence of the locked camps’ regime that seems to be unsustainable in the long run, as it is now, there is growing despair among the people held in the centres across Serbia, guarded by the army. The people staying in these camps are complaining that they are not allowed to provide their families and themselves with enough proper food for a healthier survival within the facilities in which they are held. They say that in the Krnjača camp there is a small shop with no clear pricing, and everything is much more expensive than in the other shops outside of the camp. They are forced to buy food in these shops which they claim are owned by some of the staff, and even there not everyone gets to have a chance to shop.

The SCRM introduced obligatory isolation for new arrivals sent to Preševo camp, which with a population of 1,501 making it the largest camp .
Growing mental health issues, gaps in service provision and supply, conflicts between different groups and the toxic influence of smugglers’ propaganda inspiring some to protest violently, these are some of the issues InfoPark documented from the testimonies of people held in these centres.

CROATIA
Pushbacks continue
Although the official sources claim the “pressure on the border” has reduced, and that there are not that many people trying to cross the green border into Croatia, the reports on pushbacks have not ceased. AYS has received information on several cases of pushbacks in the area close to Velika Kladuša in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Also, L’ ALTRA VOCE have recently shared an account of a pushback of a group of boys who tried to enter Croatia, but were beaten up and had their belongings taken away, they say. The images they sent them display heavily bruised arms and extremities on the boys’ bodies.
Sixteen cops beat them with great violence using steel bars. They insulted and beat them. Then they took everything away from him: cell phones, money, shoes, jackets. And they pushed them into the cold water of a river.

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Grèce #Détention #Camp #Racisme #Refoulement #Merégée #Turquie #Samos #Mourtia #Mythilène #karatepe #Agiosstefanos #Petra #Kliou #Klidi #Sintiki #Privatisation #Serbie #Armée #Presevo #Krnjaca #Santémentale #Croatie #Refoulement #Velikakladusa #Bosnie-Herzégovine

INFOPARK Weekly : 1 – 7 April 2020 - 012

Serbia

Beginning of April was marked with a significant deterioration of atmosphere in some of the camps, especially the big ones. Two massive fights occurred in Obrenovac RC (5 April) and Krnjaca AC (6 April) centers, involving up to 150 persons. In both incidents, the migrants tried to escape, the SCRM staff was attacked so gendarmerie and army had to intervene, including shooting live bullets in the air in Krnjača. Since yesterday, Obrenovac camp is loaded with a heavy presence of Ministry of Interior (MoI) forces controlling the situation, while Krnjača is guarded by armored vehicles. In many camps security forces scaled up the measures to prevent migrants from attempts to escape, although in smaller centers the situation remained calmer.

Info Park believes that negative developments came as a consequence of locked camps’ regime that seems to be unsustainable on a long run as it is now. Info Park learned from migrants about growing mental health issues, gaps in service provision and supply, conflicts between different ethnic groups and toxic influence of smugglers’ propaganda inspiring some to protest violently. At the end of this bulletin please kindly find enclosed an appendix on Mental Health of Refugees and Migrants written by Info Park protection expert Ivana Anđelković (PhD candidate at University of Nis, department of psychology).

As Serbia registers constant rise of COVID-19 cases (8,552 tested, 2,200 infected and death toll of 58), fortunately there is still no confirmed coronavirus among migrants in the country, even though migrant population is at higher risk being with limited access to information and healthcare services. Until this weekend, 8 migrants were tested, all negative. The SCRM introduced an obligatory isolation for new arrivals sent to Preševo camp which is the largest camp with 1,501 migrants currently placed.

Number of migrants in Serbia continued to slowly rise due to pushbacks from Hungary, returns from Bosnia and new arrivals. Currently, 8,743 migrants are in 17 camps. The Miratovac makeshift camp is completed but is still waiting for the first visitors.

The recently established anti-migrant Facebook group “STOP Naseljavanju migranata” (Stop Populating Migrants in Serbia) stirred a lot of controversy due to high presence of hate speech and fake news. One of the group founders from Obrenovac was detained for 48 hours following a report from a CyberCrime unit of MoI, after he publicly called for murdering migrants. The group was joined by 265,000 members in mere 10 days, marking an alarming rise of extreme right wing focused on migrant issue in Serbia.

After Bujanovac, Adasevci, Vranje and Principovac, migrants in Sombor Reception Center have also started sewing protective face masks for the employees of the Serbian Commissariat and themselves. This way they are not only contributing to the COVID-19 response but also sharing and returning solidarity and care.

Bosnia & Herzegovina

According to the Bosnian authorities and International Organization for Migration, there are no COVID-19 cases among thousands of migrants and refugees hosted in B&H centers. However, several hundred of those recently arrived are placed in isolation as a precautionary measure.

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Serbie #Camp #Obrenovac #Krnjaca #Armée #Gendarmerie #Violence #Infopark #Santémentale #Presevo #Refoulement #frontière #Hongrie #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Miratovac #Xenophobie #Violence #Bujanovac #Adasevci #Vranje #Principovac #Sombor