#unasanacanton

Bosnia Shifts Vulnerable Migrants and Refugees to New Temporary Camp

Despite opposition from Bosnian Serbs, migrants and refugees who were living rough are being resettled to a temporary reception centre near the village of Lipa in the country’s north-west.
The authorities in the Una-Sana Canton, in cooperation with the International Organization for Migration, moved a first group of about 120 migrants and refugees to the new reception centre in Lipa, not far from the town of Bihac, on Tuesday.

In total, about 1,000 people who have been living on the streets of Bihac and nearby towns in the recent weeks because there is not enough space at existing reception centres will be relocated to the Lipa camp.

In mid-March, the Bosnian authorities imposed restrictions on the movement of migrants and refugees and ordered them into temporary reception centres as a part of measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

“Camp Lipa contains all the infrastructure needed to provide basic humanitarian needs to the users in the form of accommodation, food, hygiene, sanitation and medical care,” the Una-Sana cantonal government said in a press statement.

The mayor of Bihac, Suhret Fazlic, told Bosnian media that moving these people to the new centre will allow their health and safety to be better monitored.

According to police estimates, there are currently approximately 1,500 migrants in the Bihac area for whom there are no places in existing reception centres.

Representatives of Serbs who returned to Bosnia’s Federation entity after fleeing during the war strongly opposed the construction of the camp near Lipa, a village where post-war Serb returnees live, because they claimed that the mainly Muslim migrants and refugees could be a threat to them.

They argued that the construction of a migrant centre in near Lipa was a message to Serbs that they are not welcome in Bosnia’s Bosniak- and Croat-dominated Federation entity.

They have threatened to block all access roads to the centre after the coronavirus epidemic ends, and have appealed for help to Milorad Dodik, the Serb member of the tripartite Bosnian presidency.

There are currently about 7,500 registered migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

▻https://balkaninsight.com/2020/04/21/bosnia-shifts-vulnerable-migrants-and-refugees-to-new-temporary-camp

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lipa #camp #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane #Serbe #Retour

Shelter Provided to Migrants Sleeping Rough in Bosnian Capital

Migrants who have been sleeping on the streets of Sarajevo for the past weeks have been given accommodation at a temporary reception centre located in a military barracks near the city.
The International Organization for Migration, IOM, the Danish Refugee Council, DRC, the Red Cross of the Federation entity in Bosnia, together with migrants who volunteered, on Friday set up heated isolation tents for migrants in the Blazuj army barracks, furnished with 1,000 beds, mattresses and blankets.

The idea is to provide temporary accommodation for migrants and refugees who have previously been sleeping rough on the streets of Sarajevo.

According to the IOM, the migrants will first go through a medical check-up pending registration after which they will have access to shelter, food, medical assistance and other humanitarian needs.

In mid-March, 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 a part of measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

However, since the existing temporary reception centres did not have the capacity to host all the migrants located in and around the Sarajevo Canton, more capacity was needed.

A similar temporary reception centre is being built not far from the village of Lipa, in western Bosnia, in the Una-Sana Canton.

However, Bosnian Serbs have called on the authorities not to build a tent camp near the village, where post-war Serb returnees live, because they claim the mainly Muslim migrants could be a threat to them.

There are about 7,500 registered migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina. For at least 3,000 of them, there are no places in temporary reception centres set up by the authorities.

►https://balkaninsight.com/2020/03/28/shelter-provided-to-migrants-sleeping-rough-in-bosnian-capital

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lipa #camp #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane

Bosnia, new migrant hosting center inaugurated in Bihac

Bosnian authorities on April 22 inaugurated a new hosting center for migrants that can accommodate up to 1,000 people. The facility will be managed by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in the village of Lipa, near Bihac, at the border with Croatia.

A new hosting center for refugees and migrants that can accommodate up to 1,000 people was inaugurated on April 22 in the village of Lipa, close to Bihac, in northwestern Bosnia-Herzegovina near the border with Croatia. The center will be managed by the International Organization for Migrants (IOM).

Police have already brought a number of migrants to the facility among those — an estimated 1,500 people — who are sleeping rough or living in abandoned homes in the area of Bihac.

A reported 100 people will be transferred every day to the facility, where doctors will give them a medical checkup, including a coronavirus test. Authorities said the transfer of migrants will for this reason progress slowly and that it will be completed in a few days.

Government is working on repatriation program

The center is meant to provide stable accommodation to migrants who want to eventually travel to a European Union member State.

Bosnian Security Minister Fahrudin Radoncic, however, is critical and wants to start a program to repatriate the migrants to their home countries. "Many thought that it was a humanitarian issue but they have finally understood that it is a matter of security and that this country is not able to sustain 7-8,000 migrants’’, the minister said.

He added that he was not speaking about people fleeing war but about undocumented migrants who come from countries that are richer than Bosnia.

Lipa residents against center

Representatives of the 250 Serbian residents of the village of Lipa have said that they are against the center. They want to return to the homes they had prior to the war (1992-95) and have complained that migrants have electricity, running water and Wi-Fi at the center while they are still waiting for these municipal services.

Lipa’s Serbians have already announced that they will organize protests once restrictions on gatherings due to the coronavirus emergency are lifted.

▻https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/24334/bosnia-new-migrant-hosting-center-inaugurated-in-bihac

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lipa #camp #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane

Amnesty International: Decision to confine Thousands of Migrants into Camps in Bosnia and Herzegovina puts Lives at Risk

Responding to the decision of the local authorities in Una-Sana Canton in Bosnia and Herzegovina to forcefully transfer and confine thousands of migrants living in the area to an inadequate tent camp in Lipa, Amnesty’s Europe Deputy Director Massimo Moratti said:

“Forcing people, many of whom are already vulnerable, into a hastily set up remote tent facility without ensuring adequate access to water and sanitation, spaces to self-isolate and accessible medical care is inhumane and will put people at greater risk of infection and preventable deaths.

Confining people in potentially harmful conditions cannot be justified on the grounds of public health, stated by Massimo Moratti, Amnesty International

“Confining people in potentially harmful conditions cannot be justified on the grounds of public health. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the authorities in Bosnia have a responsibility to address the needs of all marginalised groups and ensure humane living conditions, including access to water, sanitation and hygiene, as well as appropriate medical care, for all people, including migrants and asylum-seekers.

“Restrictions on the rights of migrants and asylum-seekers in the context of the COVID-19 public health emergency have to be lawful, necessary and proportionate and should not discriminate against or put at risk already marginalised people. These measures fail on all counts.”

Restrictions on the rights of migrants and asylum-seekers in the context of the COVID-19 public health emergency have to be lawful, necessary and proportionate

Massimo Moratti, Amnesty International

Background

Thousands of refugees, migrants and asylum-seekers trying to make their way into Europe are currently stranded in Una-Sana Canton in the north-west of Bosnia and Herzegovina. While about 4,100 are accommodated in the temporary reception facilities managed by International Organization for Migration (IOM), an estimated 3,000 are sleeping in squats in abandoned buildings or sleeping rough and are now at risk of being relocated to the Lipa camp.

Following declaration of emergency measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 across BiH, the local authorities in Una-Sana Canton ordered a relocation of thousands of refugees, migrants and asylum-seekers currently sleeping rough on the territory of the canton into a temporary camp in the village of Lipa which is currently in preparation.

In the past, the authorities in Una-Sana canton failed to provide adequate conditions for accommodation of refugees and migrants. The controversial Vucjak tent settlement built on a former landfill and close to a minefield from the Bosnia’s 1992-1995 war, was finally closed in December and over 600 people transferred elsewhere following significant pressure by human rights groups and international community.

▻https://www.sarajevotimes.com/amnesty-international-decision-to-confine-thousands-of-migrants-into-

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lipa #camp #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane

Relocation of Migrants to Newly opened Reception Camp on 83,000 Square Meters started

The Una-Sana Canton (USC) police launched an action this morning to move migrants to a newly opened reception camp on the Lipa site, between Bihac and Bosanski Petrovac, Fena news agency reports.

Police officers are currently deploying more than a hundred people who have previously stayed at the stadium of the Jedinstvo Football Club and the nearby (Gradska Aleja) City Walk in Bihac.

It has also been confirmed that engaged medical teams will do triage when entering the Lipa camp.

The current capacity of the newly opened reception camp accommodates around 1,000 people, while the relocation action could take several days due to detailed medical examinations.

“Lipa” is equipped with all necessary infrastructure to provide the beneficiaries with basic humanitarian needs in the form of accommodation, food, hygiene, sanitation and medical care.

In November last year, the City Council of the City of Bihac approved the location of Lipa as the only one owned by the City of Bihac to establish a temporary reception center for migrants, Klix.ba news portal reports.

The settlement should contain 1,106 containers. According to the plan document, Camp Lipa should have 728 migrant housing containers, 252 sanitary containers, 126 administrative containers that will house police, the Red Cross, medical teams, registration area, NGOs and media, and a central kitchen with dining room. There is also space for entertaining, education and recreation.

The future camp would be located on an area of nearly 83,000 square meters.

Containers contain windows, parquet floors and everything that migrants need for a comfortable stay, and the outside is decorated in a variety of colors. A recreation area, walks and rest area with trees and benches are also provided. The kitchen will cover an area of nearly 18 thousand square meters. It is also important to emphasize that men will be separated of from woman and children.

There are already existing roads to this location, but it is necessary to build 4,5 thousand meters of internal roads and to provide water, electricity and sewage.

It is still unknown when construction will begin, but it is known that it should do so as soon as a new migrant wave is expected in the spring. Camp Lipa is located between Bosanski Petrovac and Bihać.

The site could be accepted by the European Commission, given that it is city-owned and remote from populated areas.

The problem could possibly be posed by the Republic of Croatia, given that this village is near the border with that country.

▻https://www.sarajevotimes.com/relocation-of-migrants-to-newly-opened-reception-camp-on-83000-square

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lipa #camp #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane

Migrants in Lipa Message That Serbs Are Not Welcome

The construction of a migrant centre in the Serb village of Lipa near Bihać is a message that Serbs are not welcome in the Federation of BiH /FBiH/, says Serb deputy to the House of Peoples of the FBiH Parliament, Goran Broćeta.

“The fact that the FBiH authorities managed to construct, in a very short time, an urban settlement for migrants in the Serb village of Lipa is a clear indication that they are only efficient when it comes to usurpation and destruction of Serb property in the FBiH,” Broćeta told SRNA.

He notes that, on the other hand, a series of problems Serb returnees have been facing across the Federation of BiH will never be included in the agenda.

“As they call it, the reception centre is the most humane refuge for migrants so far, so we can rightly doubt that it may be a permanent solution. However, pre-war residents were sent a clear message that they no longer have anything to look for there, while the rest of us will wonder what tomorrow will bring and whether Drvar, Grahovo or Glamoč might be new sites for accommodating migrants to finally break the most homogeneous Serb territory in the FBiH,” Broćeta emphasizes.

He condemns the construction of a migrant centre in the Serb village of Lipa.

“We would not allow them to do it if they did not insidiously, away from the public eye, take and advantage of the current situation in BiH,” Broćeta added.

The International Organisation for Migration announced today that the Lipa camp near Bihać is ready for the reception for up to 1,000 migrants and refugees.

The Committee for Serb Rights Protection in the FBiH said earlier that it was inadmissible to set up a migrant centre in the Serb village of Lipa, surrounded by Serb-populated villages.

▻http://thesrpskatimes.com/migrants-in-lipa-message-that-serbs-are-not-welcome

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lipa #camp #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane #Serbes #Retour

Group of 120 migrants relocated to newly opened camp near Bihac

A group of 120 migrants who underwent a triage examination for the new coronavirus have been relocated to the newly constructed migrant camp Lipa, situated between northwestern Bosnian towns of Bihac and Bosanski Petrovac, the authorities confirmed on Tuesday.

"Today we accomplished only the first phase of this process of relocation of people who did not have any accommodation in the city of Bihac. We will continue to continuously work every day to relocate all people from abandoned buildings and streets and provide them with dignified living conditions,” said Mustafa Ruzic, the Prime Minister of Una Sana Canton whose administrative centre is Bihac.

Campsite beneficiaries will be provided with necessities of life in a locality away from the urban area of Bihac, which will significantly improve the safety and epidemiological situation in the town, he added.

▻http://ba.n1info.com/English/NEWS/a427323/Group-of-120-migrants-relocated-to-newly-opened-camp-near-Bihac.html

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lipa #camp #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane

New camp in Bosnia and Herzegovina

In Bosnia, local authorities in the northwest Una-Sana canton ordered the mandatory relocation of thousands of migrants and asylum seekers sleeping outdoors into a temporary camp currently under construction near the village of Lipa, some 25 kilometers from the Croatian border.

Authorities have since agreed to have the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the Danish Refugee Council manage the new camp on behalf of the government.

An estimated 3,000 of those who are trying to make their way into the EU through Croatia are squatting in abandoned buildings or sleeping outdoors in the region, while another 4,100 are accommodated in facilities managed by IOM.

“IOM is trying their best to create dignified conditions and ensure adequate access to health and other support services. However, the camps remain overcrowded and unfit for prolonged stay,” said Jelena Sesar, a researcher at Amnesty International.

People who did not enter the official camps during the winter months cannot effectively self-isolate and are often barred from health institutions available to ordinary citizens.

“The [Bosnian] state authorities for the past two years have done next to nothing to deal with the migrant crisis in the country and have practically left the Una-Sana canton to deal on its own with the flow of refugees,” Sesar told EURACTIV.

Bosnian authorities have previously come under heavy criticism by civil rights groups for the Vucjak camp, built on a former landfill near the Croatian border in an area with landmines from the 1990s war, where migrants lived without heating, running water or toilets.

Last December, authorities dismantled the Vucjak camp and transferred hundreds of people who were living at the site to a new camp near Sarajevo.

Bosnia closes ’jungle’ migrant camp
Bosnia on Wednesday (11 December) dismantled tents at the makeshift migrant camp known as the “jungle” for its harsh conditions, after transferring hundreds of people who were living at the site to Sarajevo.

However, human rights organisations remain concerned about the capacity of Bosnian authorities to support the increasing number of refugees and migrants arriving into the country.

“It’s simply difficult to see how now, in the crisis conditions, the local government is going to get organised so quickly and in a week do something that they have not been able to do over the past two years,” said Sesar.

Authorities are procuring 40 tents which are each able to accommodate up to 50 people.

“Such tents are already used in other camps. They don’t offer much privacy and there’s certainly no place for self-isolation or social distancing, the measures that are necessary to reduce the spread of the virus,” Sesar warned.

Another issue is the safe transport of thousands of refugees to the new site while keeping distancing measures to prevent new infections.

“At a time when governments across Europe have started thinking about releasing people from migration detention in order to decongest these areas where people are confined together and therefore at greater risk, Bosnia is doing the opposite,” said Sesar.

“While finding adequate housing for refugees and migrants sleeping outdoors is certainly welcome and necessary, Bosnian authorities must ensure that this new camp gives maximum protection by providing access to clean water, sanitation and essential healthcare, as well as resources to ensure necessary physical distancing.”

The EU on Wednesday (8 April) announced a €15.6 billion support package for foreign countries hit by the coronavirus pandemic, with €2.8 billion earmarked for research, health and water systems, which includes supporting equal access to health systems for migrants, refugees and host communities.

However, EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell confirmed that “there is no fresh money,” and that funding will come from reallocation of existing funds and programmes.

EU unveils €15bn COVID rescue plan, but includes no new money
The EU unveiled on Wednesday (8 April) a support package worth €15.6 billion for African and other partner countries hit by the coronavirus pandemic, but conceded that it includes no new money.

Inside the bloc, the EU has been pushing to relocate vulnerable migrants to hotels and accommodation that are currently left empty during the pandemic.

“What we should do now is to immediately evacuate the most vulnerable individuals out of these camps so that they can be secured in hotel rooms or apartments and not be affected if the virus breaks out in these camps,” home affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson told Deutsche Welle.

▻https://www.euractiv.com/section/justice-home-affairs/news/refugees-left-behind-in-coronavirus-crisis-aid-groups-warn

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lipa #camp #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane

Migrants Sleeping Rough in Bosnia Moved to Camp With Medical Services

Migrants who were previously squatting in abandoned buildings in Bosnia and Herzegovina began moving into a temporary camp near Bihać on April 21 as part of efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19, UN officials said. Peter Van der Auweraert, Western Balkans Coordinator for the International Organization for Migration (IOM), tweeted video from the camp at Lipa, saying the new guests would have access to shelter, doctors, food, and new clothes. The camp, which can reportedly accommodate up to 1,000 people, was erected with funds from the European Union and the United States, Van der Auweraert said. According to Bosnia news agency Fena, police were prioritizing migrants sleeping in abandoned buildings and on the streets of Bihać. All migrants passed through a “disinfection tunnel” and were screened for COVID-19 and other illnesses with the help of local Red Cross teams, Van der Auweraert added. Following the initiative of the Bihać City authorities and due to the need to establish additional accommodation for migrants and refugees who were stranded in different types of informal accommodation throughout the Una-Sana Canton, the emergency tent camp Lipa is ready to accommodate up to 1,000 persons following the finalization of the preparatory and construction works on site. Credit: Peter Van der Auweraert, IOM via Storyful

▻https://www.news.com.au/national/migrants-sleeping-rough-in-bosnia-moved-to-camp-with-medical-services/video/9b49a6c59b3f5777539bb2705a8df776

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Lipa #camp #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane

USC police have begun relocating migrants to the Lipa camp near BIhać

BIHAĆ, April 21 (FENA) - The police of the Una-Sana Canton (USC) this morning has begun the operation of relocating migrants to a newly opened reception camp at Lipa site, located between Bihać and Bosanski Petrovac.

As announced, the police will primarily escort and transport migrants staying in abandoned facilities and on the streets of Bihać.

Police officers are currently relocating more than a hundred people who have previously stayed at the stadium of the Jedinstvo Football Club and the nearby city promenade in Bihać. It has also been confirmed that medical teams have been engaged that will conduct a triage when entering the Lipa camp.

Following the initiative of the Bihać City authorities and due to the need to establish additional accommodation for migrants and refugees who were stranded in different types of informal accommodation throughout the Una-Sana Canton, the emergency tent camp Lipa is ready to accommodate up to 1,000 persons following the finalization of the preparatory and construction works on site.

After the initial funding provided from the budget of the City of Bihać, the European Union and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) provided financial assistance to establish an isolation camp where the migrants and refugees, who have been previously without medical care, will be attended.

This is particularly relevant because of the current situation caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Emergency tent camp Lipa is equipped with all necessary infrastructure to provide the beneficiaries with basic humanitarian needs in the form of accommodation, food, hygiene, sanitation and medical care.

▻http://fena.ba/article/1149995/usc-police-have-begun-relocating-migrants-to-the-lipa-camp-near-bihac

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Camp #Lipa #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane

Migrants Sleeping Rough in Bosnia Moved to Camp With Medical Services

Migrants who were previously squatting in abandoned buildings in Bosnia and Herzegovina began moving into a temporary camp near Bihać on April 21 as part of efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19, UN officials said.

Peter Van der Auweraert, Western Balkans Coordinator for the International Organization for Migration (IOM), tweeted video from the camp at Lipa, saying the new guests would have access to shelter, doctors, food, and new clothes. The camp, which can reportedly accommodate up to 1,000 people, was erected with funds from the European Union and the United States, Van der Auweraert said.

According to Bosnia news agency Fena, police were prioritizing migrants sleeping in abandoned buildings and on the streets of Bihać.

All migrants passed through a “disinfection tunnel” and were screened for COVID-19 and other illnesses with the help of local Red Cross teams, Van der Auweraert added.

Following the initiative of the Bihać City authorities and due to the need to establish additional accommodation for migrants and refugees who were stranded in different types of informal accommodation throughout the Una-Sana Canton, the emergency tent camp Lipa is ready to accommodate up to 1,000 persons following the finalization of the preparatory and construction works on site. Credit: Peter Van der Auweraert, IOM via Storyful

▻https://uk.news.yahoo.com/migrants-sleeping-rough-bosnia-moved-181812508.html

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #camp #Lipa #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane

Bosnia Herzegovina: Bosnian Serbs protest new migrant camp

Political representatives of the Federation’s Bosnian Serb community have called on the authorities of the Una-Sana Canton not to build a camp for migrants on the basis that the mostly Muslim immigrants will pose a threat to them.

There is already a migrant center in the Federation near Bihac, the largest town in Una-Sana, but approximately 3,000 migrants are currently without accommodations. The authorities want to expedite the building of a new tent camp for them due to fears about the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19), according to a report at Balkan Insight.

The proposed camp would be constructed near the village of Lipa, where ethnic Serbs who returned following the Bosnian War in the 1990s reside. It’s possible that the camp could be set up within the next few days, once tents and basic utilities are provided.

The Serbs believe that the migrants, many of whom are Muslim, would pose a threat to their livelihoods and way of life. Also, many of the Serbs themselves live under rough conditions, and would not appreciate seeing resources given to people who are not even in the country legally.

Djordje Radanovic, the Chairman of the Committee for the Protection of Serb Rights in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, said that such a camp would be an “insult” to Serbs, adding that “bringing migrants from Bihac to Lipa would further worsen the situation in the village and discourage the possible return of Serbs, because local authorities have not yet provided them with basic necessities for a normal life.”

The Committee has filed a criminal complaint against Bihac’s Mayor, Sufret Fazlic, for proposing the new camp. Others have said that the local authorities do not have the power to order such a camp to be built in the first place. Fazlic has responded that the measure is necessary in order to prevent the migrants from spreading the coronavirus to the local population.

Like most of Europe, Bosnia and Herzegovina is already under lockdown in response to the pandemic. Last week, the Federation’s Minister of Security ordered authorities to begin removing migrants from the streets and relocate them to reception centers, as previously reported by Voice of Europe.

▻https://voiceofeurope.com/2020/03/bosnia-herzegovina-bosnian-serbs-protest-new-migrant-camp

#Covid-19 #Migrants #Migrations #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #camp #Lipa #Xénophobie #Retour #Serbes #Unasanacanton #Fédérationcroatomusulmane

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-

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

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 #

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

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

Bosnia : Migrants taken off streets in Sarajevo over coronavirus

▻https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/23769/bosnia-migrants-taken-off-streets-in-sarajevo-over-coronavirus

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Sarajevo #Blazuj #Bihac #Unasanacanton #Republikasrpska #Fédérationcroatomusulmane #Entités

Bosnian Serbs Oppose Building of New Migrant Camp

▻https://balkaninsight.com/2020/03/24/bosnian-serbs-oppose-building-of-new-migrant-camp

#Covid-19 #Migration #Migrant #Balkans #Bosnie-Herzégovine #Fédérationcroatomusulmane #Entité #Unasanacanton #Lipa #Bihac #camp #religion