Brussels, 18/11/2013 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 18 November, several NGOs warned European leaders about the consequences for migrants - and especially for those fleeing conflicts - of tighter controls at the Greek-Turkish border - controls which “are forcing many people fleeing conflict to use increasingly dangerous routes”, the NGOs Migreurop Network, the International Federation for Human Rights and the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network writes in a press release. By tightening its controls and putting up a barbed wire fence in the north of the country, Greece saw a decline in the number of illegal migrants in 2012. According to data from Frontex, the number of irregular crossings made in the Eastern Mediterranean (Greece, Bulgaria and Cyprus) fell by 35% in total in 2012. “Those who cross over into Greece are systematically detained on arrival, in inhuman and degrading conditions”, the three NGO stated on their return from monitoring the situation on the ground. “The response of the European Union is to strengthen means of surveillance and interception. There is an urgent need to shift the focus away from criminalisation to the conditions of reception of migrants”, they write. “In Greece, many victims report having been pushed back by Greek coastguards at sea or even upon reaching European soil”, they stated. The NGOs final report will be ready at the beginning of 2014.
The NGOs are also concerned at Turkey's limited progress, where the law on foreigners and international protection, planned for April 2014, “has done little to alleviate concerns regarding violations of migrants' human rights. Turkey maintains geographical reservations to the 1951 Geneva Convention on the status of refugees, which exclude non-Europeans from asylum claims”, the NGOs state.
After “the tragedy that took place at the shores of Lampedusa (…) the EU is now considering increasing the capacity of Frontex. However, our organisations have tirelessly warned that the misery of migrants and the risky nature of the routes they take are linked to the lack of alternatives to access EU territory and to unsatisfactory reception conditions within European borders”, the three NGOs say.
Illegal immigration and the issue of sharing the “burden” of migrants between European countries will be one of the main issues of the Greek Presidency of the Council of Ministers of the EU. The Greek Presidency is also working on the issue with Italy, as Italy is due to succeed the Greek Presidency in summer 2014. Athens will try to put concrete proposals together ahead of a European summit on justice and home affairs in June 2014. The three priorities that are planned cover third countries' management of their borders and the development problems of the so-called transit countries; the monitoring of the EU's common land and sea borders; and member states' capacity for response and solidarity in the face of the number of asylum seekers on European soil. (SP/transl.fl)