w2eu | 05.02.2017
On 5th February 2017, most of the adults among the 711 refugees residing in a state-run Camp in the former Athens National Airport (Camp Elliniko II), in the majority coming from Afghanistan, started a hunger strike to protest against their degrading living conditions demanding for their transfer to homes, papers and freedom of movement for all. As reported by one of the refugees, it is very likely that residents of the two other camps in Elliniko (the nearby Olympic baseball and a hockey stadiums) might join in the protest tomorrow.
Among the 1,600 refugees living in the three camps of Elliniko there are some who are there already since one year. Elliniko Camp was opened already back in autoumn 2015, in a period where thousands were arriving to Greece and many stayed homeless in the parks and squares of Athens. Planned as a temporary solution to ‘clear’ the capitals’ streets from the many homeless and repeatedly announced to be closed as belonging to one of the most infamous camps in Greece, it still stayed open until today, but always portrayed as ‘provisory’ under the UNHCR-category ‘informal site’.
Refugees used to live in the former airport throughout 2016 for months suffering under overcrowdedness, filthy insufficient toilettes and showers, inadequate food and without any information or legal aid. While the population has been reduced visible, the camp still is inadequate to host refugees and living conditions remain poor. Many highly vulnerable people still stay there. There are elderly, pregnant women, single mothers, people with mental health problems, people with chronic and heavy diseases etc. In the meantime, many refugees are living there since one year.
Amongst others, refugees who started the protest complained about the quality of the food, lack of basic needs as for example milk and diapers for babies and toddlers, no hot water, no laundry, lack of translators for sick persons who have to go to hospital and no coverage of their transportation there. It is matter of survival, they state. They do not care about having more clothes or more food. But: food which doesnt’ make sick. Enough food, in order not to be hungry. Heating in order not to freeze.
“There are only a hand full of persons among us who speak English and who can translate. They have to accompany anyone who gets sick to the hospital, as the authorities and NGOs do not provide us with translators for these purposes nor are there translators found in the hospitals. We don’t even get the transportation costs re-funded for the public transport used while accompanying some sick person. Some of us got fined more than 30 times already for using the public transportation without tickets. We will have severe problems in our asylum procedure, to get an ID and passport, if recognized, if we have open fines to pay. And they will increase successively if unpaid.”
Refugees living in Elliniko are suffering also mentally from the living conditions in the camp and their insecure situation in Greece and Europe.
“There are often fights. No one feels safe. People are in a miserable state. they don’t know what to do. Many fear to stay forever in Greece, where even Greek people cannot survive. There are no jobs, there is no future. We fear European policies, which aim to increase deportations of Afghans. Some of us have their relatives back in Afghanistan. They cannot sleep at night, because they left them back in conflict. There are people staying here who drink and fight. There is no safety in the camp. There is no survival in Greece and there is no safety in Afghanistan.”
Amongst the refugee population in the camp are women with their kids awaiting their transfer to another European state where their husbands are. There are small kids with Asthma, like this 4-year-old girl who has to go to hospital almost every single night. People lock the doors to protect the salon from the cold, so no fresh air can enter. Many people smoke inside, others cook. The sewage water from the toilettes smells. So many get problems to breath. There is also a young man who had so severe psychological problems, that he had to be transferred into the psychiatric clinic for a month. He was paranoid, thinking at any point someone wanted to kill him. He is taking medicaments now, but he is back in the camp, staying among 700 persons with his family. There is this pregnant lady in her 6th month, who often gets pains and has to visit the hospital again and again. She still lives there. Another woman just gave birth in there one month before. She is also still there.
Now, the refugees are trying to rase their voices to the world. They are already self-organised, having elected five representatives and holding plenaries since months. Now they want to provoke change, as they cannot suffer any longer.
“I am in danger in Afghanistan. I am even in danger in Greece. I was told to get myself an appointment at the Asylum Service via Skpye, but Skype isn’t responding.”
A woman holding a speech on the protest today said:
“We left Afghanistan because of the life-threatening situation and for a future for our children. You closed the borders in front of us. You locked us up in Greece. Now you are responsible to provide us with what is needed to survive at least. Our children get sick here, and the one doctor we have here for a few hours a day doesn’t give them medicine but tell them to go an drink some water or some juice. We have the right to have a good doctor, to have medicine. Even a pregnant woman gave birth here, because the ambulance came so late.”
“There are mice in here. There is so much garbage outside. People get sick from being here.”
Most adult refugees living in the camp attended the hunger strike today and plan to continue until the authorities, UNHCR and Danish Refugee Council (DRC) who are responsible in the camp listen and react to their demands:
Open homes! Open the cities! Immediate evacuation of all into dignified living conditions!
“We need to stay in the city and in our own rooms or flats. We don’t want to be transferred to just another tent camp or prefab camp at the margins of society! We want our children to go to school and we want to go to work and earn our own living by ourselves in order to build up our lives independently. We want to be free and participate in daily life as all others do in this country.”
Give papers and residence to stay to all refugees and allow anyone who wants to move to another country to relocate legally and to join their relatives! No discrimination of certain nationalities!
“The relocation program is discriminative. The right of free movement should be given to all refugees. Many have their mothers, fathers, brothers or sisters, their children or grandparents abroad. Everybody has the right to be with his or her families. All people have the right to live and work, somewhere, where it is possible to survive. Even Greeks are searching for jobs outside of Greece. They are surviving by returning to stay with their families. We have no one to help us here, no one to open his or her house for us or to give us food. If there is a chance to survive here, to find a job here, then we will stay. As long as there isn’t, we should be allowed to move on legally.”
Stop deportations to Turkey! Stop deportations to Greece! Stop deportations to Afghanistan! Stop deportations to any unsafe countries! The right to life for all!
“We fight for our rights. We fight for the rights of the others too. The ones who are on the islands now, should be allowed to come to the mainland, to seek asylum here, to stay here. Currently, people hardly arrive to Greece anymore. The Turkish and the Greek Coast Guard, together with the European Coast Guard fight refugees back on the sea border. They stop them, from arriving to a place for asylum and protection. The few who still come should be given a chance to stay. Some of them who were allowed to move to the mainland arrive to Athens without a place to stay. They are not permitted in the camps. Others come to Athens without permit. They even have to return to the island. We want freedom for all.”
“They want to start returning refugees who have been fingerprinted here after March 15th of this year, back to Greece. No one can survive here. We like to be in Greece. There are some nice people here, the weather is good and the mentality of the Greeks is a little bit like our own. But there are no jobs and there is no help for us. So how can we find a home? How can we secure food for our kids? We also liked much more to be in our homes in Afghanistan. But there is so safety but but only war.”
“Europe is talking about the deportation of Afghans. Some countries started already to return our people back even though their lives are in danger in Afghanistan. Our president has signed a deal with Europe to get money in exchange for taking refugees back. But our own politicians keep their families in Europe for their own safety. European governments advice their own citizens not to visit our country for safety reasons. If we go back, we will die. Everybodys’ lives matter!”
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Deutschlandfunk | 06.02.2017
Flüchtlinge protestieren gegen Zustände in griechischer Unterkunft
In Griechenland haben Flüchtlinge mit einer Protestaktion auf ihre Lage aufmerksam gemacht.
Sie verwehrten Migrationsminister Mouzalas den Zugang zu ihrer Unterkunft auf dem Gelände eines ehemaligen Flughafens in Athen. Dort leben etwa 1600 Menschen. Internationale Hilfsorganisationen haben die Zustände in den griechischen Flüchtlingslagern wiederholt als katastrophal kritisiert.
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Ekathimerini | 06.02.2017
Mouzalas blocked from entering migrant camp
A group of migrants Monday tried to prevent Migration Minister Yannis Mouzalas from entering a facility set up at the former Athens airport terminal at Elliniko, on the city’s southern coast, in protest at poor living conditions.
Dozens of protesters, including children, gathered outside a gate heckling and harassing the leftist minister and other officials. Small-scale scuffles followed after the migrants turned down a request by Mouzalas that they unlock the entrance gate.
A 15-year-old Afghan was injured during clashes with police.
Photographs showed a migrant woman holding a baby aloft as Mouzalas approached the gate.
Access was restored following negotiations between the two sides. In what he described as a “symbolic gesture,” Mouzalas handed over the chain used to lock the gate to the police, saying: “You are responsible for this facility which belongs to the Greek state. I do not want to see locks again.”
Mouzalas urged any migrants who do not wish to stay at the Elliniko camp to leave the site.
“They have rights, and we respect them. But they too ought to respect the laws of the state. Anyone who feels oppressed inside this facility can leave and be subject to the provisions of the law,” he said.
After a two-hour meeting with migrants’ representatives, Mouzalas vowed that authorities would take steps to improve food and supply an additional boiler for hot water at the facility. The improvements will be carried out in cooperation with the Danish Refugee Council (DRC), a humanitarian NGO that has a strong presence at Elliniko.
Speaking in Parliament Monday, Mouzalas admitted that some migrants had tried to block food distribution at the camp on Sunday but denied reports of a mass hunger strike at the site.
About 500 people, mostly Afghan nationals, currently live at the Elliniko terminal.