22/01/2021
Last night, a boat carrying asylum seekers landed directly on the shore of the new camp in Lesvos, Greece. This has never happened before. Residents of the camp helped the new arrivals and provided them with blankets and water. Many of the new arrivals fled into the camp, some hiding in tents, in fear of the police and the threat of being returned to Turkey. While it is unknown if everyone was found, those who were are now staying in the quarantine zone.
Over the past year, there has been a significant increase in the number of violent pushbacks of asylum seekers to Turkish waters. Despite considerable evidence, the Greek authorities continue to deny their involvement. As well as increasing the risks of the journey to Europe, these pushbacks are illegal as they violate people’s basic right to seek asylum.
The fact that yesterday’s arrivals rushed to hide within the camp shows the sheer amount of terror and fear that people currently experience trying to access this right when arriving in Greece. With the EU's New Pact on Migration and Asylum emphasizing the detention and deportation of refugees, it is clear that instilling fear is a deliberate policy choice made to deter people from seeking refuge in Europe.
The EU continues to turn a blind eye to these ongoing human rights violations within their borders. We call for safe routes to claiming asylum. Because, Europe can and must do better.
