Every year, thousands of people fleeing violence, insecurity, and persecution at home attempt a treacherous journey via North Africa and across the Mediterranean to reach Europe. And every year, countless lives are lost on these journeys.
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| Refugees and migrants arrive at the transit camp in Idomeni, Greece. |
In
2015, European policies led to a dramatic worsening the refugee crisis
2015 will be remembered as the year in which Europe catastrophically failed in its responsibility to respond to the urgent need for assistance and protection of over a million men, women and children. Not only did the European Union and European governments collectively fail to address the urgent humanitarian and medical needs of refugees and migrants arriving at external and internal EU borders, but their policies and actions actively contributed to the worsening of the so-called “refugee crisis” and the health and well being of those who fled.
2015 will be remembered as the year in which Europe catastrophically failed in its responsibility to respond to the urgent need for assistance and protection of over a million men, women and children. Not only did the European Union and European governments collectively fail to address the urgent humanitarian and medical needs of refugees and migrants arriving at external and internal EU borders, but their policies and actions actively contributed to the worsening of the so-called “refugee crisis” and the health and well being of those who fled.
Europe’s restrictive
policies put some of the world’s most vulnerable people in more danger,
causing more suffering, as they risk it all to try to bring themselves, and
their families, to safety. European countries (and transit countries) have the
responsibility to ensure their policies guarantee the right to seek asylum and
respect fundamental rights and human dignity.
People will continue to risk their lives at the hands
of smugglers as long as there are no safe alternatives
There
are very few safe channels that people can take to reach protection, safety and
a better life. With Europe’s land borders sealed, people are forced into the
hands of smugglers and into leaky, overcrowded boats on the Mediterranean and
Aegean seas.
As
of 20 February, 94,269 people had arrived in
Greece from Turkey by sea this year; this brings the total number of
arrivals to the Greek islands since 1 January 2015 to more than 950,000. The
daily average of nearly 2,000 arrivals is nearly ten times the daily average of
a year ago. The Aegean Sea has become the most deadly route for people trying
to reach Greece from Turkey. To date, more than 400 people were reported death
in the Mediterranean Sea.
Search and rescue is not a solution to the situation.
Safe
and legal alternatives are, but resources must be sufficiently allocated to
mitigate for more unnecessary loss of life
In the last six months of 2015, we have seen an increase of vessels contributing to search and rescue efforts in the Central Mediterranean (mainly through FRONTEX, EUNAVFOR). Combined with the decrease of the arrivals in the Central Mediterranean, this led to an improvement in the assistance of boats in distress. This also led to MSF to decide to put an end to its last Search and Rescue vessel still at sea, the Argos on 31 December 2015.
In the last six months of 2015, we have seen an increase of vessels contributing to search and rescue efforts in the Central Mediterranean (mainly through FRONTEX, EUNAVFOR). Combined with the decrease of the arrivals in the Central Mediterranean, this led to an improvement in the assistance of boats in distress. This also led to MSF to decide to put an end to its last Search and Rescue vessel still at sea, the Argos on 31 December 2015.
It
remains European states’ responsibility and imperative to maintain and provide
adequate and proactive resources to rescue lives at sea. We very much hope
these resources will be sufficient next year and that our boats will no longer
be needed. For this, the creation of a dedicated mechanism to ensure adequate
search and rescue capacity in the Mediterranean, with the primary remit to save
lives, is essential. In the coming months, the situation may rapidly change and
number of arrivals will certainly increase again.
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| Medecins Sans Frontiers (MSF) and Greenpeace teams assist a boat carrying Syrian refugees to safety on the shores of Lesbos, Greece. |
The EU must ensure that an
adequate search and rescue capacity is assured when the numbers rise. Moreover,
the focus of European policies on targeting smugglers, who remain a symptom of
the lack of safe and legal channels, should not take precedence over the
urgency of providing lifesaving assistance and appropriate humanitarian
assistance for those who risk their life in search of safety and a better life.
In
the Aegean Sea, MSF has launched rescue activities off the island of Lesvos
(also called Lesbos) in collaboration with the international organization
Greenpeace. But its resources are not sufficient and further rescue operations
should be put in place in the Aegean, where the number of people crossing from
Turkey to Greece remains very high (nearly 2,000 people a day) and where winter
and conditions at sea are making this trip more dangerous every day.
The
announcement on 11 February that NATO would patrol the Aegean Sea to intercept
refugee and migrant boats is another worrying indication of the military focus
of the European response, which is not adequate to address the assistance and
protection needs of those fleeing for their lives.
The humanitarian consequences of border closures
Rash
decisions to close borders and a lack of coordination between different
European states have created incredible stress and dangerous conditions for
thousands of people on the move. MSF has documented the domino effect of border
closure: each time a border closes, thousands of people are abruptly halted,
stranded in no man’s lands, with little to no humanitarian assistance, and
ultimately, forced onto more dangerous routes or into the hands of smugglers.
Authorizing
transit across the Balkans had so far been the only realistic response to the
failure of the European asylum system and Greece’s inability to offer
assistance and protection. These sudden policy changes, implemented without any
consideration of people’s protection, medical or shelter needs, shows once
again the incapacity of European and Western Balkans States to provide coherent
and humane solutions to the needs of desperate people in search of protection.
Everyone has the right to seek asylum, and refugee status and protection needs
cannot be judged based on nationality alone.
Contrary
to what governments claim, the construction of fences at the EU’s external
borders over the past years has not lead to a decrease in the number of people
trying to cross and seek protection in the European Union: it has only
pushed people to take more risks by crossing the sea instead of safer land
borders and has forced them to resort to a thriving smuggling business. As
reception places and access to asylum procedures in Greece, the main country of
entry, remain largely insufficient and below standards, recent announcements of
further border closure along the Balkan route – potentially ring-fencing tens
of thousands of people in Greece – are of great concern to MSF. There is
potentially a deeper humanitarian crisis in the making.
European countries are only accepting a small share of
the total number of displaced
Most
of the world’s displaced people live elsewhere in their home countries or in
the counties surrounding their home countries, relatively few are granted
asylum elsewhere. For example, twelve million Syrians have been displaced by
the ongoing conflict. Eight million have fled to other parts of Syria. Four
million live as refugees in the countries that surround Syria – many of these
countries are now overwhelmed (one in four people living in Lebanon are now Syrian refugees). Only a million people
have made it to Europe – that is less than 2% of the total number of European
population. It is more than time for European countries to adopt more humane
and asylum policies.
Externalized border controls in transit countries and
countries of origin cannot be the EU's solution to the European refugee crisis
The
enforcement of migration cooperation deals between the EU and its member states
with third countries is resulting in unacceptable humanitarian consequences,
including high levels of violence and a sustained erosion of refugee and asylum
law. The EU can no longer turn a blind eye to the well documented abuses [1] associated with such externalization of border
controls. Unless concrete protection measures to assure equal treatment
and the dignity, safety and protection of people on the move are in place,
abuses of migrants and refugees will worsen with increased externalization of
border control.
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| Refugees from Syria disembark from a Greek coast guard ship in Petra, onto the Greek island of Lesbos. |
Our experience in Morocco and Libya amongst others has shown such policies to have
severe medical humanitarian consequences, with people suffering high levels
of abuse and ill-treatment.
The urgent need for safe
passage
The only way to save life
and alleviate the suffering of these people is to provide them with a safe
passage through:
What is MSF doing to help?
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MSF has been working with
Mediterranean migrants to Europe since the autumn of 2002, when MSF started working in
Lampedusa reception centre with a programme that focuses on medical
triage of asylum seekers, and has been working with people in many of the
countries they flee from for even longer.
Central Mediterranean
In May 2015 MSF took the
unprecedented decision to launch search and rescue activities in the Central
Mediterranean. By the end of 2015, the Bourbon Argos, the Dignity I and the
MY Phoenix had RESCUED 20,129 PEOPLE and assisted an additional 3,000 people.
With the decrease in arrivals coming from Libya and the increased SAR
capacity in the Central Mediterranean, MSF took the decision to put on
standby its operations in the Central Mediterranean in December 2015. It
remains ready to intervene should the EU and its member states fail to
protect the lives of the thousands of men, women and children expected to
flee North Africa for Europe in coming months.
Aegean Sea
With the number of arrivals
from Turkey to Greek islands continuing to be extremely high, and the
worsening of weather conditions, MSF has launched rescue activities in the
Aegean Sea off the island of Lesvos in collaboration with the international
organisation Greenpeace.
Between 27 November 2015 and
31 January 2016, the MSF/Greenpeace Rescue operation assisted more
than 17,000 people in 335 interventions.
During the same period an
estimated 378 people, out of whom 108 were children, were reported
dead/missing in the Aegean Sea.
Both in the Aegean and in
the Central Mediterranean, sea rescue operations are only a temporary measure
to mitigate the loss of lives but they cannot represent a solution. MSF calls
on the EU to provide safe and accessible alternatives, for people fleeing war
and persecution, to the sea crossing between North Africa and southern Europe
which has in the first month of 2016 alone claimed more than 400 lives.
Additionally, MSF operates
land-based migration projects in six countries:
TUNISIA
MSF has been working with
fishermen in Zarzis, Tunisia, to offer training in
search and rescue. Fishermen are often on the first line of the response when
boats get into trouble near their fishing grounds and have been given
material as well as training to assist them in their efforts. MSF has also
provided training to the Tunisian and Libyan Red Crescents in dead body
management.
ITALY
In Italy, where sea arrivals
are nothing new, the reception system for newly arrived migrants and asylum
seekers has been put under great strain. MSF has repeatedly highlighted the
shortcomings of Italy's reception system during months of negotiations with
the authorities and in a report presented to an
Italian parliamentary commission last November.
Sicily: At the end of 2015, MSF
ended its medical activities in the reception center of Pozzallo, Sicily, due to the
unacceptable conditions including overcrowding and the lack of protection for
vulnerable people and the impossibility for our teams to represent an added
value inside an inadequate structure. The MSF team there - made up of medical
doctors, nurses, psychologists, and cultural mediators - has been supporting
the Ragusa Provincial Health Agency with medical screening and a 24-hour
medical service, carrying out more than 3,000 consultations since February.
During the past year, over 150,000 people have arrived in Italy by sea, and
15,000 of them have landed at the port of Pozzallo.
MSF has also provided mental
healthcare support to people living in reception centres in Ragusa province. The team has
provided more than 800 consultations for people in need of psychological
support, particularly for those suffering from traumatic events. In 2015, in
addition to health screenings, MSF provided psychological first aid to people who had suffered
traumatic events during the sea journey to Europe, for example those who had
experienced shipwrecks. The team - made up of a psychologist and cultural
mediators - has been providing psychological first aid in ports of arrival
with the aim of alleviating concerns and helping survivors face the first
moments immediately after landing. The team has responded to 14 events in
eight Italian ports, assisting 2,500 survivors of traumatic events during
their sea journey.
Rome: MSF launched in October 2015
a project offering medical rehabilitation to asylum seekers who have been victims
of torture, in collaboration with an Italian organization (Medici contro la
tortura). The main countries of origin of beneficiaries are Nigeria, Mali,
Afghanistan, Ghana, Gambia and Egypt. In total, 39 people from 15 countries
have received assistance in more than 340 individual consultations.
Gorizia: In the Northern city
of Gorizia, at the border with Slovenia, MSF is providing medical care,
shelter and first assistance for the hundreds of refugees. MSF has installed
25 containers, with a capacity to offer shelter to 96 people. Reception
facilities have been sufficient to respond to the totality of the local
reception needs: all the available places were assigned and there was no
further space left for new comers. New arrivals have been regulars but
constants through this time, with only one exception, when 15 people passed
the border and arrived at the centre during the same day. It is a
temporary solution to provide spaces where people can be welcomed with
shelter, hygiene facilities and medical screening to improve their living
conditions.
During the last month,
around 300 medical screenings and visits have been carried out in
partnership with the IRC and the local health service. In order to cope
with patients’ needs and to provide them with legal information about asylum
procedures, MSF has organised trainings with a legal operator and a
specialized cultural mediator, in partnership with the national NGO Italian
Council for Refugees and legal support office from Caritas.
In Udine, MSF is supporting
local actors who provide shelter and medical assistance to migrants and
asylum seekers. Lastly, MSF is collaborating with local and regional
authorities with the aim of smoothing the access to the national health
system to asylum seekers and migrants. MSF started a dialogue with the
Italian local and regional authorities to find a long term solution and to
provide adequate reception to the new arrivals.
MSF is providing medical
care, shelter, water and sanitation and distributing relief items to refugees
and migrants arriving in the Dodecanese Islands as well as on Lesbos and Samos; in Athens; and at the Idomeni
border crossing with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
(FYROM). MSF distributed also several items (heating material, tents,
energizing food, winter clothing, and blankets) to volunteer groups in Greece
to support their actions for refugees.
In 2015, Greece saw an
unprecedented number of arrivals. By the end of the year, 856,723
people in total had arrived into the country and on average, 10 people died
every day trying to cross the sea into Europe.
As of 20
February, 94,269 people had arrived in Greece and around
320 people died or went missing trying to reach Europe.
MSF calls on the EU to
provide an alternative to the dangerous sea crossing, specifically to create
a safe passage at the land border between Turkey and Greece.
On 19 November 2015, new
restrictions were implemented only permitting Syrians, Afghanis and Iraqis to
cross the border into FYROM, leaving many others stuck in Greece. On 9
December, Greek police banned access to Idomeni Transit Camp for all refugees
and migrants that don’t have currently access to winterised facilities and
have to wait for long hours in a petrol station in the town of Polycastro.
Together with other organisations, MSF called on the authorities to allow
migrants and refugees access to the camp - which was subsequently granted on
20 January. The camp is now consistently being used to its full capacity. On
21 February, Afghans - who make up 30 percent of arrivals in Greece - were
refused permission to cross both the Greek-FYROM border and the border
between FYROM and Serbia.
MSF calls on the Greek
authorities to meet their obligations and commit to reception, by providing
and managing spaces throughout Greece, where people can access shelter, food,
hygiene facilities and medical screening. This is all the more urgent as we
have seen that the flow of people arriving is not stopping despite the winter
weather and we know that the harsh living conditions could have a severe
impact on their health.
Kos, Leros (Dodecanese
Islands): There
is currently no official reception system in any of the Dodecanese islands,
though the construction of a hotspot on Leros is underway and scheduled for
completion on 17 February 2016. In addition, the construction of an official
reception centre (not a ‘hotspot’ at the Mayors insistence) on Kos is also
taking place currently, scheduled for completion by the end of February 2016.
In Kos, MSF has established
some tents - to provide extra shelter when the island is full- in the car
park of an archaeological park on the island. We are also distributing
blankets, water and running a medical clinic which includes access to a
psychologist.
In Leros, MSF is providing
shelter and hygiene facilities to host the people brought to the island for
registration from the neighbouring military island of Farmakonissi,
conducting medical activities and distributing NFI’s, food and water. The MSF
team has been conducting vulnerability screenings to identify the most
vulnerable groups like pregnant women, minors, but also people without any
resource to have access to the basic needs, providing medical consultations
and mental health support in Leros since March.
Since the beginning of
January in Kos and Leros we have conducted a total 569 medical consultations
in Kos and 1,252 in Leros. In the first week of February 2016 we have also conducted
mental health activities for more than 148 people through individual and
group sessions.
Leros: MSF started Sea Rescue
operations in the South East Aegean Sea on 21 December 2015 to provide
dedicated rescue support to prevent tragedies at sea, related to the perilous
journey refugees have to undertake in order to reach the broader area of the
island of Leros and adjacent islands.
Since the beginning of the
project the MSF Rescue Teams have assisted more than 500 people trying to
reach Farmakonissi and nearby small islets in unseaworthy boats. MSF Leros
Sea Rescue project ceased activities from mid-February as more rescue means
are in place.
Lesbos: As of 20 February,
53,617 people have arrived to the island of Lesbos – 90% of whom came from
Syria, Iraq or Afghanistan. MSF has been responding on the island since June
2015. In the authority-run registration camp (Moria) MSF is providing medical
consultations, mental health support, distributing relief items and
conducting water and sanitation activities. In the north of the island, MSF
is running rescue activities and organising the transportation of new
arrivals between the North and the camps in the South where they must
complete their registration, in January MSF transported 10,482 new arrivals.
In Kara Tepe, the second authority-run camp, MSF is running a medical clinic
and operating a mobile medical clinic in the port.
In Mantamados MSF has
established a transit camp for arrivals to the north of the island where we
provide shelter, medical and mental health activities, a children’s play area
and ‘safe space for mothers’ and distribute food, water, blankets. MSF is
offering first assistance to new arrivals as they travel down to
registration sites in the South of the island.
Our teams - that are
providing medical care to refugees and migrants in Kara Tepe and Moria camps
and at the port of Mytilini, have observed several pathologies related to the
winter conditions, such as respiratory tract infections as well as injuries
associated with the journey. MSF continues works to improve water and
sanitation in Kara Tepe and Moria camps; ensuring cleaning services
throughout the camps, installing chemical toilets and providing water points
in Moria. MSF is also offering transportation through 14 buses as well as 2
ambulances to new arrivals, transporting an average of 300 people every day
so far in 2016, avoiding them being forced to walk for 70 Km to reach the
registration centers in the South of the island. For medical referrals of new
arrivals we are operating two ambulances on the island as well as a minivan for
mild cases or vulnerable families.
The Greek authorities have
yet to identify an additional suitable space to the existing reception center
in Moria and Kara Tepe camp where people can be offered shelter, food,
hygiene facilities and medical screening. As long as this is not done, in the
face of chronic mismanagement by the authorities, it is likely that the
island will go from crisis situation to crisis situation. MSF negotiates
since months with authorities in order to have a space near the harbour where
people wait for their ferry in order to put some heated tents at least for
children and vulnerable people.
Idomeni: In Idomeni
transit camp, close to the border with FYROM (Former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia), MSF is running a medical clinic and distributing relief items for
those who are continuing their journey to Western Europe. The transit camp
now has six heated rub halls, 24 hot showers, wifi, provision for hot food
and clean toilets. From 9 December 2015 to 20 January 2016, this camp was
closed to refugees and migrants, due to restrictions enforced by the Greek
Police, but have since reopened due to ongoing pressure from NGOs and
volunteers. The numbers arriving to the north continue to be much higher than
the capacity of the transit camp and so, many refugees and migrants
travelling to the FYROM border have no option but to spend hours waiting a
gas station less than 20km from the camp – often overnight. In response, MSF
has established nine 45sqm heated tents at the service station so that people
waiting can stay warm and dry. We also run our mobile medical clinic at the
site, have set up temporary toilets and distribute food and water.
With 50% of refugees and
migrants in Greece now classed as “illegal” – according to Greek authorities
- due to expired or illegal papers, it is becoming harder to reach those in
need as many have turned to unofficial routes in order to try and continue
their journey. In response, we have launched outreach activities in areas we
know to be populated by people who have been rejected from FYROM or whom
cannot cross. Here, we are providing medical care as well as distributing
blankets, food and water. We have seen a considerable increase in smugglers
in the area following the restrictions implemented on 19 November only
permitting Syrians, Afghans and Iraqi’s to cross out of Greece. In addition,
we have consistently heard reports from people who were caught crossing
illegally into FYROM and claim to have been beaten by the police – indeed,
our medical teams have treated a number of injuries consistent with violent
behaviour though we cannot confirm the perpetrators of this violence.
In the last week of January
2016, MSF medical teams conducted 1,462 medical consultations between Idomeni
Transit Camp and the Eko Gas Station. The main morbidities are Respiratory
tract infections (associated with inadequate shelter) 51% and
Gastrointestinal (associated with inadequate access to hygiene facilities)
12%.
Samos: Samos is the second
most important island after Lesbos where refugees land when they cross over
from Turkey. An MSF team is providing first aid to refugees when they land.
Then they transfer them by MSF bus to the city of Vathy where the
registration process is taking place in the port area. In Vathy MSF
is performing medical and mental health activities at the port
where only few nationalities are allowed to be sheltered, mainly Syrians and
Iraqis. During weekends, MSF is also running a mobile clinic next to
the screening center in the north of Vathy
town where the rest of migrants, including Afghans, are
waiting for several days/weeks the registration to be completed. MSF is
providing NFI and a hot meal to an average of 300 people from the
screening center every day. MSF social workers are supporting the
referral of vulnerable cases to the hospital and providing translators. MSF
started providing a support to local fishermen for research patrols around
the island.
Agathonisi: In the island of Agathonisi,
close to Samos, MSF team is welcoming new arrivals, providing medical care
and shelter to refugees when they land.
Korinthos: In order to provide medical
care to the most vulnerable people arriving in Greece, in February, MSF
started providing medical care in the Korinthos detention center, where 4,369
people were present. Most of them are coming from Northern Africa and they
are stopped in Greece and cannot continue their journey to other European
countries. The MSF medical team plans to go to Korinthos twice a week to
provide medical consultations in the detention centre.
Athens: In Athens, MSF launched in
October 2014 a project offering medical rehabilitation migrants and asylum
seekers who have suffered systematic violence in their country of origin,
during their journey or in Greece. The MSF team, in cooperation with two
local partners: BABEL mental health day center and Greek Council for
Refugees, offers medical assistance, including psychiatric care and
physiotherapy, psychological, social and legal support aiming at the
rehabilitation of victims of violence. 164 people from 33 countries have
received assistance in more than 2,500 individual consultations. The project
is in the process of being re-launched with increased capacity for outreach
in the urban setting in response to the increased needs resulting from the
changing context: more and more migrants and refugees spend longer periods in
Athens as access to the “Balkans route” is being restricted.
In order to respond to the
increase in migrants’ arrivals in Athens, MSF has been providing
since December 2015 outpatient medical consultations at the
Eleonas Hospitality Centre for Refugees. The medical team consisting of one
medical doctor, one nurse, one Arabic translator and one Farsi translator is
present every day including weekends. Victoria square in the centre of Athens
has become an unofficial meeting place for migrants of all nationalities. On
12 February, MSF started providing outpatient medical consultations in a
facility next to Victoria Square, where an NGO welcomes and provides social
activities to women and children.
SERBIA
Since late 2014, MSF teams
have been present at both entry and exit points in Serbia offering medical
services, mental health support and distributing NFIs to people transiting
through Serbia, onwards towards Croatia. MSF has also conducted mobile
clinics at the Bulgarian border and since January 2016 has re-started
activities in Belgrade.
The Western Balkan route is
fraught with difficulties and danger. It is subject to frequent and confusing
changes as state borders open and close with little warning. Since
mid-November 2015 a new policy was introduced in Slovenia that only allows
people from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan to apply for asylum. This policy had
a domino effect towards the transit countries which meant that it is now implemented
all across the Balkan route. This is a deeply concerning and discriminatory
practice since asylum is a universal right based on individual claims and not
nationality. This has pushed people back into the hands of the smuggling
system, increasing their vulnerability and putting them at further risk.
Since this policy was put into place, MSF immediately saw an increase in the
number of patients who reported having been victims of violence while
crossing Macedonia. These reports have come from Non-Syria, Iraq and
Afghanistan country nationals who are forced to cross without papers,
therefore denied access to public transport, hostels or medical care. As a
result, they are also more vulnerable due to the travel out in the open, at
night, in rough terrain and without shelter.
Since January, also Croatia
has increased restrictions in the screening of people entering the train
(only Syrian, Iraqis and Afghanis), that has led to pushbacks of even
documented people – between 100-200 daily. MSF has treated patients who
alleged having been beaten by Croatian police while being sent back. Since
last year, MSF has seen an increase of women, children and disabled people it
has treated and in January 2016 official numbers were: 44%; men; 36% children
and 20% women.
Presevo: In Presevo, where the
registration center is located, hundreds of people are walking through the
border in a dirt road which is often muddy. MSF has set up shelters to
protect people from rain and rehabilitated a 1,5 Km road to facilitate
the crossing of thousands of people in safer conditions and allow for 4x4 to
pick up the most vulnerable. MSF also provides primary health care near the
registration center and in a transit camp near the border; supports garbage
collection, does NFI distribution, set up toilets and showers and offers
transport to vulnerable families and people with disability from the border.
MSF also set up seven 45m2 heated tents in waiting areas with capacity for
280 people daily. Since January, MSF teams provide 1,816 consultations in
Presevo.
In Presevo, non Syrians,
Iraqis and Afghans remain in our tents as they are not allowed inside the
registration center and denied services as well. MSF has provided medical
care and referred to protection actors for solutions but as there is no
option for them unless applying for asylum in Serbia (IOM is not present for
voluntary returns). Many have already tried to cross to Croatia having been
sent back to Macedonia and entered Serbia again and are now waiting indefinitely
or arranging for ways to travel onwards with smugglers.
Sid: In Sid, MSF strengthened its
regular medical activities by operating 20/7 inside a transit center where
refugees have to wait before going to the train in Sid. MSF has also set up 8
large heated tents with a capacity to shelter more than 2000 people from the
cold. Since January, MSF teams provide 4786 consultations in Sid.
Belgrade: With the new policy allowing
only certain nationalities to enter in Balkan countries, MSF has seen an
increase of the number of people staying again in Belgrade parks, sleeping in
the street or at train station with low temperatures and lack of support at
night (shelter, food, medical, legal, etc.).
MSF started operating in
Belgrade with a mobile clinic during the night, providing primary health care
and distributing NFIs. Unaccompanied minors represent 5% of medical
consultations in Belgrade (while the proportion is 1% in Presevo, and 0.8% in
Sid). In addition MSF has been advocating for shelter and protection solutions
for this vulnerable population which often reaches us after having crossed
Bulgaria or Macedonia walking for days with no assistance and pray to
violence from criminal groups, police and smugglers. This is also a
population that often has tried to pass to Croatia and has been denied access
on the train or has been pushed back by police. Although MSF has not
witnessed these events and can’t identify perpetrators, we have treated cases
consistent with the stories told by our patients – coming from Croatia,
Bulgaria or Macedonia.
SLOVENIA
MSF is monitoring the
situation in Slovenia.
FRANCE
Calais: Around 4,000 refugees and
migrants are living in Calais on the so called Jungle site. Calais is the
city located near the Channel tunnel linking France and the United Kingdom
and for several years migrants have been trying to reach the UK on trucks via
the Channel Tunnel. A lot of non-profit organizations and local charitable
initiatives are offering assistance to the population of the camp. MSF
teams provide around 120 consultations every day in the clinic set up in the
camp. These include medical consultations, nursing care, physiotherapy and
psychological support. The diseases treated – respiratory and ENT infections
and some cases of scabies – are mainly due to the conditions patients are
subject to. Tensions are growing between migrants and the police. And we
receive now at the Outpatient clinic around three victims of violence
every day. Measles cases were reported in the camp and it was decided with
the local health authorities to conduct a vaccination campaign for the people
older than six months. The target population is estimated at 4,000 people.
From 28 January to February 5,2082 people were immunized against measles by
different medical actors, including MSF.
To respond to the need of
shelter, MSF started in December building wooden shelter. So far more
than 200 have been supplied. MSF did also water and sanitation repair
work and set up 66 chemical toilets, as the number of latrines was largely insufficient.
To improve the hygiene on the site, MSF set up a system for collecting and
managing garbage. On 11 January, the French government opened a camp in a
secure area within the camp to provide 1,500 people with accomodation in
container-dormitories, not equipped with showers. There 630 people are
currently accommodated.
Grande Synthe: Further north of Calais,
there is another large site in Grande-Synthe where 2,500 refugees and
migrants are living in the mud, wet and cold in appalling conditions. To start
with, MSF is providing medical consultations three days a week and has set up
22 latrines and 2 water points. But the main target is to offer this
population shelter and more acceptable living conditions. For this purpose,
MSF began work on 13 January on a new site for refugees in Grande-Synthe. The
project is conducted with the support of the Grande-Synthe’s mayor. The work
will take about a month to complete, during which 500 tents (each for 5
people), hot showers and latrines in sufficient number will be installed as
well as common living spaces. The new site is planned to be ready end of
February. Confirmed measles cases were also reported in the Grande-Synthe
camp, and the vaccination campaign is planned for mid-February.
[1] See for e.g.
From a Rock to a Hard Place - highlighting the needs of migrants and refugees
in Tunisia (fleeing Libya 2011) and Trapped at the Gates of
Europe (Morocco
2013) which includes MSF data showing that more than half of the
medical problems diagnosed among 10,500 sick and wounded migrants treated by
MSF between 2010 and 2012, were diseases closely related to poor living
conditions. In the same period, 18% of MSF’s medical consultations were
related to physical and sexual violence. MSF treated almost 700 male and
female survivors of sexual violence, attacked in their country of origin, en
route and in Morocco. In 2012 alone, MSF teams in Nador, neighbouring Melilla
and Oujda assisted more than 1,100 people with violence related injuries,
many perpetrated by Moroccan Security Forces and the Spanish Guardia Civil. A
2012 MSF survey found 63% of people interviewed experienced violence in
Morocco, with 92% stating that the violence was intentional. MSF teams also
recorded worrying increases in the expulsions of vulnerable groups. In 2012,
191 incidents were recorded and more than 6,000 people were expelled,
including pregnant women, minors and people requiring medical treatment for
violence related injuries. The real numbers are likely to be
considerably higher.
24/2/2016
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