AYS Daily Digest 05/08/2021 —Malakasa Camp Evacuated Due to Fires
Afghan People in Legal Limbo//800 People Still Waiting for Port of Safety//Demonstrations in Germany this Saturday for Sea Rescue
FEATURE
Malakasa Camp Evacuated as Fires Draw Near, Others Still Waiting
Wildfires are roaring through Greece, threatening homes and lives throughout the country.
Many of those fires endangered camps hosting people on the move. After dragging their feet, the government finally evacuated 3,000 people from Malakasa camp north of Athens in the middle of Thursday night. They were taken to Ritsona and Thiva camps.
The fires have only exacerbated the already awful living conditions in the camps, which are are not suitable for the high temperatures of a Greek summer. Earlier this week, while fires raged around Amygdaleza, water to the camp was cut off and people were forced to stay there with no way of protecting themselves from the smoke. On Thursday, there was a planned demonstration in Monastiraki Square against the neglect of people on the move throughout the country. Unaccompanied minors were transferred from Amygdaleza, but that is not enough. Meanwhile, police tried to ban photos and videos from the area to avoid letting people see just how bad the situation is.
The fires show no signs of stopping. Greece’s Fire Service put several regions of Greece on high alert, including Attica, Peloponnese, West Greece, Sterea, parts of Thessaly, and Crete, due to prolonged drought and high winds.
Our thoughts are with everyone in Greece and in the other countries of the Mediterranean who are suffering from these intense wildfires. During these awful times, we hope that governments will not forget people on the move who are trapped in camps and as such cannot evacuate on their own.
AFGHANISTAN
Afghan People in Europe Caught Between Conflict & Deportations
The news has been full of stories of growing violence in Afghanistan as the Taliban’s forces intensify. However, the consensus on the worsening situation for Afghan people has not translated into cohesive policy regarding deportations—or even basic human compassion.
The courts in several European countries have temporarily halted deportations to Afghanistan, but many states are attempting to force deportations through back door channels. Germany stopped a planned deportation on Tuesday due to an attack in Kabul, but did not offer the people being removed a satisfactory solution. Instead, they only said that the flight would be postponed: a spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of the Interior said that the flight “should be made up for in a timely manner.” In their quest for timeliness, will German authorities evaluate whether it is moral or legal to carry out deportations to a country where the security situation has deteriorated so much that flights must be cancelled?
Watchdogs have also observed that a deportation scheduled for August 10th is looking to go ahead as planned. The German government has already said that the European Court of Human Rights’ decision that Austria cannot carry out deportations to Afghanistan applies only to that one case, even though presumably anyone in Afghanistan has a reasonable fear of danger.
The German government, among others, continues on this ridiculous charade that there are regions of Afghanistan where people are safe. Yet for years, returnees have had their lives endangered, a situation that is getting worse. young man deported from Norway when he was a teenager was hospitalized following a battle against the Taliban. How many others were wrenched from safe homes just because of politics?
Meanwhile in Sweden, the government has started to release people from their legal limbo. For a while, although it had decided to stop deportations, the government still kept people in pre-deportation centers indefinitely. Yet, it is only releasing them into financial limbo. People with this legal status cannot work as they are still technically awaiting deportation, only receive about 7 euros of support a day, and most rely on volunteer aid. With the Swedish Migration Agency announcing that it won’t even start reevaluating the security situation until the fall, that means people must wait months for updated decisions on their legal statuses. How are they supposed to survive on such meager support until then? Many people are calling for Sweden to relax its rules and allow people to become residents and citizens.
SEA
800 People STILL Waiting for Port of Safety
Aboard the Ocean Viking and the Sea Watch 3, a total of about 800 people are still waiting for a safe port after days on the rescue ship. Their living conditions in cramped quarters without adequate medical care or food are not sustainable!
The situation on board is deteriorating: people are crammed into every square centimeter of deck and the choppy waves are picking up. Aboard the Sea-Watch 3, many of the 257 people rescued need urgent medical care to treat dehydration and other illnesses. They need a safe port, now!
More Deaths, Distress Cases at Sea
Forty-two people drowned near Dakhla while trying to cross the Canary route, eight of whom were children. Every day, Europe’s militarized borders cause more deaths.
121 people were intercepted in the waters off of Cabrera and Cala d’Or and taken to Mallorca.
The crew of the Nadir assisted in a rescue helping 25 people in distress on a small wooden boat in the Maltese SAR zone. The people were ultimately taken aboard the MSF ship the Geo Barents.
AlarmPhone was contacted by a group of 140 people near the Sicilian coast; they have been at sea for four days and there is no word on their situation as of yet.
For an overview of the last week in the Mediterranean, check out this video from the Seabird.
GREECE
Volunteer Updates
Samos Volunteers are stepping up to get people in the camp vaccinated. Since there are no vaccination sites near them, they drive interested people to Karlovassi. They’ve helped 85 people so far. However, this should not be the job of volunteers but the government.
If you are on Lesvos, help people on the move get jobs by joining Connection Hub’s JobReady training program. They need a French business vocabulary mentor, English teacher, digital literacy coordinator, and education coordinator. To learn more and apply, send an email to education@connectionhub.org.uk or visit this site.
GERMANY
Protests For Sea Rescue
As hundreds of people have spent days trapped on rescue ships with no safe port of rescue in sight, organizations across Germany are planning a series of actions for this weekend in support of sea rescue, because the safety of people at sea is non-negotiable. If you are free this Saturday, August 7th, here is a list of demos to attend.
FRANCE
Another Eviction in Grand Synthe
Over 400 people were evicted from a camp near Grand Synthe, most of them with no other place to go. The police destroyed dozens of tents.
For people on the move in Paris, this guide from Watizat has been updated with the latest information for August.
LITHUANIA/BELARUS
Pushbacks and Push-forwards as People on the Move Get Caught in the Middle of Political Spat
Belarus’s Lukashenko is continuing to use people on the move as political pawns, while the European Union buckles under its longstanding tactic of building walls and pushing people back. As the Lithuanian border guards push people back, openly admitting that they are using illegal methods, the Belarusian authorities refuse to let people in. As a result, people are getting caught in legal and physical limbo as a political game they have no part in plays out over their heads and on their backs.
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