Consul General of Greece Discusses Refugee Crisis
Salem, Mass., March 30, 2017 — Consul General of Greece Iphigenia Kanara spoke to Salem State University (SUU) students about the refugee crisis in Europe from the perspective of Greece. Kanara discussed the challenges refugees from Syria and Africa are facing including displacement, deaths and arrivals to Europe.
“We need good leaderships to strike the right balance between those two necessities: being human and being welcoming and provide for people in need at the same time being respectful of internal concerns,” said Kanara.
The issue of smuggling refugees has become an issue of concern, with the year 2015 having the largest influx of illegal travelers with over one million people by sea, and 4,000 reported dead or missing.
“The death toll is higher between Africa and Italy. This is because of two reasons: first of all because the distance is longer,and the sea is deeper,” said Kanara.
Fifty percent of those refugees were from Syria, followed by Afghanistan and Iraq. In the year 2015 over 850,000 refugees arrived in Greece, and over 150,000 in Italy.
“In Greece we are facing a very serious problem which needs immediate attention and this is the situation today in Greece… The Western Balkan route is now closed, so people stop in Greece, and when we say people we are letting in around 65,000 migrants and refuges… They are stuck in nearly 50 camps across the mainland and of course the islands. ” said Kanara.
This is a huge strain on Greece which is a country that is struggling economically, and is now having to take care of thousands of refugees, and give them food, shelter, and medicine.
Dr. Elizabeth Duclos-Orsello, professor and coordinator of the American Studies Program at SSU, visited refugee camps in Thessaloniki, Greece, and recounts her experience witnessing the crisis in person.
“This is not how the world is supposed to be. The world is not supposed to be that you have your 18-month old living in tent… While I was there, that particular camp, this small, small echo camp,from the time that camp had opened, which had just been four or five months prior,there were around 60 babies born in the camp,” said Duclos-Orsello.
The crisis refugees are facing in Europe continues, but Duclos-Orsello said she feels the coverage is dwindling, and added: “as an American I feel like this was a story a year ago, and now we’ve moved on.”
The Syrian people continue to face deadly bombings killing innocent civilians, including a chemical attack allegedly carried out by President Assad on April 5, 2017, which was considered to be one of the worst chemical attacks in years. The war rages on, with no resolution in sight.
“It affects everybody, it’s pretty interesting, I think I learned a lot,” said Hana Sargent, Senior at SSU.
Discussions about the refugee crisis are crucial to understanding major world events, especially with developments happening quickly within the past few weeks. Until the war is over Europe will continue to see an influx of refugees fleeing their war torn countries in hope of a better life. Greece is one of the countries which has been most affected by the crisis, and will continue to be, which is why Consul General of Greece Iphigenia Kanara’s continuation of the conversation at SSU is so important.
